Higher prices led produce sales volume to a slight decline, down one percent from Q2 2010, however volumes of value-added fruits, value-added vegetables and organics each grew in Q2 2011, indicating that consumers are willing to pay a premium for their fresh produce preferences.

The FreshFacts^® on Retail report, produced in partnership with the Perishables Group and sponsored by Del Monte Fresh Produce, measures retail price and sales trends for the top 10 fruit and vegetable commodities, as well as value-added, organic and other produce categories.

Highlights of this quarter’s report include:

• Among the top 10 fruit, bananas, melons, avocados and specialty fruit had the most substantial dollar growth
• Eight of the top 10 vegetables posted sales that exceeded Q2 2010
• The mushroom category was the only vegetable in the top 10 to grow both volume and dollars in Q2 2011
• A 12.5 percent increase in weekly sales of organic fruits
• Growth in value-added fruit in dollar and volume sales, up 3 percent and 5 percent respectively; similar growth in value-added vegetables with increases of 5.6 and 7.0 percent
  

Each FreshFacts^® report also features a Quarterly Spotlight on one industry segment in particular. This quarter, the report looks at the factors driving the rise in value-added produce sales in the past year. During that period, both dollar sales and volume of value-added fruits and vegetables showed consistent growth, fueled by an increase in the number of products offered within the value-added category.

The complete FreshFacts^® on Retail report can be downloaded free of charge to all United Fresh members ($50 for non-members) by clicking here. For more information about how to obtain the report, please contact Patrick Delaney, United Fresh communications manager, at 202-303-3400 ext. 417 or pdelaney@unitedfresh.org. For questions about specific data contained in the report, please contact Kelli Beckel at the Perishables Group at 773-929-7013.