ProduceIQ: Prices surge as Dog Days heat up supply chains

The dog days of summer are here. August begins with tightening supplies, changing weather patterns, and sharp price increases across key categories. Asparagus leads the way with a 48 percent week-over-week increase, while heat-related quality issues send iceberg climbing. Sweet corn remains in short supply on both coasts. 

ProduceIQ Index:  $1.00/pound, +3.09 percent over prior week  

Week #31, ending August 1^st

Blue Book has teamed with ProduceIQ BB #:368175 to bring the ProduceIQ Index to its readers. The index provides a produce industry price benchmark using 40 top commodities to provide data for decision making.

Southeastern growers should keep an eye on the tropics—prime ocean temps, reduced wind shear, and fading Saharan dust signal the start of a more active hurricane stretch. In the Northeast, recent flooding has temporarily disrupted supply chains, just as retailers look to transition into late-summer promotions.

And with Trump’s latest round of tariffs beginning to ripple through trade channels, supply chain uncertainty isn’t just weather-driven. Week #31 brings plenty of movement, and more is on the way.

Against this backdrop of heat, storms, and shifting trade dynamics, several key commodities are making notable moves. From sharply rising prices to regions facing production setbacks, here’s how the top items are performing in Week #31—and what to watch for in the weeks ahead.

Asparagus prices surge by +48 percent over the previous week. Weather-related challenges in Peru and Mexico are tightening supply and driving up prices. At $35, average prices barely clinch a ten-year high for week #31. Prices will likely remain elevated for the next three weeks as producers in Mexico work to ramp up supply.

Asparagus prices

Demand exceeds sweet corn supply. Supply is tight in the West and East, and the USDA has not had sufficient suppliers to report prices for three weeks now. Supplies will likely pick up over the next few weeks as growers in California and New York ramp up production.

Up +22 percent over the previous week, raspberry prices are beginning their ascent from record lows. Supply from Mexico is steady but supply out of California’s Watsonville area is tightening up. There is still time for promotion; even with substantial increases, prices remain at a 10-year low.

Raspberry prices are slightly up, still a bargain

Iceberg prices rise, up +37 percent over the previous week, as heat fuels quality issues like fusarium and thrips. At $23, iceberg prices are just barely missing week #31’s ten-year high record. Prices will likely continue to increase over the next few weeks as summer heat reaches its peak.

Iceberg prices, $27 for a 24ct wrapped, push to a new high for week #31

ProduceIQ saves you time and provides valuable information to increase your profits.

ProduceIQ Index

The ProduceIQ Index is the fresh produce industry’s only shipping point price index. It represents the industry-wide price per pound at the location of packing for domestic produce and at the port of U.S. entry for imported produce. 

ProduceIQ uses 40 top commodities to represent the industry. The Index weights each commodity dynamically, by season, as a function of the weekly 5-year rolling average Sales. Sales are calculated using the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service for movement and price data. The Index serves as a fair benchmark for industry price performance.