Younger, higher-income consumers in the West are the most frequent purchasers of fresh artichokes, according to The Packer's Fresh Trends 2023 consumer survey.
Eight percent of all consumers surveyed in Fresh Trends reported purchases of artichokes in the past year. That is slightly down from 10% of consumers who reported fresh artichoke purchases in the Fresh Trends 2022 survey.
A far greater percentage of higher-income consumers reported fresh artichoke purchases compared with lower-income shoppers. For example, 14% of consumers making more than $100,000 per year said they purchased fresh artichokes in the previous year, compared with just 5% of buyers making less than $25,000 annually.
Eleven percent of shoppers with kids at home reported fresh artichoke purchases in the past year, compared with 7% of shoppers with no kids at home.
Consumers in the Western U.S. were more likely to purchase fresh artichokes than any other region, according to Fresh Trends 2023. Twelve percent of consumers in the West reported fresh artichoke purchases, compared with 8% for consumers in the Midwest, 6% for the South and 10% for the Northeast.
Younger consumers were generally more frequent buyers of fresh artichokes than older consumers, according to Fresh Trends data. Just 4% of those shoppers aged 60 and older reported fresh artichoke purchases in Fresh Trends 2023, compared with 7% for those in the 50-59 age group, 11% for the 40-49 age group, 11% for the 30-39 age group and 10% for the 18-29 age group.
Thirteen percent of Asian consumers reported artichoke purchases, compared with 8% for Hispanic shoppers, 7% for Black/African American buyers and 9% for white/Caucasian consumers.
Artichoke consumers polled by Fresh Trends 2023 were asked whether they purchased baby or smaller artichokes in the past year. Eighty-one percent said they did, led by 91% of consumers in the 30-39 age group and 95% of consumers in the 40-49 bracket.
Pricing and promotion
The USDA reports that the average fob price for fresh artichokes in 2022 was $23.45 per carton, down slightly from $24.54 per carton in 2021.
The average retail promoted price for fresh artichokes in 2022 was $1.38, the USDA said, up from $1.24 in 2021. The weekly average number of stores promoting artichokes was 1,538 in 2022, up from 1,182 in 2021, according to USDA numbers.
