American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall sent a letter to President Biden on Friday, calling on the administration to bring more domestic supply online. It would reduce costs to all Americans. “Our nation’s food supply is driven by diesel,” President Duvall said in the letter. “Every input that arrives on our farms and ranches is transported by a …
Promotion and Marketing Critical to Florida Blueberry Industry’s Success
By Frank Giles The Florida Blueberry Growers Association hosted its annual short course in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida, in October. The meeting featured educational sessions ranging from optimizing pollination and marketing to chilli thrips control and new varieties. Growers were in good spirits at the meeting, despite impacts from Hurricane Ian. While some growers further south in the state took a hard …
Tomato Prices High Following Hurricane Ian
By Clint Thompson Tomato prices are extremely high right now. Unfortunately, there’s not much supply for growers to take advantage. “North Florida and South Georgia are probably the only domestic supply of tomatoes we’ve got for the foreseeable future,” said Josh Freeman, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) associate professor in horticultural science. Freeman estimated those …
Markets Attempt to Edge Back to Normalcy
It has been a wild ride for the U.S. and global economies since COVID-19 struck. Inflation and war in Europe have not helped matters. We asked Roger Cryan, chief economist for the American Farm Bureau, to weigh in on how recent events could affect agriculture. There has been some easing on pricing for inputs and fuel. Do you expect that …
Fresh Market Tomato Growers Getting Smaller Share of Price Paid
The farm share of the retail price of fresh, field-grown tomatoes—the ratio of what tomato growers received to what consumers paid—fell from 43% in 2020 to 36% in 2021. While the national, monthly average price of such tomatoes at grocery stores fell 11 cents to $1.85 per pound in 2021, the monthly average price received by farmers simultaneously fell 16 …
July 4th Cookout Prices Up by 17%
This year’s Independence Day cookouts will have consumers paying a lot more for their favorite backyard food fare. They will pay $69.68 for their summer cookout foods, including cheeseburgers, pork chops, chicken breasts, homemade potato salad, strawberries and ice cream, based on a new American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) marketbasket survey. The average cost of a summer cookout for 10 …
Peppers: Industry Expert Provides Market, Production Updates
Neil Mazal, with East Coast Farms and Vegetables in Lake Worth, Florida, provided an update on pepper production and current market prices. Some of the highlights included: The red pepper market is very strong. There was a flush of red pepper out of Mexico that’s dried up. The field grown red pepper in Florida are done. Canada is not ready …
Less Availability, Higher Transportation Costs Lead to Increase in Sod Prices
By Maria M. Lameiras Prices for sod, including rolls of University of Georgia-bred turfgrass varieties, will be higher for homeowners and landscapers this year. Low inventory of some varieties, combined with economic pressures exacerbated by supply chain and global issues, are pushing the price of a manicured lawn higher this spring. Depending on the specific variety, it might be more …
Once ‘Outrageously High’ Watermelon Prices Drop in Recent Weeks
By Clint Thompson What was once out of this world market prices for Florida’s watermelon producers have come back to earth a bit. Laura Land, a watermelon farmer from Branford, Florida, and member of the Florida Watermelon Association, discusses how prices have dropped in recent weeks. “They were outrageously high (two weeks ago). They’re moving down pretty quickly. They’re in …
Supply-Chain Disruptions, Inflation and War Are Pushing Prices up on the Farm
By Frank Giles Just when the world took somewhat of a collective breath, hoping the COVID-19 pandemic might be easing, Russia invaded Ukraine. The conflict and the highest inflation rate in 40 years in the United States have focused attention on agriculture and food security. For farmers in Florida and around the world, the confluence of events has presented challenges …