The lull in the market on dragon fruit currently means prices have pushed up. “Supplies are supposed to pick up again in late October from Ecuador,” says Alan Goldberg of A&B Tropical Produce. “We had an unusual amount of volume over the summer out of Ecuador for the very first time. They’ve only been exporting to the U.S. for six years and they’re increasing production and this is the first time we’ve had production after May. We’ve had fruit every month.”
Supplies of white and yellow dragon fruit are coming in more sporadically for now until that next crop comes in in approximately six weeks. “It’s supposed to be Ecuador’s biggest year ever and that’s probably the trend going forward. It’s a new item that’s catching on, thanks partly to all the health benefits related to it. So there is a lot of planting happening there,” says Goldberg.
Demand still growing
Demand is also continuing to be strong thanks to the fruit catching on--Goldberg says it’s an item that some people are predicting to be the next mango. However, receiving shipments from Ecuador is also still a challenge with continued high freight costs and political unrest in Ecuador that caused disruptions as well.
Given the high demand and the little production available, prices are in the mid-$30 range. This has just come up steadily in the past two to three weeks. Prior to that, the market was in the $14-$18 range for several weeks though, with peak supplies in July, the market fell for a short time below $10.
“For now, the price should stay where it is,” says Goldberg. “Once the volume starts, then it will be quite competitive.”
For more information:
Alan Goldberg
A&B Tropical Produce
+1 (305) 805-1530
alang@abtropical.com
www.abtropical.com