Ginger supplies coming from countries outside of China look ample.
“On the conventional side, there’s quite a bit of ginger coming from Thailand at the moment. Thailand started kind of late and once they started shipping, it doesn’t feel like it’s let up at all,” says Kian Fattahi with Global Farms Enterprises in Los Angeles, Ca.
He notes that there was a month gap between when Hawaii ended its season and Thailand began. “There wasn’t that much ginger coming from Hawaii this season. There wasn’t much planted there this year so there was a shortage between when Brazil ended and when Thailand started up,” says Fattahi, adding that Thailand generally starts in February.
He also notes that increasingly, ginger from Thailand is more accepted in the marketplace. “More growers have their food-safety programs in place. And the overall quality coming from Thailand has been really good,” he says. “And the Hawaiian ginger was so expensive this season.”
Other ginger sources
Meanwhile ginger from Brazil is also expected to begin arriving in May.
However for organic ginger, Fattahi notes that the market remains very short with some organic ginger coming from Mexico, but that will end in June. “And then probably the new crop from Peru, June would be the earliest that we’ll see it,” he says. “By all accounts, their yield looks like there’s a lot of ginger to start with but typically that happens with Peru. The first half is heavy and then the second half, there’s usually not much.”
All of this is happening as ginger moves into slower months for demand. Demand for ginger heats up between December through to February.
Not surprisingly, ample supplies are taking a toll on prices. “The prices have gone down gradually since the middle of last month. The movement was good when the market was short,” says Fattahi. “But as more containers started arriving, the market can only take so much ginger and the price starts dropping.”
For more information:
Kian Fattahi
Global Farms Enterprises
Tel: +1(323) 415-6000
info@global-farms.com
www.global-farms.com