Vegetables have become more expensive to produce, but strong consumer demand and declining production in key markets of North America and Europe have opened new opportunities for major suppliers including Mexico, Spain, Netherlands, Turkey and Poland.
Those are among the headline findings contained in a new report published by Rabobank and timed to coincide with the publication of its latest World Vegetable Map.
The map, which is updated every few years, charts recent trends in vegetable production, consumption and trade worldwide.
According to the new analysis, the value of the global vegetable market remains below the hundred billion-dollar peak it achieved for the first and only time in 2021. However, its average 3 per cent annual growth between 2017 and 2022 kept sales in line with inflation.
Production in the EU and the US both saw declines over the same period, but consumption is said to have held up relatively well, despite higher costs for consumers and producers alike.