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Organic celery enjoying prolonged hot marketOrganic celery enjoying prolonged hot market

Chilly desert temps have led to scarce stalks and a stronger market.

Tim Linden, Freelance writer

January 22, 2025

4 Min Read
A row of celery tops grow up from brown soil
Demand continues to exceed to supply, and cold weather means that situation will continue.Canva

Organic celery has been profiting from a demand-exceeds-supply situation for the last couple of months and it appears as if it’s going to ride this wave for a couple more months.

“I don’t think this will change until March,” said Darrell Beyer of Bluebird Mountain Organics in Reno, Nevada. “There is not enough celery in the field to meet regular demand.”

On Monday, he said the FOB price on a carton of 24 or 30 count was around $40 on the spot market, with many quotes in the $45 to $48 range. Beyer’s forecast of demand outstripping supply for the next six weeks was also informed by cold temperatures in the desert growing regions of California, Arizona and Mexico. He said cold weather, including temperatures dropping into the 30s at night, have slowed production on many organic row crops. Celery has received the biggest price boost because of short supplies.

He noted that while production is below expectations on many other items, consumer demand is also down due to cold temperatures across the country. When temperatures are down, demand for raw vegetables is also at a low point. Beyer said all the leaf items, especially organic kale, as well as broccoli and cauliflower, have faced difficult markets since the holidays. “The market has been sloppy for the last three weeks,” he said.

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However, Beyer added that there are a few signs of increased demand because of decreased supply as the month nears its conclusion. “Broccoli movement was really slow at only $8, $9 or $10 a carton a week ago. Now it’s between $16 and $18, which is a good sign.”

He added that retailers looking for promotional pricing should be able to find plenty of opportunities in the organic vegetable sector.

Closeup of celery stalks and leaves

Gabe Romero, a salesman for The Nunes Company in Salinas, California, agreed that the cold weather in the production areas has severely limited supplies, but demand is still lagging behind. In his regular market report to the industry, he said there will be reduced organic vegetable supplies for several more weeks.

Writing in mid-January about the organic outlook, he said: “Heavy ice and extremely cold temps in the Yuma region have reduced available hours to harvest and slowed crop growth the last five days; affecting immediate and longer-term supply across all items.”

Romero agreed that organic celery will remain in short supply. “Overall market remains very strong and should be for the foreseeable future. The current cold front will halt growth and keep stalks scarce in both northern Mexico and Yuma regions,” he said. “Demand will continue to exceed supply in the short term.”

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The Nunes Market Report did predict a strengthening of the organic vegetable market in the coming weeks, precisely because of the reduced supplies caused by the cold weather.

Michael Boskovich, who handles organic sales for Boskovich Farms in Oxnard, California, said the reduction in supplies was a welcome turn of events for organic growers. “Prior to this week, organic sales have been slow,” he said on Jan. 21.

He noted that the reduction in supplies has strengthened the market. With cold weather continuing to be in the forecast, Boskovich is eyeing some better marketing situations for growers moving forward. “After Christmas, we usually see a pretty good green onion market, but that didn’t happen this year,” he said. “But the cold weather is tightening up supplies and we expect a much better market as we move into February.”

Like the others, Boskovich said organic celery has been the one real bright spot, though he said the market is starting to drop.  “There is a wide range of quotes out there, including some around $40 (per carton), but I think most guys are quoting in the mid to high $30s this week.”

Boskovich said this is still a very good price for growers and he expects a solid organic celery market to remain in play for the foreseeable future.  He added that retailers looking for an organic vegetable to promote should consider the leafy items, including kale.

About the Author

Tim Linden

Freelance writer

Tim Linden is a journalist specializing in the ag space with a special emphasis on fresh produce. He also has written stories on a plethora of topics for other special interest publications including city magazines, the culinary arts and a wide variety of business publications. He and his wife live in the San Francisco Bay Area and enjoy all it has to offer, including great food and wine, miles of hiking trails and easy access to overseas travel. They have three adult children who also live in Northern California.

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