As the longtime president of Cedarville, NJ-based Nardelli said that, in some cases, costs at his fifth-generation family-owned company have increased by as much as 30 percent to 40 percent or more. “We are experiencing the same type of inflation as the customer and, unfortunately, we have to pass some of those increases along,” he said. As for the crop this spring, Nardelli is happy with the way things are turning out after a rough start weather-wise in much of the southern part of the country. “Things are good and business is good,” he said. “It was a challenging winter season with adverse conditions and a cold winter throughout the south that hindered winter crops and created some supply gaps in south Florida, in Mexico and even into California, which saw more rain than normal. Fortunately, we have had the ability to maintain decent supplies and facilitate our customers.”
But, he quickly added, the spring weather has improved, especially in Florida and southern Georgia and that is helping the crop and availability of product.
Still, he said that after a warmer-than-normal early March, temperatures in the northern part of the country have been below average for a few weeks into April. Cooler weather means the consumer is not thinking about the traditional spring and summer products like corn, beans, squash and cucumbers yet. “It has not been optimal for spring promotions on Florida vegetables thus far,” he said. “We are hopeful that late April and May will bring much warmer weather and get the consumer into the right frame of mind.
“Corn is coming on very well and should be exceptional quality. The beans supply should be very good as well as squash, peppers and cucumbers from southern and central Florida. We also expect good seasons for cabbage and lettuce production, including romaine, parsley and green and red leaf.”
The company plans to support its products into the summer. “Promotions are a big aspect of our business and sales,” Nardelli said. “We always want to promote products and develop things that people associate with spring such as corn, green beans and the salad mixes. When the weather gets warmer and the days longer, people really start to look for the summer vegetables and more barbecuing outdoors.”
