In this 'in charts' mini-series of articles, Colin Fain of data visualization tool Agronometrics illustrates how the U.S. market is evolving. In each series, he will look at a different fruit commodity, focusing on a different origin or topic in each installment to see what factors are driving change.

During the last eight years, blackberries showed an impressive 49% increase in volume. Most has been added by Mexico, which has grown by 45% during the same time period, but attention should also be called to California, which has grown 116%, strategically filling the gap left by Mexico’s season.

US Blackberry Movements by Origin in Lbs

(Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics)

As the gap that was created by Mexico has been filled in, the effect for consumers has been a general smoothing of what are typically rather volatile prices. Although I haven’t found hard evidence to back this opinion, I know that I’m not the only one in the industry who believes that offering consumers steady pricing - so that they know how much they should expect to pay when they go shopping - will in turn encourage people to buy more often, further increasing demand over time.

U.S. blackberry shipping point prices (12x6 Oz Cups) in USD

(Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics)

Right on the heels of a strong finish by Mexico, the category usually sees a surge in prices in June, which is exactly the window that producers California, Guatemala and the U.S. Southeast have been aiming for.

U.S. blackberry shipping point prices (8x1 Lb Containers), comparing the last four years

(Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics)

Looking at the last four years of volumes gives us a better idea of how blackberries have evolved. We can see how the total volume has been increasing year after year, particularly between June and September.

U.S. blackberry movements by month in Lbs, comparing the last four years

(Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics)

It looks like June this year isn’t an exception to high prices, already coming higher than the last two years on record. Guatemala, which recently suffered from a devastating volcano eruption, and California both came in with less volume than we have typically seen, which could be the first signs of an interesting season to come.

US blackberry shipping point prices (8x1 Lb containers)

(Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics)

In our mini-series, we work to tell some of the stories that are moving the industry. Feel free to take a look a some of the other articles listed below.

Avocados:

Avocados in Charts: Dynamic growth and opportunities in the U.S. market

Avocados in Charts: California at the heart of the US market

Avocados in Charts: Peru – An opening window of opportunity

Blueberries:

Blueberries in Charts: Finding opportunities in the gaps

Strawberries:

Strawberries in Charts: The king of berries sees its biggest month ever

Agronometrics is a data visualization tool built to help the industry make sense of the huge amounts of data that you depend on. We strive to help farmers, shippers, buyers, sellers, movers and shakers get an objective point of view on the markets to help them make informed strategic decisions. If you found the information and the charts from this article useful, feel free to visit us at www.agronometrics.com where you can easily recreate these same graphs, or explore the other 20 fruits we currently track, creating your own reports automatically updated with the latest data daily.

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