Severe floods in Ecuador continue to disrupt banana production and supply, sending prices up at £985/t, bananas are now 20.1% more expensive than last year and have risen 3.1% in the past month.
The situation in Ecuador has been compounded by unusually cold weather in the Caribbean, especially in the Dominican Republic, leading to delays in fruit maturation, as well as production issues in Colombia and Costa Rica. Buyers are now bracing themselves for banana prices to stay high over the coming months.
Potato prices have been sluggish in recent months, but the market has staged something of a recovery in the past month, when prices moved up by nearly 10% to £124.5/t, possibly in response to growing concerns about the impact of drought on this year’s crop. However, prices remain sharply down year-on-year – they are currently 32.4% lower than this time last year.
Taken from Grocer magazine 21 April 2012