Editor’s Note: The following report is from The Packer’s Fresh Trends 2023, which provides insight based on survey responses from consumers. Since 1983, The Packer has sponsored 40 major consumer studies to track trends in the purchases and consumption of fresh produce, documenting the fluctuation in purchases of specific fruits and vegetables as well as changing attitudes toward industry issues.
Cauliflower has been on a strong run in recent years, per capita figures from the USDA reveal.
In 2011, per capita retail availability of cauliflower sat at 1.15 pounds. By 2019, the USDA reported the figure at 2.78 pounds, a gain of more than 240%.
In The Packer’s Fresh Trends 2023 research, 25% of all consumers reported they purchased fresh cauliflower in the past year, a decline from 30% in Fresh Trends 2022 and also down from 32% in Fresh Trends 2021.
The USDA reported significantly higher fob prices for cauliflower in 2022 compared with 2021. For the calendar year 2022, the USDA reported the average fob price was $25.78 per carton, up 78% from the 2021 average of $14.52 per carton.
The average retail promoted price of cauliflower also was higher in 2022 compared with the previous year, the USDA reported. At $1.27 per unit, the 2022 average retail promoted price was 10% higher than $1.15 per unit in 2021.
The USDA number of grocery stores promoting cauliflower in 2022 totaled 255,868, down 17% from 307,088 in 2021.
Fresh Trends 2023 research found that 30% of consumers earning more than $100,000 a year said they purchased cauliflower, compared with 20% for shoppers earning less than $25,000 annually.
Older consumers also were most frequent buyers of cauliflower, with 33% of consumers aged 60 and older reporting purchases, compared with just 19% of consumers from ages 18-29.
At 58%, Asian consumers reported the highest purchase rate of fresh cauliflower, compared with 27% for white/Caucasian shoppers, 20% for Black/African American consumers and 22% for Hispanic shoppers, according to Fresh Trends 2023.
