SIC 2034 Dried and Dehydrated Fruits, Vegetables, and Soup Mixes

Contenidos

• NAICS CODE(S).
• FURTHER READING.

SIC 2034

This category covers establishments primarily engaged in sun drying or artificially dehydrating fruits and vegetables, or in manufacturing packaged soup mixes from dehydrated ingredients. Establishments primarily engaged in the grading and marketing of farm dried fruits, such as prunes and raisins, are classified in SIC 5149: Groceries and Related Products, Not Elsewhere Classified.

NAICS CODE(S)

311423

Dried and Dehydrated Food Manufacturing

311211

Flour Milling

Dried and dehydrated fruits, vegetables, and soups generate an annual shipment value of more than $3 billion, according to the most recent figures published by the U.S. Census Bureau. Dried and dehydrated fruits and vegetables make up nearly two-thirds of this total, while soup mixes accounted for the remaining one-third. While the most popular dried products have typically been raisins and prunes, the increasing popularity of other dried fruits brought products such as dried apples and dates into the spotlight in the early 2000s. In fact, while imports of raisins declined nearly 9 percent in 2003 to 24.5 million pounds, imports of dried apples grew 43 percent to 8.4 million pounds, and imports of dates grew 41 percent to 9.3 million pounds.

Sun drying, one of the oldest known methods of fruit preservation, originated thousands of years ago. Dehydration preserved foods by removing the moisture that microorganisms needed to thrive. Although the technique remained in use in the 1990s, mechanical drying methods increased beginning in the late nineteenth century. Besides preservation, reduction in bulk and weight were considerations in the drying of fruits and vegetables.

As consumer interest in healthy eating continued to rise during the 1990s, processors of dates, raisins, dried apricots, apples, cherries, and other fruits promoted their products as nutritious snacks, as well as ingredients for home baking and cooking. Processors used dried fruits in a wide variety of food products. Dates—popular with retail shoppers—lent texture, flavor, and sweetness to processed cereals, baked goods, snack bars, and frozen desserts. Along with...