Why Is the Price of Cherries So Expensive These Days?

Cherries are known the world over for their versatility. They can be eaten alone, enjoyed in a pie, and even included in a chutney and served alongside certain meats.

However, shoppers will have to pay a premium to enjoy these flavorful fruits, since cherries seem to cost much more than other popular fruits sold in grocery stores.

But, the reason why cherries are so expensive may come as a surprise to you, since it has less to do with demand and more to do with a unique condition that keeps certain farmers from planting these types of trees.

Keep reading to learn more.

According to the Cookist blog, one of the several factors keeping cherry prices high is the weight of the fruit. Cherries are dense fruits that include a pit, and they're typically priced by the pound, which means that all of that weight can quickly add up.

But the reason why the base price of the fruit is so high to begin with has to do with the way cherries are, and in many cases are not, grown.

That's because cherry trees can be finicky about the climate in which they thrive, and they really only do well in regions that don't see consistently cold or long winters, limiting the areas where these trees can be grown.

As such, Cookist says that many farmers won't even attempt to grow these fruits unless they already know that the conditions in their area are just right.

Another thing driving up prices? Cherries have incredibly short growing seasons. That means that they are only available for a small window, which increases their demand while limiting their supply.

Lastly, the price of maintaining a cherry farm can be quite high, since farmers need certain insecticides to ensure that the cherries are able to mature without being eaten by bugs first.

As with seemingly everything else in the world these days, climate change is playing a role in the price of cherries. That's because those very precise conditions that cherries need to thrive are hard to come by with the ever changing weather patterns brought on by climate change.

According to the Essential Food & Beverage Industry News For Professionals blog, wildfires, natural disasters, and droughts are all making it harder for farmers to reliably grow cherries on their farms.

And this isn't just a U.S. problem, either. The news site goes on to say that cherry farms around the world are facing these issues, and seeing crops hampered or destroyed completely by these unpredictable and severe conditions.

Unfortunately, that's not a problem with an easy solution, since efforts to lower the manmade greenhouse gases behind climate change seem to be moving too slow to make a noticeable difference.

That means that shoppers can expect to see cherry prices continue to climb, especially in areas where the cherries cannot be grown locally, and during those off-season months.