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ProduceIQ: Thanksgiving hangover slow to hit

Turkey-trot-running-cauliflower

The holiday weekend has ended, but the annual produce industry Thanksgiving hangover looks a little different than usual. Rain in the West and impacts from Milton and Helene are creating gaps in supply, impacting produce prices.

It’s not all doom and gloom for buyers. The transition from Salinas, CA, to Yuma, AZ, is winding down, and more favorable growing conditions are in the forecast for West Coast growers. The prices of some commodities, such as lettuce and broccoli, may come down over the next few weeks due to increasing supply.

ProduceIQ Index:  $1.37/pound, up +3 percentover prior week  

Week #48, ending November 30th

Blue Book has teamed with ProduceIQ BB #:368175 to bring the ProduceIQ Index to its readers. The index provides a produce industry price benchmark using 40 top commodities to provide data for decision making.

Cauliflower buyers feel worse than someone realizing they married into a “Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving family.” Prices are up +16 percent over the previous week.

Declining production in Salinas, CA, coupled with rainy and cold weather, is tightening supply and fueling price increases. The volume from Yuma, AZ, is on the shallow end of the historical spectrum for week #48 but isn’t unprecedented. Favorable weather is in the forecast for Yuma, and production will likely increase rapidly over the next few weeks.

Cauliflower-graph-dec2-2024

Rainy and cool California weather isn’t doing strawberry supply any favors either. Prices are up +25 percent over the previous week but may subside over the next few weeks as growers in Florida and Mexico ramp up production.

A perfect storm is brewing for melon markets. Average melon prices are up +16 percent over the previous week, largely driven by price increases from cantaloupe and honeydew markets. Rain from Tropical Storm Sara, port delays, and cold weather in domestic and Mexican growing areas are contributing to record-high prices. 

Cantaloupe-graph-dec2-2024

Even though the ProduceIQ index is at a ten-year high, there are still deals to be found. Blueberry prices are near historic lows for week #48. Mexican production is strong and will likely keep prices low through December.

Blueberry-graph-dec2-2024

Please visit our website to discover how our online tools can save time and expand your reach.

ProduceIQ is an online toolset designed to improve the produce trading process for buyers and suppliers. We save you time, expand your opportunities, and provide valuable information to increase your profits.

ProduceIQ Index

The ProduceIQ Index is the fresh produce industry’s only shipping point price index. It represents the industry-wide price per pound at the location of packing for domestic produce and at the port of U.S. entry for imported produce. 

ProduceIQ uses 40 top commodities to represent the industry. The Index weights each commodity dynamically, by season, as a function of the weekly 5-year rolling average Sales. Sales are calculated using the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service for movement and price data. The Index serves as a fair benchmark for industry price performance.

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Mark Campbell is an industry veteran with over 20 years of produce experience. After earning his MBA from Columbia Business School, he spent seven years as CFO for J&J Family of Farms. He later served as CFO advisor to several produce growers, shippers, and distributors. In this role, Mark saw the impediments that prevent produce growers and buyers from trading with greater access and efficiency. This led him to cofound ProduceIQ.