Kumquat availability seems to be good right now
“Supplies of kumquat seem okay. Citrus in general had a really good year this year so we haven’t run into too many issues in supplies,” says Jeremy Taylor of DNO Produce Inc. in Columbus, Ohio. DNO is a Midwest processor and repacker and Taylor notes that most of the kumquat business he works with is part of the national school foodservice program. “So I don’t have a ton of kumquat volume right now because with the weather, the schools in my area are closed so I haven’t been bringing a lot of product in,” he says. (Large parts of both the United States and Canada have been under extreme cold temperatures as a Polar Vortex sweeps across the country.) “But overall I’d say supplies seem good,” he says.
Demand rising for kumquats?
Taylor does say he’s going through more kumquats than he did the previous year. “It’s a unique fun item—they’re small, bite-sized that you don’t have to peel. So it’s getting quite a bit of a movement and I am seeing more demand,” he says, noting that domestically, kumquats are grown in California.
Meanwhile pricing is pushing up somewhat on the fruit. “Right now I’m paying $48/case. I’ve seen them for $55. Even a month ago, I was saying $38/case so the price is jumping up there a little bit,” he says. He also notes that pricing is higher than last year at this time when kumquats were available for $31-$32/case.
For more information:
Jeremy Taylor
DNO Produce Inc.
Tel: +1 (614) 231-3601
jtaylor@dnoproduce.com
https://www.dnoinc.com/