CarbAmericas President Jeff Friedman pulls no punches as he characterizes the current Peruvian asparagus deal. “It is pretty bleak right now,” he said, during the last few days of August.

So far, the Peruvian asparagus deal has been a challenge with much less volume than a year ago, but that hasn’t stopped U.S. importer Ayco Farms from moving forward on one of its key initiatives: value-added options.

“Ayco is focusing on more packaging for retailers especially with our asparagus,” said Shani Nir, who handles marketing for the Pompano Beach, FL-based company. “We offer anything from bulk packaging to private label packaging. Our packaging includes tray packs, pouch bags, and flow pack bags.”

For the past five years, Cruz Carrera has been a part of the Five Crowns team and its expansion of its asparagus program.

“As a year-round shipper our supply is sourced from Mexico, Peru, Canada and domestically” he said. “Our domestic production comes from Washington, Idaho and Michigan.”

Carrera, who wears the director of asparagus sales title, said that despite industry projections being down from both Peru and Mexico, total asparagus volume for the Brawley, CA-based company will once again be greater than the year before.

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The global sweet potato market was valued at around $42.7 billion in 2020 and will reach $45.7 billion by the end of 2025, according to data from Statista.

That’s good news for the companies growing sweet potatoes.

Last year’s crop fared better than the previous few years, but by the end of the season, sweet potatoes were hard to come by, increasing prices across the entire industry. Those increased prices are expected to play into the new 2023 crop, and growers are expecting a banner season.

On Wednesday, Sept. 20, the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee held a hearing on, “Reforming the Generalized System of Preferences to Safeguard U.S. Supply Chains and Combat China.” The Subcommittee discussed the reauthorization of the Generalized System of Preferences to diversify supply chains with developing countries and reduce U.S. reliance on China. In addition, many members highlighted the importance of GSP as a negotiating tool for the promotion of U.S. agricultural exports to GSP beneficiary countries.