Turkey Talk: Straight to Dessert
With your Southeast Regional Ag News, I am Haylie Shipp. This is the Ag Information Network.
We’re continuing through Thanksgiving week and, as is always kind of fun to do as we approach a holiday filled with so much cuisine celebration, we’re taking the time to learn more about what is on our table.
Yesterday it was the turkey. Today, we’re headed right to dessert. Let’s talk pumpkin!
In 2022, American farmers produced more that 1.6 billion pounds of pumpkins according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. More than just being a whole lot of pumpkin pie, it was valued at over $272 million dollars. For what it’s worth, I was the orangest pumpkin in the patch during my third grade play and it is Illinois that produced the most pumpkins in the U.S. last year. The Prairie State produced some 38%.
All that established, how pricey is the pumpkin pie this year? Actually, it’s gone up. Of the items surveyed this year in an annual survey from the American Farm Bureau Federation, pumpkin pie mix at $4.44 per 30-ounce can saw the largest increase of anything in their hypothetical Thanksgiving table spread. That was an increase of 3.8% compared to 2022. Conveniently enough, you can counter that price a bit with the cost of whipping cream. At $1.73 per half pint, it saw a 22.8% decrease in price.
