HIGHER Quality, BETTER Yield, TASTIER Flavor – No Matter How You Slice It!
Our Summer Squash has abundant yield and truly undeniable appeal. Specially bred for above-average yield, easy harvesting, and superior shelf life, growers will fall in love with our Summer Squash line.
Gorgeous color and cylindrical shape ensures that these varieties will be a consumer favorite, as well, and are sure to be flying off of shelves all season long.
Squash is an extremely popular seller, accounting for more than 1% of all produce sales. In fact, squash sales reached nearly $700 million in 2013 – a 15% increase in the category. The influx of “paleo” and gluten-free eaters can certainly be attributed to the rise in the squash market; however, the overall trend is likely due to growing awareness of the powerful health benefits of squash.
As knowledge increases about the advantages of squash, so do an array of recipes and preparation techniques sure to excite the consumer and increase sales. In order to stay ahead of the trending curve, growers must be aware of the rise in market demand and be adequately prepared to properly accommodate consumer needs.
Grow Your [Nutritional] Knowledge
Summer squash has a number of selling points for the health-conscious consumer.
- Great source of Vitamin C
- Fat free, sodium free, and low in calories
- Boosts the immune system
- Helps fight cancer
- More Potassium than a banana
Blossom with #Trending Information
Squash sales are on the upward trend.
- 43,600 acres of squash were planted in 2013; 40,800 acres were harvestable
- Sales jumped in 2013 to nearly $700 million; a 15% increase
- Squash prices jumped by 10 cents a pound from 2012 to 2013
- Squash increased from 1.1% of total produce sales in 2012 to 1.2% in 2013
Squash the Competition
As summer squash proceed to trend upward, growers need to be prepared to meet exponentially increasing demand. Sakata offers an advanced line-up of summer squash with attributes that appeal to a wide range of growing environments and of which are specially bred and rigorously tested to produce high yields and ease of harvesting.
Sources:
Commodity Overview: Squash, 2014 Produce Market Guide, The Packer.