Strawberry growers battered by up-and-down production

Gary Wishnatzki, owner of Wish Farms, inspects a carton of strawberries at Wish Farms packinghouse in Plant City. Retail prices stayed high because of record high wholesale prices during the middle of the month, said Kenneth Parker, executive director of the Florida Strawberry Growers Association in Plant City.

LEDGER FILE PHOTO

By Kevin Bouffard
The Ledger

Published: Monday, February 22, 2016 at 6:20 p.m.

Last Modified: Monday, February 22, 2016 at 6:20 p.m.

LAKELAND – “Yes, we have no strawberries,” was the lament in recent weeks from many Florida strawberry growers and shippers.

That meant shoppers looking for the traditional drop in the price of fresh Florida strawberries last month also got a rude surprise.

Retail prices stayed high because of record high wholesale prices during the middle of the month, said Kenneth Parker, executive director of the Florida Strawberry Growers Association in Plant City. The prices remained high because Florida strawberry plants simply weren’t producing enough.

“I know that’s never happened before,” said Gary Wishnatzki, CEO of Wish Farms in Plant City, one of the state’s biggest strawberry growers and packinghouses and a 42-year veteran of the industry.

Florida strawberry growers usually get wholesale prices in the mid-$20-per-flat range at the start of the harvest season in late November and early December. At that time, Florida production is low and growers are the only source of domestic strawberry production.

By January, wholesale prices generally fall around $15 per flat, give or take a few dollars, as Florida strawberry plants produce a bigger second crop and supplies come in from other producers, notably Mexican growers.

That typical scenario didn’t play out for the 2015-16 season, Parker and Wishnatzki agreed.

Light supply meant wholesale Florida strawberry prices out of Orlando remained mostly between $20.90 and $22.90 per flat in the middle of January, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. By Feb. 1, most sold in the $22 to $26.90 range with demand exceeding supply.

The supply was so light on several days in late January that no average price could be reported, the USDA reported.

But don’t get the idea Florida growers were dancing to the bank.

“Historically, those prices were well above average, but we didn’t have the production volume to take advantage,” Parker said. “Profit margins were low.”

Wish Farms had to turn away many of its regular customers in January because it simply had no strawberries to sell, Wishnatzki said.

“January was a disaster.”

One factor in low supplies was a weather-related drop in Mexican strawberry production, which meant most of its sales stayed in the western U.S. and out of the prime eastern markets for Florida strawberries, he said. But Florida weather played a bigger role.

“The extended hot weather (in fall and early winter) was the nemesis of the season,” Parker said.

The 2015-16 Florida strawberry season started with a bang as warm fall weather meant early and good production although wholesale prices remained at typical high levels.

But overproduction in that first crop of the season meant production fell for the second crop in January, Parker and Wishnatzki said. Florida strawberry plants usually produce three or four crops during the season from November through March.

January production fell to 25 percent of a typical season, Parker said.

“We started off at a rapid pace,” he said. “The heat also had unintended consequences.”

The cooler weather in the past couple weeks has become ideal for growing Florida strawberries, Parker added.

“We’re experiencing moderate days and cool nights,” he said. “The conditions now are perfect for growing strawberries.”

So, problem solved?

Not quite.

Florida strawberry production came back with a vengeance last week. Growers picked 10 times the volume of berries Monday, Feb. 15, than they had on Feb. 12, the previous Friday, Parker reported.

That produced a market glut, which was good for consumers but not for growers. By Thursday, wholesale prices in Orlando dropped mostly to the range of $6.90 to $10.90 because of heavy supply and light demand, the USDA reported.

“It’s hard to transition from zero to 100,” Wishnatzki said. “When prices get that high, the fall is harder.”

The good news for both growers and consumers is that the market is expected to return to a more normal equilibrium as early as this week, Parker and Wishnatzki agreed.

Also, Mexican production continues to remain low, eliminating that competitor. Strawberry production in California, the biggest strawberry state with annual production about 10 times that of Florida, has suffered because of excess rain brought on by el Nino.

California strawberry acreage is down 12 percent this year, Wishnatzki said.

In past years, California production was so strong it began shipping into eastern U.S. markets by early March. That sent wholesale prices plunging and forced many Florida strawberry growers to pull their plants in preparation for spring vegetable planting.

But Parker predicted Florida growers will have a good market through March. Last year, many growers pulled up stakes by the end of February because of falling farm prices, he said.

“The jury is still out,” said Wishnatzki on whether the 2015-16 season will be profitable. “Most growers are depending on a good March.”

An early Easter, usually a strong holiday for strawberry sales, should help, he added. This year, the holiday is March 27.

“March has the potential to be pretty good,” Wishnatzki said.