ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – New Mexico’s green pepper sellers say fitness restrictions amid the pandemic force them to sell peppers to the public.
KOB-TV in Albuquerque reports that dealers do not yet have a selection to sell directly because many restaurants operate differently during the pandemic.
Quality Foods, for example, will buy chili directly from Farmers in New Mexico and sell it to the public just outside at its Albuquerque facility.
“The way it goes, I don’t see 50% of our intake last year,” said Louie Gonzales, owner of Quality Foods.
“We call them in the order in which they drive,” said Nazario Sandoval, co-owner of Quality Foods. “We take him to his sedan and trunk, and we have no contact with them.”
On Friday, New Mexico fitness officials said there were 197 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the state total to 21,965. Authorities said six other people had died from the virus, bringing the total number of deaths in the state to 675.
As of Friday, another 132 people were hospitalized in New Mexico by COVID-19.