MU stops carrying tomatoes due to shortage
Campus Dining Services hopes to have tomatoes next semester, if prices and supply stabilize.
Published Dec. 10, 2004
For at least the rest of the semester, holding the tomatoes on your burger at campus dining locations might not be a preference, but the only option.
Because of a nationwide shortage of tomatoes, Campus Dining Services has temporarily stopped carrying tomatoes.
This affects all dining locations, and the Memorial Union and Brady Commons food courts.
CDS Director Julaine Kiehn said campus-dining locations stopped carrying tomatoes because of several factors.
"When you combine the price, the availability and the quality, it just didn't make sense to carry tomatoes," Kiehn said.
Kiehn said CDS was sometimes unable to buy tomatoes, and when it did, they were expensive and of low quality.
Hurricanes that hit Florida several months ago caused the shortage and price spike, said James Quinn, extension associate for MU vegetable crops research.
"It's mainly because of bad weather down in Florida," Quinn said. "Florida is where you're counting on tomato crops coming from in December, January and February."
Quinn said four hurricanes had an influence on tomato-producing regions in Florida.
CDS purchasing coordinator Sandy Perley said the retail price for tomatoes doubled over the past few weeks. Kiehn said heavy rains in California and bug infestations in Mexico also have contributed to the shortage.
Quinn said events in Florida would not affect canned tomato production, which includes pasta sauces, ketchup and salsas.
"This would just affect fresh market production," Quinn said.
Kiehn said she was optimistic about the possibility of tomatoes returning next semester.
"We will have to see," Kiehn said. "They think the market will be better by mid-January."
Quinn estimated that within a couple of months, several different sources for tomatoes would materialize, causing prices to drop substantially.
"Probably what will happen is too much will come to the market at once," Quinn said. "Florida growers will come in with later-than-normal yields. California may have some product, as well. The prices will probably drop substantially in the tail end of February into March."
Businesses have experienced problems with the tomato shortage as well.
Julie Harkin, spokeswoman for Wendy's International Inc., said the restaurant only provided tomatoes upon request.
"We were offering tomatoes only upon request, because the quality just wasn't there for our customers," Harkin said.
She said, however, the problem is about finished for Wendy's, as the fast-food chain is expecting a tomato shipment from Florida.
"We are actually about out of the woods," Harkin said. "Beginning next week, we'll be back on track and able to offer tomatoes."