Blue Book collection services climb for third straight year 

Produce companies are leaning harder on collections help.  

Blue Book’s claims, collections and dispute resolution team recovered $3.84 million from January through September 2026, up 11 percent from the same nine months of 2025 and 89 percent from 2024. It’s the largest nine-month total in Blue Book records dating to 2000, ahead of last year’s $3.47 million. 

Claim volume rose even faster than dollars. The team worked about 167 claims through September, compared with 130 in 2025 and 95 in 2024, a 76 percent jump in two years. 

A record second quarter 

June alone brought in $974,000, lifting Q2 to $1.61 million, the biggest quarter in Blue Book’s collections records. First quarter trailed 2025 in dollars even though its 66 claims were the most of any quarter in three years. 

Spread across the trade 

A jump like this can come from a handful of big failures, but the 2026 numbers point elsewhere. In 2024, the three largest recoveries made up 28 percent of all money collected; this year they account for 14 percent. Recoveries of $50,000 or more rose from 10 to 22 over two years, while those under $5,000 climbed from 39 to 52. 

The typical case also got smaller. Median recovery slipped to $9,900 from $11,100 in 2025, and the average fell to about $23,000 from $26,700. More mid-size and small accounts are running past terms, which fits tight working capital spread across many buyers at once. 

Back to 2011 levels 

Nine-month claims bottomed at 83 in 2022 and have doubled since. They’re still well short of 2009, when the count hit 255. 

Dollars moved further. From 2011 through 2023, nine-month collections stayed between $0.93 million and $1.51 million every year. They’ve more than doubled since, and 2026’s nine-month total already tops every full year in the records before 2025. 

What to watch in Q4 

The third quarter may mark a plateau. Coming off that big second quarter, the team recovered 47 claims and $1.30 million in Q3, close to 2025’s 39 claims and $1.29 million. October is showing strong recoveries (approaching $700K). November and December will show whether the climb picks back up or levels off. 

Read the figures with some care. Recoveries post by invoice date, so they trail the disputes behind them by weeks or months, and the dollar totals carry no adjustment for higher produce prices. Part of the growth may also reflect more companies turning to the service itself. 

How to use your member benefits for claims and collections 

While broader industry measures suggest industry stability, Blue Book’s Claims and Collections data suggests the need for vigilance.  

Is your team fully utilizing its Blue Book membership?

Click here to contact the claims team. claims@bluebookservices.com