Local and regional fruits and vegetables continued to dominate produce ads this week. Hot items included Olathe corn, Rocky Ford cantaloupes, Hatch chilis and new crop California Bartlett pears. Organic and conventional California grapes were abundantly advertised this week, with high production coinciding with back-to-school demand.
Total ad numbers this week were 325,888, a 14% increase from last week's total of 285,699. The total for the same week last year was 13% lower at 289,097. The total number of ads broken out by commodity groups: fruit 184,282 (57% of all ads), onions and potatoes 20,017 (6%), vegetables 116,700 (36%), herbs 278. The number of ads for organic produce was 48,454, 15% of total ads.
The following are the prices of major advertised items (3,000 plus ads) this week, compared to the same week last year. Significant increases in price for fruit this week included tangerines (3 lb.) at 18%, white nectarines at 15%, red seedless grapes at 14%, white peaches at 13%, and round mangos at 12%. Significant decreases included Honeycrisp apples at 33%, and yellow peaches at 12%. There were no significant changes in price for potatoes and onions this week. Significant increases in price for vegetables this week included on-the-vine tomatoes at 25% and white mushrooms (8 oz.) at 15%. Significant decreases included only asparagus at 22%.
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Source: mymarketnews.ams.usda.gov