Yes, ginger sales skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic more than any other commodity in Boston, as it did elsewhere.
Following that spicy root’s lead were turmeric, chili peppers and root vegetables, said Maurice Crafts, managing partner of Coosemans Boston.
Chili peppers typically come in 10-, 20- and 30-pound boxes of all one variety, but many retailers wanted a mix of varieties — including poblano, habanero, red Fresno, Anaheim, Hungarian and long hots — in smaller boxes.
Consumers still bought enough volume of jalapeños for retailers to buy it in standard bulk sizes, Crafts said.
They created 2-pound boxes of four varieties each, for a total of 8 pounds.
“We offer that so they don’t have so much waste,” Crafts said.
“We’d been doing it all along, but it definitely went up for us when foodservice went away. We saw uptick on that.
Alan Lisitano, vice president of Chelsea-based Lisitano Produce, also experienced the dramatic ginger rise that’s leveled off since.
Meanwhile, Lisitano is seeing a slow, steady incline in dragon fruit and passionfruit.
“It’s not just for that ethnic group; it’s across the board,” Lisitano said.
He thinks the interest has to do with people staying home, cooking more and caring about their health.
While the strong suit of Lisitano’s company has always been Eastern dry vegetables and tomatoes, in past couple of years, it’s expanded the tropical line.
And in the past six to eight months, Lisitano Produce has sold a lot more Asian vegetables, garlic, ginger, coconut, pineapple and rambutan, which “looks like a little red furry ball, and they’re really sweet inside,” he said.
Regional retailer data
The same four or five retailers remained at the top in 2020, compared to 2019 in the New England region that includes Boston, according to July’s Shelby market share data.
The top two retailers in 2020, Market Basket and Stop & Shop, nabbed more than 17% of the area’s shoppers, with Shaw’s Supermarket at almost 13.5%, and then Hannaford at almost 9.5% and Walmart at almost 6.75%.
In 2019, the top five retailers were Stop & Shop, C&C (a wholesaler), Hannaford, Shaw’s and Market Basket.
Coming up sixth and seventh in 2020, Whole Foods Market grabbed almost 5.75% of the market and Roche Bros. took 3.3%.
Roche Bros. has two fresh-produce buyers for its 21 locations in the region, said Tom Murray, Roche’s director of produce and floral. He’s also the incoming president of the New England Produce Council.
The buyers go to the New England Produce Center and Boston Market Terminal every morning.
Bigger retailers have their own warehouses to get direct shipments from farms, but Roche Bros. doesn’t, and it doesn’t need to, Murray said.
“They’ve always done a great job for us, so we’re in there buying every day. You can pretty much get everything you need in the markets. I’ve been with Roche Bros. for 46 years, and it’s always been a great relationship for us,” he said.
Like other retailers, Roche Bros.’ online business is busier than ever.
“We shop for them and then they can come pick it up,” Murray said.
“We’ve had e-commerce already for years, but now that’s completely maxed out, week after week. Our online business is going crazy.”
Packaged items of corn, apples and oranges, among other items, are selling more than before too, he said, so the retailer is expanding its offerings of packaged and bagged produce.
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