Shipping point prices of romaine lettuce in December slid very low, from nearly $24 per carton early in the month to just $8 per carton late in the month. Prices were also depressed a year ago.
A look at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s retail report shows that retail promotion has been very sparse compared with a year ago.
Here is a note about leaf lettuce from Pro*Act’s Dec. 27 edition of The Source.
From the tone of the commentary, the public perception (and retail promotion) of romaine is still below optimal levels, to say the least.
From the report;
Leaf lettuces have increased in production and all varieties are readily available. Due to lower demand for the holidays, supplies currently exceed demand and markets have reacted accordingly. Romaine has yet to regain traction after the ecoli scares. The public perception is still unfavorable and we are seeing a big drop in demand. Red Leaf, Green Leaf and Butter are all similarly increasing in production and demand has slowed. Market prices across the board have dropped and leveled out this week at the lower end. Quality has been fair. We expect supplies to remain steady as we look for better demand after the new year.
TK: Retail promotion of leaf lettuce, in general, has been lacking. Here’s is hoping the diet resolutions at the first of the year can start to turn things around.
