This week's retail ads were a celebration of all things Spring. With Saint Patrick's Day a week away, cabbage, onions, potatoes, and carrots were promoted alongside corned beef, Irish beer, and soda bread. Several stores featured special Passover sections that included grape juice, apple juice, and apples. Lemons, limes, cactus leaves, chayote, and poblano peppers were popular for Lent. Easter was a big focus, with dinner favorites such as sweet potatoes, asparagus, pineapples, berries, and packaged salads sharing ad space with themed bakery items, candy, tulips, and daffodils.
Total ad numbers this week were 276,658, an 1% decrease from last week's total of 279,253. The total for the same week last year was 8% lower than for this year. The total number of ads broken out by commodity groups: fruit 135,141 (49% of all ads), onions and potatoes (11%), and vegetables (39%). The number of ads for organic produce was 36,300, 13% of total ads.
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Source: mymarketnews.ams.usda.gov