{"id":7234,"date":"2015-04-11T06:53:36","date_gmt":"2015-04-11T11:53:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/olduvai.ca\/?p=7234"},"modified":"2015-04-11T06:53:36","modified_gmt":"2015-04-11T11:53:36","slug":"california-drought-to-squeeze-produce-prices-but-so-will-other-factors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/?p=7234","title":{"rendered":"California drought to squeeze produce prices, but so will other factors"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

California drought to squeeze produce prices, but so will other factors<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

Price of lettuce has gone up 40 cents, but some of that is due to low Canadian dollar<\/strong><\/p>\n

Drought may have gripped California’s agricultural heartland for a fourth consecutive year, but it’s not the only factor putting pressure on imported produce prices at the supermarket.<\/p>\n

More than 93 per cent of the state is currently experiencing “severe” to “exceptional” drought, according to the\u00a0U.S. Drought Monitor<\/a>, and the\u00a0governor\u00a0recently implemented new rationing measures for cities and towns to cut water\u00a0use by 25 per cent.<\/p>\n

Farmers have so far been exempt from those restrictions\u00a0\u2014 even though they use 80 per cent of the state’s developed water supply. Still,\u00a0many have had their usual federal allocations of water\u00a0reduced to zero for the second\u00a0year in a row and have had to draw\u00a0more heavily on groundwater sources or\u00a0purchase water\u00a0from\u00a0contractors and other farmers \u2014 for as much as 10\u00a0times the usual rates.\u00a0Others are switching to more efficient irrigation methods and less water-intensive crops or letting some land go fallow.<\/p>\n

John Bishop, a\u00a0produce\u00a0buyer for distributor Fresh Start Foods in Milton, Ont. says his Californian\u00a0tomato\u00a0suppliers are planning for a smaller\u00a0crop this June.<\/p>\n