Shoppers now facing 'fruit and veggie flation' this fall

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Scripps News

Posted 7:08 AM, Sep 22, 2025


Higher produce prices are forcing many shoppers like Jessie Nickerson to rethink where they buy fresh fruits and vegetables. Nickerson says she was stunned by prices at her organic grocery store.

"Over $2 for one tomato. That was a little steep for me," Nickerson said.

At Roth Produce, a local produce stand, Michael Guintini says he is fighting "fruit and veggie-flation" the best he can. Recently, he had to stop selling asparagus after tariffs sent prices on Mexican asparagus soaring. "For me to make any money, I'd have to charge over $8 a pound, and I can't do that," Guintini said.

The same goes for imported berries like blueberries and blackberries. Guintini says he’s also given up on Honeycrisp apples. "Well, Honeycrisp is always expensive," Guintini said.

Read more: https://www.scrippsnews.com/dont-waste-your-money/shoppers-now-facing-fruit-and-veggie-flation-this-fall

---

I (and many on DU) had parents who grew up during a period when you could basically only buy produce "in season". Out of season would have been "canned" (either jarred or literal cans). My mother would always give the example of how "an orange at Christmas" was a treat. Now with all the imports from countries below the equator (e.g, Ecuador, Chile, Brazil, etc), we could get that produce basically "year round".

Then came the tariffs.

[Walleye]

1. That's what I always say when people start ranting about trade, don't they like strawberries in January?

[quaint]

3. California harvests strawberries in January and February.

Peak is April-August.

[Walleye]

6. Surprised he hasn't put a tariff on California

[quaint]

10. He has done everything else.

[wolfie001]

12. The vast majority of Cali farmers are RW looney tunes

I did "my own research" on that subject. Everything the fat orange imbecile did was fine until he took away the folks who ACTUALLY WORKED on their farms. Stupid mf'ers. No sympathy. I'd replace their produce with frozen imported Chinese mainland veggies if I could. I'll keep looking until we get a sane President again.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

28. I don't like poorly-regulated Chinese food. Won't buy it. . . . . . nt

[Bettie]

41. Oh, don't worry they're working on

ridding the US of food safety regulations too!

[Bernardo de La Paz]

42. Yeah. Before they finish, many Canadians like me have already been boycotting US food, goods, and services

I continue to consume DU regardless.

[wolfie001]

46. Remember, tRUMP has essentially eliminated the EPA

I currently do not trust the government and the farmers that voted for that fat orange mf'er.

[iemanja]

53. And citrus is a winter crop in Florida.

[IronLionZion]

2. MAGA is bringing down inflation in an upwards direction

by making it great again. Tariffs and mass deportations are great for inflation in fruits and vegetables.

For the orange at Christmas treat, winter is orange season. Florida has other perennial problems like blight killing their orchards. But generally winter is the time to get in season oranges in the US from other states like California.

[BumRushDaShow]

5. I have grown potted oranges (mostly mandarins) and yes based on when they bloom and ripen

BUT... the FL oranges have been mainly bred for juicing where the CA oranges have been for out-of-hand eating. The 2 states have opposite types of climates (FL has a dry winter and rainy summer and CA a rainy winter and dry summer, crazy climate change aside).

But in either case, only having domestic citrus already limited during the period when it was normally available, itself drove up the cost.

[IronLionZion]

8. Google gave me this for California orange season

Navel Orange Season (Eating Oranges)
Season: November through June.
Peak: January through April.
Characteristics: Seedless, easy to peel, sweet, and juicy.

Valencia Orange Season (Juicing Oranges)
Season: February through early November.
Peak: July through October.
Characteristics: High juice content, perfect for juicing, and may regreen in hot weather.

Other Citrus Varieties
Blood Oranges: Ripe in winter, typically from December to April.
Mandarins: In season from October to January.

I like mandarins

[BumRushDaShow]

11. And both FL & CA are above the equator

The "opposite" season countries like Brazil, supplement to provide year-round availability (except for some of the more "exotic" citrus like the Dekopon/Sumo mandarin, that I have grown and that I have seen more nowadays in the supermarket - but only certain times of the year).



Citrus orchards for limes are more rare in the continental U.S. due to their lack of hardiness. The lemons, on the other hand, are fine in those U.S. citrus-growing regions!

[wolfie001]

15. Russia: potatoes and rutabagas (turnips). Cabbage too

Yipers.

[BumRushDaShow]

18. They'll have to compete with those "Maine-uh" potatoes!

(and maybe Idaho's )

Although climate change is starting to impact them - The looming threat for Maine’s iconic potato industry

[wolfie001]

19. I love me some potatoes!

[BumRushDaShow]

21. ...

[ShazzieB]

32. OMG, I'm old enough that I can remember sticking those pieces into actual potatoes, just like in that commercial!

I wasn't sure I'd remembered correctly, because the whole idea sounded so weird, but that commercial proves I didn't imagine it!

