Consumers’ careful spending limits demand

Excerpt from The Packer Central American/Caribbean special section published on 01/07/2010 by Abraham Mahshie

As the economy stabilizes, importers from Central America and the Caribbean are expecting steady sales of tropical fruit and vegetables while abnormal weather keeps volumes in check.

Mary Ostlund, director of marketing for Brooks Tropicals Inc., Homestead, Fla., whose main papaya production is in Belize, said hurricanes were not a major issue in the Yucatan peninsula. However, she said there was too much rain in the islands, causing a slow down of harvesting for coconuts and chayotes in the Dominican Republic.