California asparagus production kicks off

Mexico could see an early end to its Caborca asparagus season partly due to weather. The region has seen some cold weather patterns that could have impacted growing, according to James Paul of Greg Paul Produce Sales Inc. in Stockton, CA, which works in partnership with the Giumarra Companies.

Enter the California asparagus growing season, which gets underway this week. Paul noted that, at a time when restaurants are reviving after COVID-19 challenges, California asparagus continues to be highly sought after by chefs due to its flavor profile.

At the grocery retail level, the product benefits from merchandising to communicate the sweet, delicate flavor to shoppers and home chefs. “We do see that many consumers are willing to pay a higher price for quality as they continue to seek excellent eating experiences both inside and outside of the home,” says Paul. “And for relevant retailers, California asparagus offers a locally grown benefit, as well. Communicating these unique product aspects to consumers is an important piece of supporting sales.”

While he notes that overall acreage in the state hasn’t changed much compared to 2021, the representation of the remaining California asparagus acreage has. “In the past there were multiple companies representing California asparagus and this year it’s down to ourselves, Greg Paul Produce Sales in partnership with the Giumarra Companies,” Paul says.

Key availability during a demand-heavy time frame

Demand on asparagus has been strong. “I think we’ll continue to see more of a normalized promotional pattern of pricing as we anticipate upcoming spring and local-grown opportunities,” Paul says, adding he expects demand to stay high for Easter.

With limited production out of Mexico during the spring time frame, California largely has the asparagus window to itself for now. Typically, some product comes out of Peru at this time, though that has been more sparse. Other domestic growing regions such as Washington or Michigan, don’t begin until late April at the earliest says Paul.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)

Giumarra works with retailers to offer customized marketing materials generally, but also especially for the upcoming Easter holiday and Mother’s Day–two notable asparagus holidays.

The News in Charts is a collection of stories from the industry complemented by charts from Agronometrics to help better tell their story.

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