How times have changed. Letting kids play with real fruits and vegetables like that would NEVER fly now (tariffs or no tariffs)!

[BumRushDaShow]

36. Me too

That's how they originally came - plastic pieces that you actually stuck into potatoes. Then they came out with a plastic potato in the box to use.

[wolfie001]

45. I had one as a kid

Maybe 1970 or so

[BumRushDaShow]

58. And one of these -

[wolfie001]

61. Gumbo way before Eddie Murphy!

I saw a clip around 2000 of the original show and boy, it was a bit depressing. Such a time warp.

[BumRushDaShow]

65. Eddie Murphy did do a good Gumby!

[wolfie001]

67. He saved SNL after all the heavyweights left

What a talent!

[patphil]

22. My wife bought grapefruit at Shoprite yesterday. We looked at the bag, and they're product of South Africa.

I know there are some problems with US citrus crops, but this is a first for us.
She paid $7.99 for a bag of 6 (5lb). Believe it or not, that's actually a pretty good price by today's standards.

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/APU0000711411

[Bernardo de La Paz]

29. Who knew Alaska was a major orange growing region!

[BumRushDaShow]

33. They should have included Hawai'i on that map

since they were apparently attempting to reference "the United States" (although I know that Hawai'i has some strict import/export regs, including to/from the CONUS).

Citrus growing regions around the world

[BlueWavePsych]

4. K&R

[Marthe48]

14. Excellent graphic!

thanks for sharing

[MANative]

7. Yep - paid $2.29/lb for broccoli yesterday...

It's usually more like $1.49 in my area. Strawberries were $7.99/lb. Crazy!!!

[maxsolomon]

54. LOL, that's dirt cheap.

Brocc is usually $3/lb here in Seattle at our Kroger-owned chain.

Maybe the rest of the US is catching up to us.

[MANative]

57. Wow - that's insane!

This is about the highest price I've seen at our chain grocers, but $3/lb for broccoli is ludicrous. I'm in Fairfield County, CT, which typically has a higher cost of living than most of the northeast. We don't have a ton of agriculture here, other than apples and corn, so my friends and neighbors are always groaning about the high cost of produce being shipped in. What you're paying is just nuts. I feel for you!

[maxsolomon]

60. Thanks. It's not just food. Gas is $4.89 for regular in the city.

When I hear my Dad complain about $3.50/gallon in Ohio, I just laugh.

[MANative]

63. Gas isn't too crazy here because...

There are so many refineries in NJ, about an hour away. I'm paying around $3/ gal. If you go to Greenwich or Wilton, just a little south of me, you will definitely pay close to $5/ gal.

[Prairie Gates]

9. Add it on to the utterly ridiculous meat-flation of summer, I guess

I mean, it's completely out of control. Middle class people are going to start skipping meals soon.

This is crazy.

[ShazzieB]

34. Either skipping meals, or eating lots of beans and rice!

Oh, wait, how much rice is grown in the U.S.? Is that going to start getting expensive, too? Damn!

[Dr. T]

35. Meat-flation has forced me to go with more friuts and vegetables.

But, with fruit-flation, I might have to develop a taste for dirt.

[Gimpyknee]

56. That's a healthy way to go.

[homegirl]

13. I have assembled

supplies to grow root vegetables in my raised beds this Winter. Can do that in California...anyone have hints on growing lettuce?

[Marthe48]

16. I grow sprouts

To replace lettuce.

I hear that lettuce and peas grow in cooler temps better. When I had pansies in a flower bed, I'd dump ice cubes on the bed to keep it cooler so they lived longer. I saw in Mother Earth a long time ago that someone grew peas under a tarp canopy to enhance their harvest.

[BumRushDaShow]

20. The lettuce should be easy

through winter where you are. You might need to put some kind of insect cover over them (maybe do a hoop/tube type of cover) to keep the critters out (both animals and insects).

[wiggs]

26. unless you have serious frost where you are, variety Sierra has done well for me in all seasons. Slow to bolt,

red tinge, delicious, vigorous. I've grown from seed but if you can find 6 packs, super easy. 5 or 6 per couple seems about right.

We have some warm weather still to come next month so if you can provide some afternoon shade for these might be good for a while longer. No problem near the coast or way up north.

[chouchou]

17. Won't be long before the "Opposite People" will start crawling out of the woodwork.

"Studies have shown that liberal states have caused the....
"The problems in California can be laid at the feet of the Democrats....
" Fox News this morning will have Farmers onscreen that will show that fruit prices started rising long before Trump was elected and...

[Qutzupalotl]

23. "We have always been at war with Veggieflation."

[twodogsbarking]

24. Republicans advise stocking up on bananas.

[SidneyR]

25. One of the most annoying things about American English

is the tendency to think parts of words can be used as new words. "Flation"? I mean, it's language abuse!

[BumRushDaShow]

39. Just like "-gate"

( "Watergate" became "Russia-gate", "Pizza-gate", etc.)

