Weekly Produce Update Northwest Apples Shippers still have most varieties available. Red del market continues to rise with the steady movement. All other varieties are moving well & are getting good monies in the market. Condition is still good. There are various deals out there with different shippers on different varieties. Just depends if they are long on the variety. Export market continues to be strong & is assisting with the rising FOB s. Onions There are still plenty of Yellow storage onions with nice skin and surprisingly solid condition in WA. These supplies will last into July. There is always a chance of sprouts on the Mediums - but product is being packed fresh for each shipment. Walla Walla Sweet onions are available now along with Wintered Over Yellow and Red onions. Note that the North West Overwinter Yellow supplies will last for 2 or 3 weeks. This means a possible 1 or 2 week gap before direct seed starts in late July. Meanwhile, in other parts of the country, Yellow supplies exceed demand. There are some great prices to offset the expensive freight. Bakersfield area has good supplies on Yellows and Whites while Red onions are in high demand and tight in most growing areas. NM has all colors available as well.
Michigan Blueberries Availability is steady. Michigan blues will start this week in a very small way. Asparagus The market is steady showing good quality and prices. Michigan is finishing up and we will be switching from 28 Lb. back to 11 Lb.
Pears Market continues to be strong. There are few green & a few red Anjou left for the season, but season should wrap up by July 1st. New crop coming early August. Colored Potatoes Mt. Vernon District, is finished- new crop in September. Eastern WA will have New Crop by the end of July. Southern California has supplies of all colors along with colored fingerlings available. Potatoes Large sizes continue to be in high demand- price remains firm to rising. For the most part the condition is good on storage potatoes. There should be supplies through to new crop in August. Although, most growers are running abbreviated schedules to make supplies last. Salinas Berries Strawberries- Good weather has brought on good production in Salinas-Watsonville. Sizing is running on the smaller side due to berries maturity quicker then normal. Good supplies for the next 7 days. Quality is good. Shippers packing to demand only, some going to freezer. Demand light. Raspberries- Chancge in production, due to weather supplies will be down for the balance of this week. Warmer in the forecast supplies should increase next week in pattern holds. Quality has been good. Blackberries- Extremely tight supplies, Salinas-Watsonville having production issues, Mexico done. The warmer weather will hopefully increase production. Blueberries- California production is down slightly with Organic increasing. North Carolina has finished and waiting for New Jersey to start. Baja production is down due to stripping of the plants. Oregon slowing increasing production. Good demand.
Broccoli Supplies of continued steady last week, with market prices declining slightly. There seems to be adequate supplies of both bunched and crowns around Some shippers are in very good shape, but others are expecting lighter supplies as the week goes along. We re still expecting the market to stay steady, but the slight whisper of demand could push prices up a little. Quality remains very good. Cauliflower Cauliflower quality and condition has been good. Demand is steady. Shippers are having better numbers now so markets will be softer through the week. Look for deals on size 16 s and 9 s. Celery Celery market is steady in supplies and pricing. Suppliers are heavier towards the smaller sizing (30/36 Ct.) Larger Celery (24 Ct.) out of Salinas remains a bit snug due to weather conditions. Iceberg Lettuce Light supplies in Salinas, weight have been a issue. Most lots are showing good quality. Santa Maria heavier weights but not traveling quality. Market steady with fair to light demand. Leaf Lettuce Romaine - Still flat but will get better. Green/Red Leaf- Getting better. Prices to rise. Hot weather coming to all markets which will make a change. Fresno Avacado Mexico supplies getting lighter; looking to finish up over the next 2 weeks. Market is starting in inch up a bit on 48's and larger. We are starting to see a bit more of the #2 fruit available. Currently peaking 48/70/60's. Mexico will continue to cross in July/August with the Flora Loca/off bloom fruit.
California Hass volume is up and harvest is going strong keeping inventories fresh and floor relatively clean. Crop is sizing nicely with fruit peaking 48/60/70's. Fruit is firm, ripening well with nice oil content and flavor. The crop volume is looking good for summer demand. Large fruit is expected to become tighter and with stronger market. Peru is starting to arrive now to the US and will go through the summer. These are showing mostly 40/48/36's, great for filling those larges size needs. Carrots Processed Carrot supplies are steady and moving well with both regular Orange and Rainbow varieties. Conventional Carrots are in good demand and look for this market to come off slightly up on Jumbo/Cello/Clip Tops. Be sure to book early to get the packs and sizes you need. Grapes Mexico and Coachella going with Red, Green and Black Seedless; and supplies are expected very light through the balance of the month. Arvin area is following its normal start time around July 10th. With this being said market is definitely going to get stronger over the next 10 days. We can consolidated to central Calif and LA if need be. Quality and berry size are looking somewhat better out of Coachella. Lemons Lemon market is in the Summer time roller coaster...climbing up each week. Supplies are very light especially on the 140's and smaller. Supplies are somewhat better on 115's and larger but even here need to be booked ahead. As summer progresses this will increase. District 2 has been going for a while but shippers are struggling for workers and this crop area volume is down. Imports are starting to show up a little but most will be fancy fruit. Melons Cantaloupe/Honeydew Cantaloupe volume is finally looking good as such market has come off. All sizes are currently available - nice interior exterior color, solid centers, and eating well.
