Favorite Easter vegetables such as sweet potatoes, artichokes, asparagus, green onions, green beans, broccoli crowns, Brussels sprouts, and potatoes were on sale this week.
Strawberries, grapes, mangos, cantaloupes, raspberries and watermelons were on hand for sweet accompaniments to hams, roasts, and grilling meats. Corn, watermelons, and Vidalia onions from Georgia, 1015 onions from Texas, Mississippi sweet potatoes and Louisiana strawberries marked the beginning of the locally grown season.
Total ad numbers this week were 305,303, an 8% increase from last week's 282,043. The total for the same week last year was 8% lower than for this year. The total number of ads broken out by commodity groups: fruit 127,211 (42% of all ads), onions and potatoes 25,760 (8%), vegetables 136,038 (45%), herbs 1,012, ornamentals 13,005 (4%), and hemp 2,277. The number of ads for organic produce was 35,184, 12% of total ads.
The following are the prices of major advertised items (3,000 plus stores) this week, compared to the same week last year. Significant increases in price for fruit this week included avocados at 54%, black seedless grapes at 25%, apple juice at 16%, organic strawberries at 16%, and raspberries at 14%. Significant decreases included only pineapples at 16%. Significant increases in price for onions and potatoes this week included Russet potatoes (5 lb bag) at 27%. There were no significant decreases. Significant increases in price for vegetables this week included on-the-vine tomatoes at 48%, red bell peppers at 18%, green onions at 15%, and baby carrots at 10%. There were no significant decreases.
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Source: mymarketnews.ams.usda.gov