[ck4829]

51. Something we can hang around the Republican Party's collective neck, and we're talking about "language abuse" instead?

Ahh, good lord

[wiggs]

27. Paid $11 for a small jar of avocado mayo yesterday at Sprouts. Some things seem quite high. nt

[Captain Zero]

30. I bought a bag of mandarins

But some of them are tough peeling and falling apart, all too juicy almost.
So since I'll probably throw some away, that makes them inflated in cost.

Living by myself now, I can't afford to throw food and especially fruit away. Maybe throw some into the bushes for the birds?

[Harker]

31. I remember waxed cardboard cartons with grapefruit and oranges on dry ice.

Packed in Florida and shipped to Chicago in Winter, courtesy of an aunt.

[JoseBalow]

37. "fruit and veggie flation"

oy

[twodogsbarking]

38. Where and when I grew up people canned fruits. The cellar would be full by late fall. You didn't have the chance

to get fresh fruits and veggies. Going back farther, my great uncle who served in WW1 told me that one year for Christmas he got an orange or two. Probably around 1900 or so. He was a horse person through and through and that's what he did in the war. I was maybe ten when he told me stories.
Now back to the fruit.

[progree]

40. Wholesale fresh and dry vegetables up 17.9% from June to August, per Producer Price Index

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ppi.t02.htm

Final Demand goods -> final demand foods -> fresh and dry vegetables +17.9% from June to August, seasonally adjusted.
(and -3.6% year-over-year).

Compare to:
    Final Demand goods: +0.7% June to August, and +2.1% yoy

    Final Demand goods -> final demand foods: +1.5% June to August, and +3.5% yoy

I've been eating 3 cups of vegetables a day for quite some time, so this is quite concerning. The Dept of Agriculture's Dietary Gudelines recommends 2.5 cups of vegetables a day.

[bucolic_frolic]

43. Broccoli up 50% from last week

$1.99 to $2.99. Fresh broccoli. Beef is up too.

[BumRushDaShow]

44. I've been buying frozen broccoli florets

for years! Just thaw (and/or steam or blanche) and I mostly use in recipes although I never noticed much if any quality difference between using fresh with the same type of prep.

[bucolic_frolic]

47. Have to wonder if they're worth years of refrigeration.

In the peak of hot months, i experiment with lean fridge so I can turn it off a few days before food shopping. Likewise I embrace the frigid weeks in winter. Nature meant us to experience extremes. And not pay the utility to mitigate them.

[BumRushDaShow]

49. I have a deep freezer that I can put stuff like that in

that is running ~-13F to -15F. They supposedly harvest and flash-freeze those frozen veggies so they are actually minimally processed before sale. As long as something is kept in air-tight containers (or vacuum-sealed packaging), then that minimizes any freezer burn.

[bucolic_frolic]

50. I get it, that's a good idea.

Supermarkets haven't quite figured out to raise frozen vegetable prices to match seasonal scarcity but i bet they're studying it.

And I do use frozens here or there --- broccoli, Brussel sprouts, lima beans.

[BumRushDaShow]

52. For veggies

I usually buy frozen broccoli, corn, peas, stir-fry mixes (usually some variation of sliced carrots, green beans, red bell peppers, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, peas, baby corn, etc), spinach (whole or chopped).

And for my oatmeal, except for when I'll pare, core, and slice an apple, I rotate frozen peaches, blueberries, strawberries, and mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries). It is convenient! Of course that means my freezer (regular one) is usually full.

[JCMach1]

48. Literally wondering whether we need to start a Trump Garden

To keep us fed next Spring. Dig up the back yard and plant veggies

[No Vested Interest]

55. Son & daughter grew tomatoes this year for the first time; bountiful crop.

It's so great to have many to give to neighbor, mailman, caregivers, etc., and son is making homemade tomato sauce for the first time.
Money saved is not so much the issue in this instance, but the successful venture has been a plus for us

[ProfessorGAC]

59. Haven't Noticed It Here Yet, But...

...this story doesn't surprise me at all.

[Skittles]

62. fucking repuke voters

will they EVER figure out the only tangible result for them from the WAR ON IMMIGRANTS is HIGHER FUCKING PRICES

[ck4829]

64. K&R

[samsingh]

66. its the trump economy

[Aussie105]

68. You think vegies are expensive now?

$2 for one tomato?

Wait until the day there are no tomatoes in the shop and no matter how much money you have, you can't buy one.

[Warpy]

69. Produce here in NM is getting tougher to find reliably

There's still enough to eat but people who shop by recipe are going to have a tough go for a while.

Since this is the time fresh food is supposed to be the most abundant, I shudder to think what this winter will bring us.

Fucking moron Republicans.

[BobTheSubgenius]

70. Remember the huge uptick in froduce prices a few years ago?

At a Whole Foods in Vancouver, a single cauliflower went for $12..and some people were willing to pay that, apparently.