Did you notice fewer strawberries at your market this spring—or perhaps that pint cost double what it did last year? You’re not alone. A global strawberry shortage is rippling through farm fields, supermarkets, and small businesses. Multiple factors are squeezing supply: weird weather, shrinking farmland, cyclical harvest gaps, and a stubborn fungus or two.
For produce buyers, café owners, and anyone who relies on fruit sales, this isn’t just a seasonal blip. Understanding what’s happening with strawberries helps you plan ahead and avoid those “out of stock” moments—or at least warn your customers before disappointment hits. Today, you’ll see where the pain points are, what’s causing them, and where you might find opportunity hidden among all those empty clamshells.
Key Causes of the Strawberry Shortage
1. Impact of Climate Change
Consider this: climate change isn’t just a distant concern for policymakers. It’s driving real, immediate problems in crop fields worldwide. Research from the University of Waterloo found that if average temperatures rise by just 3°F, strawberry yields could tumble by up to 40%. That’s not a typo. Fewer berries, higher prices, and much tighter competition to snag cases for your shop or kitchen.
In California, which grows well over 80% of America’s strawberries, heat waves bring more trouble—increased evaporation, stressed plants, and berries that ripen too fast or not at all. Ditto for southern Spain and the Mediterranean, where spring spells can swing suddenly from chilly to scorching within days. Farmers watch nervously whenever weather reports mention record highs or drought warnings.
2. Seasonal Fluctuations in Supply
Here’s a move worth learning: map your supply by harvest calendar, not just geography. In the U.S., California’s monster harvest winds down every winter. Mexico and Florida take the reins, but there’s always a gap before peak season arrives in those regions—especially for organic berries. Late 2024 and early 2025 are already projected to see slim pickings, even as demand rises for holiday baking and warm-weather desserts.
It’s not just a North American story, either. European suppliers face their own quirks, with unseasonal rainy spells or chilly cold snaps delaying or shrinking harvests from France to Poland. By planning ahead—or at least having a substitute fruit option—you can ride out those dip moments without getting stuck.
3. Decline in Strawberry Acreage
Pay attention when the ground itself shrinks beneath a crop. Global strawberry acreage dropped from 3,700 hectares in 2022 to just 2,300 hectares in 2025. This stat alone sends a chill down any market analyst’s spine. Why the drop? Skilled farm labor is harder to find, disease outbreaks make planting riskier, and some growers have simply pivoted to less finicky, more profitable crops. If you bet on berries as a primary product, keep your focus on sourcing—and consider finding regional growers to diversify your chain.
4. Influence of Fungal Diseases
Ask any strawberry grower in Ohio: there’s a new villain in town. Neopestalotiopsis, a fast-moving fungal disease (sometimes called Neo-P), has wiped out swaths of the state’s strawberry fields. It’s no small nuisance. “You can watch 90% of a crop collapse in a week if you’re unlucky,” says one frustrated farmer.
Replacement plants are hard to come by—disease-free transplants are rare, and moving them across state lines gets complicated fast. Even Florida, which usually boasts strong winter output, saw losses from creeping fungal infections. For you, this means more prices going up and event planners facing tough calls—like Ohio’s Loveland Strawberry Days being canceled in 2025. Always have a backup produce supplier in your contact list, just in case.
Regional Impact Analysis
North America
Let’s zero in on the U.S., where strawberry events and small-town festivals are suddenly scrambling. In Ohio, the Neo-P fungus made local headlines as entire harvests withered last season. With not enough healthy plants to go around, local farmers’ markets offered slim pickings—if any. The effects were so widespread, long-standing community fairs had to cancel or scale back. Bakers and caterers felt the squeeze too; some pivoted to blueberries and other fruits.
Meanwhile, California still produces most U.S. strawberries, but with higher costs and new disease pressures, fields can look more like a chessboard of risk than an endless sea of red. Commodity buyers and restaurant owners in Texas, New York, and beyond report delivery delays and limits on order sizes.
