Bowled over: California turns out a bounty of lettuce and leafy greens
Take a look at total vegetable sales, conventional and organic combined, and the importance of salad kits and lettuce to the American diet is immediately apparent. The two categories continue to outperform most other veggies, with total salad kit sales at nearly $3.3 billion and total lettuce sales at approximately $2.7 billion for the 52 weeks ending May 15, 2022, according to market research company IRI.
Both salad kits and lettuce continue to make the top five categories for vegetable sales, and together represent about $6 billion of the total fresh vegetable sector, sales of which reached nearly $35.6 billion in the last year, according to IRI.
And with the overwhelming majority of lettuce and leafy greens consumed in the U.S. grown in California — which, according to the California Leafy Green Marketing Agreement, produces about 70% of the volume — the Golden State is central to any discussion of national salad production and consumption.
Continued call for salad kits
Fresh, convenient and available in an increasing array of flavors to appeal to a variety of palates, salad kits are a powerhouse of the produce department.
“Both lettuce and salad kits are top 10 sellers with an unbelievable pandemic performance,” Anne-Marie Roerink, principal of 210 Analytics, recently told The Packer in an email. “Salad kits have been experiencing double-digit growth for practically two years, as the majority of consumers create hybrid meals in which they mix and match items they cook from scratch with semi- and fully-prepared items,” according to IRI data.
With the goal of introducing a new “trending brand into the packaged salad category,” Boskovich Family Farms in Oxnard, Calif., recently introduced its Green Fork line, said Greg Welch, senior director of retail sales for the company’s fresh prep. The line features 11 stock-keeping units under the Fresh Prep LLC label.
Looking to draw new customers who crave trending ingredients, the new Green Fork line launched with two salad kits: Slammin’ Sesame and Marvelous Mediterranean; two tender leaves and two salad blends: Awesome Arugula, Sweet Baby Spinach, Garden Party and Simply Spring; and five prepackaged vegetables: Cilantro Pronto, Italian-O Parsley, Curiously Curly Parsley, Radish Squad and Bae-Bae Bok Choy.
Complementing these new additions will be a focus on sustainable packaging moving forward, Welch noted.
“Sustainable packaging is quickly becoming more prevalent across several industries, with good reason,” Welch said. “We at Fresh Prep are taking the initiative to introduce a 100% compostable packaged salad line under the label Fair Earth Farms. We believe California initiatives support our efforts to help reduce the plastic footprint. I would anticipate other brands doing the same,” he said.
But with rising food inflation costs, will demand for salad kits remain strong?
“Rising cost have impacted the produce industry as a whole. The kits segment within the salad category continues to drive growth,” Welch said. “We are introducing new chopped kits that have a variety of leafy greens as part of the ingredient list. Because of this we haven't seen buying habits influenced due to lettuce types,” he added.
Heather Fuller, vice president sales for Braga Fresh in Salinas, Calif., also sees salad kits remaining popular with consumers.
“Recent consumer data suggests that salads will remain No. 1 in the growing organics category,” she said. “Convenience, health and dependable supply will still be drivers in this market, despite inflationary pressure. Keeping consumer interest in the category, will require deeper engagement with our retail partners.
“To drive sales, we plan to lead with interesting flavor assortments and promotional strategies,” she continued. “That said, there is always room for value options — larger family packs of romaine hearts, and whole head lettuces. Offering options to families in assortment, price and pack sizes will help create loyalty in an uncertain market.”
With this in mind, Braga Fresh said it plans to introduce several new value-added items under its Josie’s Organics and Braga Farms brands in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023.
Traditional lettuces play lead role
While salad kits get the lion’s share of credit for driving lettuce and leafy greens sales, traditional greens remain a go-to purchase for scores of consumers.
At Beachside Produce, Guadalupe, Calif., some of the company’s most popular items are the classics: Romaine 12x3 and 7x6 hearts, said Evan Pybas, commodity manager for lettuce and leafy greens.
“While they may not be a new or flashy pack to some, they continue to be the core of our leaf programs and we put up a quality pack,” Pybas said. “We’ve done a nice job as a team the past few years to grow the heart programs and further our outreach across the country, and also into Mexico and Canada. Our growers have done an excellent job with variety choices and have really dialed in their farming practices. It’s been a team effort from top to bottom.”
Though steady production and close collaboration with seed breeders are key to success at Lakeside Organic Gardens in Watsonville, Calif., said Marketing Director Marliese Myers, so too are mainstays such as romaine and green leaf lettuce.
“Romaine and green leaf are continuously gaining momentum with processors and juicers,” Myers said.
But farming these greens is not without its challenges.
“Industrywide, a new red aphid has been a problem for lettuce,” she said. While it was more of a problem about a month ago, “currently, Dibratica (cucumber beetle) and aphid are problematic for us.”
Add to that the pervasive pest of increasingly high prices, and many California lettuce and leafy green growers are determined to keep their eyes on the ball: the customer.
“We can’t seem to escape the fact that everything is more expensive to produce, and it doesn’t seem that will change anytime soon,” Pybas said. “We just need to continue to support our customers and continue to produce quality products to keep them coming back.”
