Steady shipments of pineapples from Costa Rica have kept prices down, both for Central American fruit on the East Coast and Mexican imports. Though the erratic nature of the pineapple market the last several years makes it hard to predict where prices will go, it's expected the market will stay the same or dip to close out the year.
“We've seen a lot of fruit from Costa Rica that has made it very difficult for Mexican growers to compete,” said Elizabeth Chang of Bananera Muchachita in McAllen, Texas. “For the last month this year, the market has been flooded with pineapples from Costa Rica and Honduras.” That, along with fairly light demand, has kept prices in check. On December 10, prices for a carton of Golden Ripe 5s from Mexico were between $5.50 and $7.50 at Texas crossings, and cartons from Costa Rica, Ecuador and Panama were priced at $8.00.
“Fruit from Central America and South America is usually priced higher than Mexican fruit, even if quality is very similar,” noted Chang. She added that the pineapple market tends to close the year on a down note, so she expects prices to decrease this month. But, considering the way the pineapple market has behaved over the last several years, it's impossible to tell if that will happen.
“For the last four or five years, the pineapple market has been really unstable,” said Chang. “Prices go up and down, and there's no rule by which you can tell when there will be peaks. The market has been like a roller coaster for the last four years.”
