Why are prices high? What is happening with food supplies?
Produce Pete Talks About Current Market Conditions.

Everyone has noticed the high prices of fruit and vegetables and the first response is
inflation is running rampant, which in part is true, but the larger part is the terrible
growing conditions all over the Unites States starting with California where drought and
soaring temperatures have created havoc for farmers. Weeks ago, huge rains caused
flooding followed by extreme heat which finished off the fall crops in California. What
the floods didn’t destroy, fungus and blights did.
In the market now, prices for lettuce have reached heights I’ve never seen in my 40 plus
years in the markets. For the next month, California’s vegetable prices will be crazy!
Next growing area is in the Yuma Arizona area due to start mid-November and other
growing areas we depend on are ending.
Canada which provides lots of vegetables to the Northeast is finishing up as are New
Jersey and Connecticut. The Carolinas and Georgia are shipping some quantities but
not enough to drive prices down. Florida being hit by the hurricane had to reseed and
there will be a gap before we see any volume. Mexico is just starting to ship vegetables
to the US and the quantity will increase dramatically.
Transportation, which in the beginning of Covid was a huge problem as there weren’t
enough trucks or drivers causing transportation prices to spike in turn making everything
more expensive is no longer an issue.
The biggest problem facing the markets is changing weather conditions brought on by
global warming. Droughts, floods, too hot or cold conditions will continue to disrupt the
food-chain. What will probably happen will be more and more food will be grown in
greenhouses throughout the country.
Produce Peter walks through the market 5 or 6 days a week – stop in and say

hello!