Watermelons see greatest tonnage growth in Nogales
Watermelons see greatest tonnage growth in Nogales
Nogales, az — Watermelon imports through Nogales rose 23 percent in two years.
The Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, here, in February released a report it consolidated from more recent figures from U.S. Customs and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The three-year comparison was for 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15.
Watermelons showed the greatest growth over the last two seasons, while tomatoes had the greatest decrease. Nogales’ tomato volume was down 11 percent over two years and dropped 5 percent over a one-year period.
Despite the tonnage decline, in 2014-15, tomatoes were by far the largest-value item, with a Customs value of $562 billion. For the year it was 20 percent of the total value of fresh fruits and vegetables imported into Nogales.
The Bell pepper value for 2014-15 was $358 million.
In value, grapes ranked third, at $320 million. But grape tonnage was only 315,000 pounds, which ranked sixth in volume for Nogales.
Listing Nogales commodities by value, ranked fourth in 2014-15 behind grapes were cucumbers. Rounding out the top 10 value items were squash, watermelons, mangos, chili peppers, melons and asparagus.
In the study, the value is that which is declared at U.S. Customs for all fruits and vegetables and general information about the participation of the Nogales imports in the overall produce imports of the country. Customs value does not reflect the actual selling, or f.o.b., price of items.
