U.S. growers sold their fruits and vegetables for more in February than the year before at the same time.
The big exception to the trend was potatoes, which continue to be stuck in sluggish markets.
Those are among the findings of a recently released report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.
In the February Agricultural Prices report, the USDA reported that the index it uses to measure prices received by growers rose 18% from a year ago for fruit and nut growers. The February figure was also 5.1% higher than the January number for fruits and nuts.
Higher prices for oranges more than offset price declines for strawberries, grapefruit, lemons and pears, according to the report.
The vegetable price index is 3.6% higher than in February 2009 but down 8.3% from January 2010.
From January to February, price declines for lettuce, celery, broccoli and cauliflower more than offset higher prices for onions, tomatoes, sweet corn and carrots.
At $6.99 per cwt, the average potato price was down 18 cents from the month before and $1.88 below February 2009, according to the USDA.