The Sunripe Freshmarket location in the Hyde Park section of London, Ontario, offers a selection of citrus items year-round, but shoppers seem to prefer product from California, said Randy Jeffery, produce manager.
It’s a rarity these days to find a supermarket that doesn’t stock at least a limited selection of organic fruits and vegetables, and most stores feature a wide range of organic options to choose from.
Retail and consumer requests for bagged avocados have been inching upward for the past several years, but the onset of the coronavirus seems to have intensified that demand, grower-shippers say.
Consumers typically turn to citrus to load up on vitamin C during cold and flu season, but this year, suppliers hope they’ll stock up on even more grapefruit, oranges, mandarins and lemons to keep COVID-19 at bay.
Although USDA’s NASS estimated that California’s navel orange crop will be about 42 million 80-pound boxes this season, some grower-shippers estimate that number might be a bit on the heavy side.
