RALEIGH, N.C. — Drought conditions in California have caused a shortage of tomatoes used in processing, which is impacting consumers across the country and here in North Carolina.
What You Need To Know
- A canned tomato shortage is due to drought conditions in California
- California is responsible for 90% of the canned tomatoes produced in the U.S.
- Businesses are having to stock up in order to keep their tomato-based items available
Roughly 90% of the canned tomatoes produced in the United States come from California, but a shortage of the popular kitchen staple has forced many businesses to stock up on whatever they can get their hands on.
Jill Santa Lucia, president of Catering Works in Raleigh, says she is trying to remain vigilant in order to keep her tomato-based items on the menu.
"In the beginning of August, we started seeing it could potentially be an issue so we got with our vendor," Santa Lucia said. "The vendors will start putting rations on how much you can get. They have not done that yet, so I think moving forward, we will be seeing a lot of that.”
Santa Lucia says tomatoes aren't the only thing in short supply here lately.
In recent months, vendors say they have also seen a decline in the stock of other items like crackers, flour and popcorn kernels.