Editing Lettuce (section)

===Markets===
Western Europe and North America were the original major markets for large-scale lettuce production. By the late 1900s, Asia, South America, Australia and Africa became more substantial markets. Different locations tended to prefer different types of lettuce, with butterhead prevailing in northern Europe and Great Britain, romaine in the Mediterranean and stem lettuce in China and Egypt. By the late 20th century, the preferred types began to change, with crisphead, especially iceberg, lettuce becoming the dominant type in northern Europe and Great Britain and more popular in western Europe. In the US, no one type predominated until the early 20th century, when crisphead lettuces began gaining popularity. After the 1940s, with the development of iceberg lettuce, 95 percent of the lettuce grown and consumed in the US was crisphead lettuce. By the end of the century, other types began to regain popularity and eventually made up over 30 percent of production.<ref name="Katz378">Katz and Weaver, p. 378.</ref> Stem lettuce was first developed in China, where it remains primarily cultivated.<ref name="Simoons">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fo087ZxohA4C&pg=PA148|title=Food in China: A Cultural and Historical Inquiry|author=Simoons, Frederick J.|pages=147–148|isbn=0-8493-8804-X|publisher=CRC Press|year=1991|access-date=22 March 2020|archive-date=26 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191226104737/https://books.google.com/books?id=Fo087ZxohA4C&pg=PA148|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Lettuce plant reaching for the sky.jpg|thumb|A lettuce plant that has [[Bolting (horticulture)|bolted]]]]

In the early 21st century, bagged salad products increased in the lettuce market, especially in the US where innovative packaging and shipping methods prolonged freshness.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Lettuce Grows into A Processed Food|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-aug-19-fi-lettuce19-story.html|journal=Los Angeles Times|author=Fulmer, Melinda|date=19 August 2002|access-date=30 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131218114512/http://articles.latimes.com/2002/aug/19/business/fi-lettuce19|archive-date=18 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=agmrc/><ref name="npr">{{Cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/07/12/485098252/as-bagged-salad-kits-boom-americans-eat-more-greens |title=As Bagged Salad Kits Boom, Americans Eat More Greens |last1=Charles |first1=Dan |last2=Aubrey |first2=Allison |newspaper=NPR.org |publisher=National Public Radio |date=12 July 2016 |access-date=5 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180403101039/https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/07/12/485098252/as-bagged-salad-kits-boom-americans-eat-more-greens |archive-date=3 April 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the United States in 2022, lettuce was the main vegetable ingredient in salads, and was the most consumed among leaf vegetables; its market was about 20% of all vegetables, with Romaine and iceberg having about equal sales.<ref name="agmrc">{{cite web | url=https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/chart-gallery/gallery/chart-detail/?chartId=106516 | title=Lettuce | publisher=Agricultural Marketing Resource Center, Iowa State University | date=April 2023 | access-date=16 April 2024}}</ref> Some 85% of the lettuce consumed in the United States in 2022 was produced domestically.<ref name=agmrc/>