The volume of guava from Florida is growing in supply. The state grows four different varieties of the tropical fruit--Thai guava, which is the most common; Chinese guava; Taiwanese red guava; and pink guava. "They're coming into their season right now and the volume is getting heavier each week," says Dennis Sever of Exotic Growers. While some guava is grown in central Florida, the majority comes from Homestead, Florida.
Pink guava.
The growing supply follows a bad storm in Florida approximately three weeks ago which brought on consecutive days of rain and strong winds. "So that impacted production for a while which had the price skyrocketing because there was no volume. Now, all that rain really helped. It hadn't rained for about a month before that and then it rained more in a week than it does in a season. Now everything is really lush and green here," says Sever, noting the rain's effects are being seen on several exotic items that are coming into production in Florida right now including mangos, sapodillas, passion fruit, and more.
Managing growing supply
Given the growing supply, guava growers are largely picking only what's needed and some fruit may just remain on the tree.
Chinese guava.
After all, guava, which is almost a year-round item, is seen as more of a winter fruit so demand is softer in summer with below-average sales compared to winter sales. The demand that is there is expected to stay steady until September when it starts increasing again.
The price is reflecting that greater supply–two weeks ago, guava pricing was $60-$70 on 20 lb. boxes and now it's $35 on 20 lb. boxes. "The volume will keep increasing which means the price is going to keep coming down," says Sever.
For more information:
Dennis Sever
Exotic Growers, Inc.
Tel: +1 (305) 393-1556
[email protected]