RIO RICO, AZ - Spooky season is here, folks! I repeat, spooky season is here. This is not a drill. And you know what that means, pumpkins galore! To get retailers and shoppers ready for Halloween and other fall festivities, Fresh Farms is readying its squash crops and is anticipating steady volumes throughout October.

Due to heavy rains in all of its growing regions, the supplier reported a rough start to the crop, causing it to kick off 10 days later than its projected start date, according to a release. However, the rain came and went with no issues, leaving quality outstanding and volumes good.

The late start to the season created a strong market, especially as West Coast demand picked up due to the recent heat wave that slowed crops. Moving forward, Fresh Farms expects good promotional volumes thanks to nice weather throughout its growing regions leading to a steady market that should last through the month.

Currently, Fresh Farms is growing in the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora and is in its third season. The supplier expects to grow this program yearly as it has received positive feedback from customers.

To support the sale of pumpkins, Fresh Farms urges retailers to make the pumpkin purchase more fun by hosting carving competitions, providing carving stencils, having in-store carving, and cross-merchandising carving tools or ingredients for pumpkin-based recipes.

With the arrival of spooky season, the merchandising opportunities are endless. So, embrace your inner witch, ghost, goblin, or ghoul and turn your produce aisles into Halloweentown.

Fresh Farms