Southern Sonora, Mexico-

Freezing conditions in Mexico's Southern Sonora region have growers concerned about the state of their crops. Temperatures dropped down below freezing on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, ranging from the low 30's to a severe 20 degrees. The most affected areas were south of Sonora State in Valle de Guaymas, Valle del Yaqui and Valle del Mayo as well as north of Sinaloa State in El Carrizo area.

Producers state that all crops in those areas have been affected and include bell peppers, potatoes, squash (Italian, kabocha, zucchini), corn, chickpeas, and tomatoes.

Uldarico Durazo, Sun World Mexico Licensing & Sourcing Manager, told AndNowUKnow, "Agricultural authorities will be assessing damage in the growing areas throughout the coming week." He continued, "The biggest hurdle for growers due the crop freeze could be recovering their investments. Marketing demand and price has the potential to increase on these crops depending on the extent of the damage." Sun World's peppers out of Los Mochis, Mexico, just north of Sonora, are at this time unaffected though the company is continuing to monitor the cold conditions.

As growers are not yet out of the woods, we are keeping our fingers crossed. Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for more information on the freeze in Mexico.