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Canned pumpkin shortage could mean fewer holiday pies

By Tomas Monzon

SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Crop experts in Illinois say the country's top pumpkin factory will face shortages of the canned vegetable this year, which could mean fewer pies at Thanksgiving.

Nestle, the maker of Libby's canned pumpkin products said pumpkin yield was down by about half this year, and that the last of this year's harvest is scheduled for shipping by mid-November.

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The company said it is managing its distribution this year to ensure maximum reach.

"There's not going to be as much product as used to be," University of Illinois professor Mohammad Babadoost told Fox News Radio. "But how soon we may run out of the cans in the store, I don't know."

The pumpkin shortage shouldn't affect this year's jack-o-lanterns, though. Farmers working in across 16,000 acres of farmland in Illinois -- which produces 90 percent of U.S-grown pumpkins -- say there will be enough pumpkins to meet demand for Halloween and Thanksgiving.

Meanwhile, pumpkin crops in Nebraska also lost some yield due to heavy rains. Farmers there are confident they can meet demands for the upcoming holidays.

In Lancaster County, owners of the Roca Berry Farm thought they'd have to buy pumpkins from other producers when they initially spotted small and rotten pumpkins on their fields. After checking other parts of their land, though, they found much healthier pumpkins.

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Bellevue Berry and Pumpkin Ranch owner Ed Schaefer told Omaha.com that despite losing about 10 percent of his crops to rain and standing water, the majority of his pumpkins were looking good.

In some parts of Nebraska, just the right amount of rainfall and warm temperatures spurred positive crop growth, said Kathleen Cue, an extension assistant at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Nestle said the suggested retail price for canned pumpkin is higher this year, though the hike was planned before this year's growing season.

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