Raspberry pricing is starting to strengthen. “We’re seeing a little bit of a change with greater demand and a lift on pricing that we expect to continue over the next month or so as we go into promotions for Thanksgiving,” says Ben Escoe of Twin River Berries.
He notes that there will be ample supplies of the fruit, largely out of central Mexico, for Thanksgiving. In fact, supplies have been strong for the last month and a half, more so than in a typical year.
“Production of raspberries in Mexico has increased and it’s overlapped with the U.S. season which created an early season glut,” he says. “If you combine that with an oversupply on Peruvian blueberries, it’s created a sluggish market on raspberries. The market has definitely been year over year experiencing lower pricing and higher supply.”
Demand is strengthening too right now. “Generally it does for the Thanksgiving holiday. But at this time of year there are usually lower supplies and pretty good demand,” adds Escoe.
Pricing at 50 percent
That turn in pricing is welcome given pricing right now is about 50 percent of what it was this time last year. “The spot market is around $8 and normally it’s around $16. Last year it was more like $20. It’s pretty different this year,” he says. “That said, it’s also a pretty volatile market. The demand for raspberries and consumption has definitely increased over the last couple of years.”
Even with demand strengthening, it’s not expected that pricing will come back to last year’s levels. “Especially because we’re going in from an oversupply into a holiday. It’s going to be a lot of ads. But the holidays will help strengthen the market and create that movement that the raspberry market needs,” Escoe says. Even with the typical lull in movement that happens post-Thanksgiving, he anticipates December to be a better month on raspberries and that should level out for the beginning of 2023.
Looking even further ahead, Escoe notes that 2023 will be a bigger year for raspberries. “There are definitely new genetics being tested on raspberries as well as blackberries coming in the next year or two,” he says.
For more information:
Ben Escoe
Twin River Berries
ben@trberries.com
www.trberries.com