Europe
If you’re sourcing or selling imported berries, pay attention to what’s happening in Spain’s Huelva region. It’s the heart of European strawberry farming, but production has declined thanks to climate swings and water restrictions. Wholesale prices have climbed. Across the Alps in Austria, hailstorms hammered open fields, leaving yields low just as demand ramped up. Swiss growers scratched their heads as a lingering cold set back harvests by weeks—no easy fix when your season runs short to begin with.
The upshot? Market uncertainty. Some retailers adopted a “first come, first served” model and advised customers to grab punnets fast.
Other Countries: Italy, France, Germany, Netherlands
Italy and France still report healthy crops, but heavy competition keeps margins thin. If you buy from Western Europe, you may still fill your cases—just expect to watch prices zigzag as fewer players corner market share.
Germany and the Netherlands, meanwhile, enjoyed strong production but found themselves adjusting to sudden price swings. In peak times, gluts popped up. But just as quickly, localized storms or unseasonal rain wiped out patches and sent prices back up. The takeaway here: agility beats perfection. Start small, test, iterate—then adjust your buying approach in real time. Ask your supplier for weekly updates during peak season, not just monthly.
Industry and Market Responses
Adaptations in Planting and Supply Chains
Growers have stopped waiting for luck to get them through. Many now stagger planting times or extend their picking season with tunnel-grown crops under plastic. In the U.S., savvy producers are racing to track down disease-free transplants, sometimes forming co-ops to buy healthy rootstock in bulk.
Another move: some family farms are betting on diversification. By mixing strawberries with hardier crops or rotating fields more often, they hedge their bets. The bonus? This helps slow the advance of soil-borne diseases in future years.
On the logistics side, regional wholesalers and small distributors are evolving their own playbook. Communicate closely and early—let your partners know what you need, and ask about backup inventory. Being a regular, communicative buyer can bump you up the priority queue when product is short. By adjusting delivery expectations and retooling your menu or product selection, you’ll keep frustration to a minimum for your team and your customers.
Economic Impacts on the Market
You’re not imagining it: strawberries are more expensive now, and shoppers notice. In 2022, U.S. strawberry sales topped $3 billion—a signal of just how much these little red fruits matter. With sporadic supply comes price jumps and pinched margins.
If you’re a retailer, restaurant, smoothie shop owner, or produce reseller, this means you must keep a close eye on cost per unit and what your customers are willing to pay. Transparency works: Don’t be afraid to educate shoppers about why prices are up, or why local supply might be low this year.
Pro tip: keep alternative products in rotation. By offering seasonal specials that don’t rely entirely on strawberries, you can pivot smoothly when supplies tighten up. “We substituted local rhubarb and raspberries in our tarts,” says a small café owner in Vermont. “Not one customer complained—some asked for the recipe!” The good news is, creativity rarely goes out of stock.
You can find more adaptive tips and case studies from resourceful founders at SmallBizView—a smart read if tight supply chains are your current headache.
Conclusion: Planning Through the Strawberry Shortage
So, what do you do next? Keep your focus on flexibility and clear communication. Shortages are likely to stick around into next year, as farms battle shifting weather, shrinking acreage, and recurring disease threats. But by staying nimble—switching up menu items, adjusting your sourcing network, and doubling down on transparent updates for your customers—you’ll stay ahead of the worst bumps.
Don’t forget: this isn’t just a headache for you. Everyone from growers to grocers is adjusting. The new winners are those who plan for change, respond with agility, and keep scale in mind—but never lose their human touch. Start small, test, iterate. Share your wins and lessons with others. By month’s end, you’ll be surprised what new products, partners, or creative promotions you discover.
Summary Table: Major Strawberry Shortage Factors by Region
| Factor | Global | California/US | Ohio | Europe/UK | Mexico/Florida |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Climate change | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| Fungal disease (Neo-P, others) | Yes | — | Yes | Some | — |
| Acreage decline | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Seasonal supply gap | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | In transition |
| Supply chain disruptions | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Keep this chart handy when forecasting supply—or justifying menu tweaks. Having these reference points lets you move faster, set firmer expectations with customers, and—most importantly—find a way to keep business growing even when the berry baskets run empty.
Also Read:
