OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA - A preliminary report was recently published by the Global Coalition of Fresh Produce. The survey was conducted in the spring of 2023, and it highlights the increasing costs of fruits and vegetable production around the world and their impacts on the whole produce industry and end consumers.

“We conducted this global survey to shed light on the challenges experienced by the fresh produce supply chain worldwide,” said Ron Lemaire, Global Coalition of Fresh Produce Chair and President of the Canadian Produce Marketing Association. “The narrative highlighted in this report will help the industry, its partners, and all government levels understand the current impact of the increase in production costs and work together to address them.”

According to the Coalition’s preliminary report:

• On a global level, organizations within the supply side of the fresh produce industry experienced unprecedented increases in costs during the COVID-19 pandemic, regardless of the region of their operation. The increases were led by fertilizer, construction, fuel, shipping, and electricity
• Selling prices have gone up over the past two years by 11 percent in Europe, 14 percent in North America, 13 percent in Oceania, 23 percent in Africa, and 13 percent in South America
• The rise in costs for production and operations has impacted respondents’ investments not only in capital and equipment but also in innovation and expansion
• Spiking costs have also affected strategic and operational choices. Some operators are choosing to import from countries with lower shipping costs

The preliminary report is available here. Global Coalition of Fresh Produce is collecting data to develop a global and national perspective on the rising costs of production in North America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, and South America. The full release can be found here.

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Global Coalition of Fresh Produce