Aussies warned of the next staple vegetable likely to be hit with shortages

Lettuce soon won’t be the only expensive fresh produce people are complaining about, with shortages of another staple vegetable looming.

The price of lettuce soon won’t be the only thing shoppers are complaining about, with Aussies warned to prepare for shortages of another common veggie.

The price of lettuce has skyrocketed – to $12 for one iceberg lettuce in some parts of the country – as Australia continues to deal with fresh produce shortages.

Bill Bulmer, Victorian lettuce grower and chair of the industry body for the Australian vegetable producers, AUSVEG, told 3AW that the price hikes won’t stop any time soon.

He said Aussies can expect to see shortages of lettuce, capsicum and spinach to continue for at least the next three months, with another veggie joining them on the chopping block.

“Then, probably, the looming shortage coming into spring is going to be onions,” he said.

Just like we have seen with lettuce, a shortage of onions is set to send prices for the vegetable soaring.

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Onions could be the next to see prices rise.

Supermarket giant Woolworths has also advised customers it is experiencing a slight disruption with some other vegetables including Lebanese cucumbers, kale, fresh herbs, zucchini, beans, tomatoes, capsicum, berries, broccoli and spinach.

Mr Bulmer explained that the devastating floods in Queensland was the main driver of these shortages, wiping out about 80 per cent of lettuce crops.

“We have been pounded by La Nina in the last 12 months. The major growing region of Australia for lettuce this time of year is out of Brisbane in the Gatton region and they have been impacted by floods in February as well as in May,” he told the radio station.

“In normal times you would probably see lettuce from $1.50 to $2.50 in the supermarket right now.”

The AUSVEG chair said he wouldn’t even bother buying a lettuce in the supermarket at the moment because of how much prices have risen.

“I have heard prices anywhere from $10 to $12. That is a supply and demand issue,” he said.

“There are pockets of lettuces here and there across Australia but, as I said, the bulk comes out of the Gatton region this time of the year.

“People who want them are paying for them.”

Earlier this month, a Queensland shopper shared her “outrage” at the cost of fresh produce at her local IGA.

Iceberg lettuces for $11.99 at a Queensland IGA. Picture: BrissySandy/Reddit

Taking to Reddit, the woman shared two photos of the produce section from the supermarket in Redcliffe, in Queensland’s Moreton Bay Region.

One showed a display of iceberg lettuces – which were priced at a whopping $11.99 each – while the other showed punnets of strawberries and blueberries, priced at $14.99 and $19.49 respectively. Per kilo, the strawberries were priced at $59.96, while the blueberries were priced at $155.92.

“That’s a bloody outrage, it is!” she wrote alongside the images.

“I live in a place where only the elite can afford fresh fruit and vegetables. The worst bit is that I’m a bloody Australian; we literally grow 99 per cent of our fresh produce here.”

The price hike has also forced a big change to the KFC menu, with the iconic fast food chain announcing it would be using a cabbage and lettuce mix instead of just lettuce in its burgers due to supply demands.

KFC alerted customers to its lettuce shortage this week by posting a menu update on its website.

According to KFC’s statement, recent flooding events in Queensland and NSW are to blame and it could impact burgers like the popular Zinger.

And on Wednesday morning, fast food outlet Subway followed suit, also announcing it would be using a cabbage and lettuce mix in its subs.

Originally published as Aussies warned of the next staple vegetable likely to be hit with shortages