Unusual growing conditions across key pineapple growing regions have resulted in lower-than-normal pineapple volumes, impacting availability in major markets globally. Costa Rica, Panama, and Ecuador are three of the world's most productive as well as reliable pineapple growing regions. This season, however, all three countries are experiencing significantly reduced yields. "Across Central and South America, growers are facing a difficult and highly unusual season," says a grower-shipper from Central America. "Reduced yields are affecting the entire industry, not just isolated farms or specific regions."
Extreme weather
Industry monitoring indicates that pineapple supply in these growing regions is currently 15 to 30 percent below historical norms, varying by country and week. Lower flowering rates, smaller fruit size, and uneven maturation patterns have reduced both harvest volume and packing efficiency. This is primarily driven by:
- Extreme and inconsistent weather. Warmer-than-usual nights and reduced rainfall, followed by heavy, irregular storms, and prolonged cloud cover.
- Stress on plant physiology, which is causing delays in natural flowering and limiting fruit development.
- Lower fruit counts per hectare that are the direct result of the weather-related conditions.
- Reduced predictability, making it harder for farms to plan harvests and smooth weekly production.
"The weather patterns this season have been disrupting the natural growth cycle and have led to noticeably lighter production across the entire growing region."
Impact on global consumption markets
From Costa Rica, a broad customer base is served across North America, Europe, and the Middle East, as well as markets in Asia and Latin America. All markets are experiencing some degree of reduced availability. "Retailers and importers have generally been highly understanding of the situation, recognizing that the supply chain challenge is industry-wide and tied to conditions beyond any single grower's control."
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Higher pricing and reduced promotions
However, the shortage has resulted in higher market pricing for several destinations as well as reduced promotional activity. There is just not enough volume available for promotions and retailers are protecting availability. Higher pricing in combination with reduced promotional activity has resulted in a slight decrease in per-capita consumption, especially in markets that are sensitive to price changes. "Despite this development, demand for pineapples remains strong, and retailers continue to prioritize consistent on-shelf presence."
Expected timeline for improvement
A gradual recovery is anticipated to start in late Q2 to early Q3 2026, as new fields enter production and weather patterns are expected to stabilize. Full normalization, however, may take longer depending on future climate conditions. "We're already taking steps to rebuild volume, and we expect supplies to steadily improve as natural flowering cycles return to normal," the source mentioned. "Our teams are working around the clock to support customers during the temporary, but challenging period."
