Fruit & Vegetable Manufacturers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 1,551 fruit and vegetable manufacturers in the US produce frozen foods and juices; canned fruits, vegetables, and specialty foods; and dried and dehydrated foods and mixes. Canned foods account for about 46% of industry revenue, while frozen foods are 45%. The fruit and vegetable manufacturing industry is concentrated – the top 50 companies account for about 64% of industry revenue.
Variable Fruit And Vegetable Supply
The supply of fruit and vegetables available for processors varies by season and year to year due to changes in growing conditions and the number of acres harvested by growers.
Stricter Food Labeling Requirements
Fruit and vegetable manufacturers must comply with a variety of food labeling regulations.
Industry size & Structure
The average fruit and vegetable manufacturer operates a single location, employs 109 workers and generates about $50.1 million in annual revenue.
- The US fruit and vegetable manufacturing industry consists of about 1,550 companies that employ 169,000 workers and generate $77.7 billion in annual revenue.
- About 535 companies produce frozen foods, 725 produce canned products, and 215 produce dried and dehydrated products.
- Adults in the US consume about 1 cup of fruit and 1.4 cups of vegetables per day. Annual per capita consumption is about 130 pounds for frozen, canned, or dried fruits and 206 pounds for frozen, canned, or dried vegetables.
- The fruit and vegetable manufacturing industry is concentrated - the top 50 companies account for about 64% of industry revenue.
- Large US companies include Dole Food Company, Del Monte Corporation, The Schwan Food Company, Campbell Soup Company, JR Simplot, and Kraft Heinz Company.
Industry Forecast
Fruit & Vegetable Manufacturers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Jul 23, 2024 - Rising Producer Prices
- The producer price index for fruit and vegetable manufacturers, which measures prices before reaching consumers, rose to a new high in May, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Producer prices rose 3% in May compared to a year ago after jumping 11.6% in the previous annual comparison, BLS data show. While inflation is slowing, food prices are still higher than last year. Food production costs continue to rise and are estimated to increase by 3.8% this year, which is slower than in 2023, according to the USDA. Employment by fruit and vegetable manufacturers shrank by 2.4% in May year over year, while average industry wages rose 3.3% over the same period to $22.03 per hour.
- Unit sales of frozen fruit rose 8.8% in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2023, the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) reports, citing data from Circana. During the first half of 2024, overall frozen food dollar sales ticked up 0.4% to $84.4 billion due to strengthening consumer demand and moderating inflation, while unit sales dipped 0.8% over the same period, Circana data show. Home freezer sales, which soared during the pandemic as consumers stocked up on frozen foods, continue to exceed pre-pandemic levels, with about 2.3 million freezer shipments in 2023 versus 1.5 million in 2019, per AFFI. The added storage capability creates growth opportunities for the frozen food category. The price, ease of preparation, and “having a quick total meal solution on hand” are the top reasons consumers say they buy frozen food, according to AFFI.
- Fewer farmers are farming fewer acres but producing more each year, according to the USDA’s 2022 Census of Agriculture (CoA), released in February. Between 2017 and 2022, the number of farms in the US declined by 141,733 or 7%, while the number of acres operated by farm operations declined by 20.1 million (2.2%) over the same period, a loss equivalent to an area about the size of Maine. While the number of farm operations and acres operated fell, the value of agricultural production rose from $389 billion in 2017 to $533 billion in 2022 (40% nominally and 17% adjusted for inflation), per the CoA. In 2022, 11,828 farms harvested nearly 1.7 million acres of vegetables for processing, while 74,438 farms produced fruits (noncitrus) on some 2.14 million acres.
- Frozen foods generated nearly $77.6 billion in sales in 2023, and volume sales were up 5% compared to 2019, according to Conagra Brands’ Future of Frozen Foods 2024 report. US consumers eat frozen food products an average of four times a week, with frozen vegetables among the top frozen food items Americans have on hand, according to market research firm Circana’s National Eating Trends data. Consumers in rural areas purchase frozen foods more frequently, and nearly half of US households own secondary freezers. Prepared foods accounted for the largest percentage of sales (32.7%) by category, with frozen vegetables and fruit accounting for 4.6% and 2.4%, respectively, per data collected by NielsenIQ for the 52 weeks ending December 2, 2023.
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