The
spinach harvest in Texas is winding down after a good season of
production and prices. Acreage planted for the fresh market was
up and production for both the fresh and processed market was up
as yields for both were up. Quality for both has been good. The
market is holding at attractive prices. After many years of $5.75
to $7.00 per 25 pound spinach bushel basket ($0.23-$0.28 lb), the
market for fresh spinach showed significant improvement starting
in the ‘96 season and peaked in 1999 and again in 2002 at
close to $14.00 per 30 pound plastic crate ($0.46/lb). While prices
backed-off slightly during three of the last four seasons, prices
for the fresh market appear to be holding at $10-$11 per 30 pound
plastic crate (0.33-0.37/lb). The market improvement in 1999 and
2002 was apparently fueled by cold weather in Northern spinach producing
states, shortages of lettuce (and high prices) and consumer boredom
with iceberg head lettuce. Prices for romaine lettuce, for example,
reached as high as $40/50 lb box for the high-end restaurant trade
in 1999. Prices backed-off this season as more product from the
U.S. and imports entered the market.
Demand is growing for
fresh vegetables, especially for attractive, high quality greens
with good taste and high nutritional value. Per capita use of all
vegetables and melons has been steadily increasing during the last
few years, totaling 445.3 pounds in 2003, up 6.3 pounds from 439.0
pounds in 2002. Per capita consumption of romaine and leaf lettuce
has more than doubled during the last few years to 8.7 pounds in
2003, compared to an average of about 4.0 pounds during 1985-1995
and just a trace prior to 1985. This increased demand has helped
boost demand and prices for spinach.
Spinach falls into the
category of high quality, nutrition-packed, leafy greens with excellent
taste. While total per capita consumption (canning, freezing and
fresh) dipped slightly during the mid-80's, per capita consumption
has been showing steady increases to about 2.57 lbs during 2003,
up 0.77 lbs from an average of 1.8 lbs in the 90's. While processed
spinach consumption has increased slightly, most of the increase
per capita spinach consumption has been for the fresh market to
an average of 1.5 pounds during the last two years compared to an
average of 0.8 pounds during 1992-1999. Fresh spinach consumption,
however, remains just a small blip in relation to total lettuce
per capita consumption of about 31.0 pounds in 2003.
It is interesting to
note that production for the processed market increased to about
260 million pounds this past year after two years of decline. While
most of the increased production for the processed market has been
in frozen spinach, it was also interesting to note a slight increase
in production for canning in 2003 to 36.4 million pounds, up 5.7
million pounds from 30.7 million pounds produced in 2002, but down
62.8 percent from 81.6 million pounds produced for the spinach canning
industry just five years ago in 1999. While some processed spinach
production in Texas goes to freezing plants, most of the current
production goes to canning.
While per capita consumption
of all forms of lettuce exceeds spinach consumption, spinach is,
by far, a superior product in attractiveness, nutritional value
and flexibility in use i.e., can be used fresh and/or in a large
variety of cooking options. Since about 72% of the 31.0 pound per
capita lettuce consumption consist of head lettuce, it appears that
market opportunities for spinach consumption may be available by
capturing part of total lettuce market shares. The industry must
increase public awareness of the nutritional value of spinach, especially
as it concerns cancer prevention, antioxidants, and neutraceuticals
(food pharmaceuticals). Fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains
contain an abundance of phytonutrients that have been associated
with protection from and/or treatment of chronic diseases including
coronary heart disease, various types of cancer, eye disorders,
diabetes, stroke and hypertension. Spinach remains among the top
in the list of nutritious vegetables.
Spinach Value
Spinach production is very important to Texas and especially the
Southwest Wintergarden region of Texas where almost 90 percent of
the spinach produced in Texas is produced. While California now
dominates spinach production, producing about 72 percent of the
857.9 million pounds of spinach produced in the U.S. in 2003, Texas
produced about 30 percent of the processed market spinach.
The farm value of spinach
production in Texas (fresh and processed) during 2003 amounted to
$11.85 million ($4.04 million processed, $7.81 million fresh) with
an economic impact of about $41.5 million for communities in Southwest
Texas.
Appreciation
is expressed to Dr. Larry Stein, Extension Horticulturist, for his
contribution and review of this article.
