West Mexico Weather Issues Create Tight Organic Tomato Market

The effects of several hurricanes and tropical storms that pummeled Mexico’s West Coast in October are still being felt in the country’s fresh produce production areas where there are reduced supplies of many organic produce items.

With tomatoes one of Mexico’s top winter exports, the lack of supplies is impacting the organic tomato market.

Michael DuPuis, Quality Assurance and Public Relations Manager, Divine Flavor

“Mexico is currently struggling right now, especially in Sinaloa and West Mexico,” said Michael DuPuis, quality assurance and public relations manager for Divine Flavor, headquartered in Nogales, Arizona. “There are major production delays, plant health problems from the freezes, and other natural resource issues.”

Combined with recent freezes in the growing regions, DuPuis said the storms have taken their toll. “Tomatoes (along with bell peppers and cucumbers) are a core item of ours, and normally this is a part of the year when we start ramping up in production, but like most companies who grow and operate out of West Mexico, there is a struggle to produce at the level we are known for right now. It has greatly affected us, our customers, and the industry.” 

As such, the company’s sales department expects the West Mexico vegetable deal, centered in the state of Sinaloa, to struggle with supply issues for the length of the season, which should stretch into spring.

Jackie Grindle, senior buyer for Earl’s Organic Produce, on the San Francisco Wholesale Produce Market, said FOB prices are rising on some of the organic tomato SKUs, which indicates short supplies. “But personally, I am able to cover my orders from my vendors. It seems to be hit or miss. Some vendors have supplies and others do not.”

Jackie Grindle, Senior Buyer, Earl’s Organic Produce

The shortage, she said, appears to be variety specific. “Romas are definitely tight,” Grindle said. “We are seeing a $40 market (per carton), but I am not seeing anything that high on the other varieties.”

Organic heirloom tomatoes are actually plentiful with the per-carton price being in the upper teens. One-layer organic TOVs (tomatoes on vine) and organic beefsteak tomatoes are available at an FOB price much lower than the Romas. 

“Mexico is currently struggling right now, especially in Sinaloa and West Mexico. There are major production delays, plant health problems from the freezes, and other natural resource issues.” - Michael DuPuis

Grindle has been told by her suppliers that organic tomato volume should pick up within about two weeks. 

The Earl’s Organic Produce buyer is also in charge of buying dry vegetables from West Mexico for the organic-specific wholesaler. Taking a quick look at her sales sheet, she noted that organic zucchini isin a demand-exceeds-supply situation, and the eggplant market has tightened up over the last few days. She added that organic bell peppers were plentiful, but the supply situation of that commodity is also tightening up.

Also speaking to the West Mexico organic tomato-supply situation was Manny Girardo of Bernardi & Associates in Nogales. Bernardi is a broker that specializes in sourcing tomatoes from virtually every commercial district in Mexico and the United States when in season. Girardo said the overall tomato supply situation is tight, with conventional FOB prices in the $30-$35 per carton range, depending upon the variety. 

Manny Girardo, President, Bernardi & Associates

“If you can find organic tomatoes, they would be higher than that, but we are not seeing many right now,” he said, adding that the entire tomato category should see a boost in supplies by the end of January.