After a volume peak last month, supplies of cantaloupe from California's San Joaquin Valley will continue to gradually drop until production transitions out of the valley. While the water shortage has caused growers to plant less acreage this season, production has been steady and prices have reflected that.
“I would say that the cantaloupe crop has been reasonably normal,” said Don Smith of Turlock Fruit Company. “Pricing has also been reasonable. There were some periods when prices backed off because of volume, but the market now is very reasonable.” Prices for a half-carton of 9s from the San Joaquin Valley were between $8.00 and $8.95, and prices for a carton of 12s were between $7.00 and $8.50.
“The market will probably stay steady into October,” said Smith. “Because production slows down and with reasonable demand, I think prices will stay close to $8.00 or $10.00.”
