Just in time for summer, leafy greens and salad range prices are set to stabilise as the weather has been more reliable and planting programmes have started to produce a more consistent supply.
“The El Nina weather pattern has been causing us all sorts of disruptions and issues with a lot of rain and hail. Spinach, baby and whole leaf salad doesn’t fare well in the rain, so our supply has been impacted greatly over the last couple of months,” said Richard Burke, LeaderBrand’s Chief Executive.
“We’re starting to get warmer days, less rain, perfect weather for leafy greens to grow. Now things are starting to stabilise with our planting schedule, we have plenty of broccoli, iceberg lettuce, and spinach. We’ve got lots of supply, so you’ll start to see some great prices across the fresh produce aisles.”
Despite the challenges of labour shortages and complex weather patterns, local growers are driven to provide Kiwis with healthy produce and fresh salads for summer.
“We’re only a couple of weeks away from the start of summer, and it’s the perfect time to start pumping up your vegetable quota by adding lots of different types of produce into your salads. Try grated carrot, some avocado, slices of capsicum, or chopping up asparagus, the options are endless,” said Carmel Ireland from the 5+ A Day Charitable Trust.
“Warmer weather is the perfect time for healthy eating. You can add all sorts of vegetables to a bag of salad, then throw some vegetable kebabs and corn on the barbeque to serve with your protein of choice. Altogether it makes a healthy, quick and easy meal that everyone in the family will love.”
