Pineapple supplies are currently somewhat slim.
“Supplies of pineapple are a little bit short because of the Easter ads and everyone booking up the fruit,” says Jesse Garcia of LA Produce Distributors in Los Angeles, CA. “Also during the Easter season, suppliers aren’t working on full schedules so they’re backing off of packing. All the Latin American countries do that. That has an effect as well on pineapples and other items.”
Overall though pineapple volumes look similar to last year at this time and Garcia notes that the quality of pineapples has been good and that sizes, 5s, 6s and 7s are mostly available with some 8s as well.
Supplies are coming largely from Mexico and Costa Rica. While Costa Rica is a year-round supplier, Mexico is almost doing the same. “They play the market--when the market here is a little sloppy, they back out and don’t send fruit,” says Garcia. Ecuador also has some pineapple supplies.
Jesse Garcia (above) says pineapple demand is stronger than usual right now.
Good Easter demand
As for demand, thanks to the Easter ads, Garcia says it’s stronger demand currently than usual. “If it weren’t for the ads, there probably wouldn’t be that much demand for pineapple. The chain stores take a lot of the supplies too so we end up with less fruit in the wholesale market,” he says.
Overall, Garcia notes that throughout the pandemic, pineapple has struggled somewhat as a commodity. “It’s not a potato-type item. If someone’s not working and has a set amount of dollars to spend at the grocery store, I don’t think they’re going to go and buy a pineapple for $3-$4/each when they could buy potatoes to cook dinner with,” he says. “It’s more of a luxury item.”
That said, the market is slightly stronger this year on pineapple pricing compared to last year. “Pricing on pineapple right now is $12-$13 on the wholesale market. You see a few $14s but not too many. It’s good pricing right now for the growers,” says Garcia.
Looking ahead, after Easter, the market should maintain stability. “But towards the middle to the end of April, I think the market will come off a little bit on pricing by maybe $1-$2 because demand isn't going to be as high as it is now.”
For more information:
Jesse Garcia
LA Produce Distributors
Tel: +1 (562) 448-5555
jgarcia@laproducedistributors.com
www.laproducedistributors.com