FLORIDA TOMATO GROWERS FACE SERIOUS OVER-SUPPLY PROBLEMS

June 28, 2006

Fresh Florida tomatoes are the most popular in the U.S. But tomato growers there are facing a serious problem, the hurricanes left few crops undamaged so the supply to the marketplace was low and prices high, but now Mother Nature is smiling and crops are plentiful. The problem is marketplace consumption adjusted to meet the low supplies and higher cost after the hurricanes so consumers are buying less, stores have smaller displays and major food service chains and other high-volume users have taken tomatoes off the menus.