As the winter season approaches and the weather grows colder, the leaves fall from the trees and nature turns a muted gray. The crops have left until next year, so how do we still have fresh produce in our grocery stores? Most people would say that there is a simple explanation, imports. There are, however, complex economic and transportation systems behind the transportation of fruits and vegetables from more tropical regions to our grocery store shelves during the midwest winter. Different fruits and vegetables are grown and shipped from different regions. For example, according to CBS News, bananas are never grown in the US, no matter what time of year it is, and they are always imported from places like Costa Rica and Guatemala. Our blueberries originate from Chile and Argentina, while things like strawberries and grapes are mainly grown in California. According to california grown.org, California is the US state that grows the most produce. In fact, about 40% of California’s land is used for agriculture. 

We have established where our produce is grown in the frigid winter months, however the question is, how is it transported from the fields of far away farms to our produce aisles? According to the Federal Highway Administration, various methods of transporting food are used depending on the distance the food needs to travel. For short distances, trucks are optimal, but for longer distances, railways are a reliable method of transportation. For produce being shipped from outside of North America, oceanic ships are the preferred method of transportation. New technologies like climate controlled containers have made getting fresh produce year round a much easier task. Airplanes are occasionally used to transport goods that are highly perishable and/or high in value. 

Now that we have explored the basics of the shipments of our produce, we need to discuss the impact of the importation of produce from Latin American countries on their economies. The United States is a very powerful force in Latin America and South America, and the system we have established of importing produce is a part of a larger political and economic scheme for power in the region. The United States utilizes many different tools to influence Latin and South American countries. Sanctions, commercial or financial penalties applied by states or institutions to other states, institutions, or groups, in order to influence a change in their behavior, are often used because Latin and South American countries rely on the US when it comes to a lot of trade. The United States also uses things like trade policy to keep Latin American countries economically dependent upon the United States. The truth is, Latin American countries are stuck in a state of economic dependence, mainly exporting raw materials from mining and agriculture rather than manufactured goods. This, along with their struggles with poverty and inflation in the region, are negatively impacting Latin American economies. 

So what brings fresh produce to your kitchen during the dreary winter months is much more complicated than some might expect. Not only are there complex transportation networks for produce, there are also new and high tech solutions to keeping fruits and vegetables in temperatures when they are being transported, and economic systems that deal with imports and exports from one country to another.