Steep lettuce prices force creativity at nation's salad bars

WOODSTOCK - The Hickory Flat Elementary salad bar is filled with dark little flecks these days -- spinach and other greens are being mixed in to make the iceberg go further. <br> <br> Want romaine at the Ruby Tuesday restaurant a few miles away? It&#39;s on ``request only&#39;&#39; status. <br> <br> Lettuce is in short supply nationwide, with prices quadrupling in some spots. Blame it on freezing weather in lettuce-growing areas of Arizona and California, where quality and quantity have taken a dive this year. <br> <br> The sticker shock is showing up at school cafeterias and restaurants, where lettuce is a staple not easily replaced. <br> <br> The cafeteria manager at Hickory Flat, Faye Lynn Sams, said ``We&#39;re trying to stretch it as far as we can.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Some 950 students and teachers plow through 200 pounds of iceberg each week at the school, which is paying $62 per case or $2.58 a head, nearly four times the usual price. <br> <br> The chief financial officer of Souper Salad, Clint Shackelford, said ``I haven&#39;t looked at the numbers this week -- I&#39;m scared.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Souper Salad is a chain of all-you-can-eat soup and salad restaurants in 16 states that buys one million dollars worth of iceberg each year. <br> <br> Shackelford said the price is the highest the restaurant has ever seen. <br> <br> For many Americans, salad means iceberg lettuce, the industry behemoth even though a host of more exotic varieties has found a niche in supermarkets and restaurant salad bars. <br> <br> Americans eat more than three times more iceberg than other kinds of lettuce -- about 25 pounds per year per person -- according to researchers at Arizona State University. <br> <br> The shortage began with freezing weather that cut per-acre yields by more than half in parts of California, where more than half the nation&#39;s supply is grown. At the same time, many farmers grew less lettuce, fearing a drop in demand after September 11 because many people dined out less. <br> <br> The result has been high prices.