Trader Joe’s has hiked up the price of one of its most popular products: bananas. The national grocery chain recently increased the price of its banana from 19 cents to 23 cents — a major change in the sense that this is the first time the market has increased the price of the fruit in more than 20 years.
“We only change our prices when our costs change, and after holding our price for bananas at 19¢ each for more than two decades, we’ve now reached a point where this change is necessary,” a TJ’s spokesperson told CNN.
The 19-cent fruit has been a popular store item for years, with many consumers hailing it as the number one produce product in TJ’s annual Customer Choice Awards. TJ’s bananas — both the non-organic and organic options — have won the same award five times, making it a possible addition in the store’s Hall of Fame.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average price of bananas in the US has remained pretty constant from February 2023 to February 2024: 62 to 64 cents a pound throughout the year. Demand for bananas has largely been driven in part by the relative affordability of the fruits, according to a 2023 report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The report added that banana prices remained “virtually unchanged” in 2023 due to the “fierce competition” in the national retail market and the role of bananas as a loss leader — a product that is intentionally sold at a low price to attract customers.
Although TJ’s raised its banana prices, the grocer said it lowered prices of other produce items such as romaine hearts, bell peppers and green onions.
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