Westside district is looking to start scratching in about two weeks. With July 4th ads starting next week supplies could tighten up a bit. Honeydew which were a little light last week are expected to improve in volume this week. All sizes are readily available. Color and condition are nice. Harvesting out of the Desert and Mexico. Mixed Melons have started and we can load single variety or mixed cases for you at this time. Sizing is predominately 5/6's. Oranges Valencia are peaking 88/72/113/56. Fruit is eating good with nice color and sugar levels...demand and markets are steady at this time. Fruit harvest is slow with Cailf stone fruit going picking crews are spread thin. Look for this market to remain strong through the summer. Small 138/113 will remain tight with the market going up the end of July in anticipation of school pulls. Potatoes California's Bakersfield New Potatoes are going with all colors and organic product. These are looking very nice with good color and skin set. Specialty Citrus Markets continue steady. Rio Grapefruit from Yuma/Coachella available with light supplies. Demand exceeds. Chilean Clems have started with light supplies on both the East and West coast...most of this early fruit is pre-committed. Look for Chilean Lemons to arrive early part of July. Product from Argentina has been canceled and will not at this time be coming into Calif. Stone Fruit California early Peaches/Nectarines are harvesting; peaking 40's -56's but do have some larger and smaller sizes. Color currently is very nice and flavor is improving daily. Prices are starting to settle down. Conditioned fruit is now available to load. White flesh Peaches and Nectarines are in lighter supplies. Apricots are looking nice as well and sizing bigger than normal...packing mostly trays.
We have good supplies and various packs of Arils (Pomegranate seeds). We can offer a variety of pack sizes packed to order. Red & Black Plums have started; color is good with nice flavor. Supplies are light at this time but expected to improve over the next 10 days. Pluots! We have Red and Mottled varieties available in 2 layer packs. Watermelon Watermelon quality is nice but the same can't be said for supplies. Calif Desert and AZ production is slow at this time with growers waiting on maturity to fill their July 4th Ad commitments. This is resulting in big fruit and increased markets. Small sizes will be tight for a while. Quality is very good. We don't expect the market to adjust down until around the 10th or so of July. Kiwi Kiwi supplies have improved with Chile now being the predominate country of origin. Look for this market to adjust down slowly. This fruit is HARD at this time with all sizes available. Quality expected to be good. Southeast Cabbage Limited supply available in North Carolina. East Michigan should start this weekend. West Michigan should start next week. Corn Moderate supplies from Georgia. Prices are unchanged. Quality is generally good. Eggplant Steady supplies from Georgia. Prices are lower. Quality is generally good. Green Beans Limited supplies from Georgia as it's expected to finish this weekend. Prices are lower. Wide range in price and quality. Green Bell Pepper Steady supplies from Georgia. Quality is good overall.
Yellow Squash and Zucchini Good supplies of Yellow squash and Zucchini from Georgia, North Carolina. Prices on Yellow Straightneck unchanged others lower. Quality variable. Michigan initial harvest expected to begin around June 18. Sweet Potatoes Prices are unchanged. Moderate supplies from Mississippi, Louisiana and North Carolina. Quality is good overall. Nogales Cucumber Cucumber prices are steady this week. Product is available in Nogales, the season is coming to an end and quality is fair. Beef Steak Tomatoes Prices are up this week. There is product crossing through Nogales, supplies are limited, the season will come to an end soon. Grape Tomatoes Grape tomato prices are steady this week and supplies are starting to decline. The Nogales season is just about finished, product is available in San Diego. Roma Tomatoes Prices are steady, supplies are down and the quality is starting to decline. The Nogales season will come to an end soon. Supplies are available in McAllen and San Diego. Round tomatoes are up, Nogales is just about done. Peppers Green Pepper prices are up and supplies are starting to decline. Nogales crossings should come to an end soon. Coachella has started harvesting. Red, Yellow and Orange peppers are up, supplies are tight.
McAllen Chili Peppers Chili Peppers from Mexico are shifting growing areas. Demand has increased as well as the price. Lime The price on Limes is still low. There was some rain in the growing areas but supplies have not been hindered. Markets have full inventories. Mango Mango from Mexico are going through a change in areas. The dominating size are 12's and 14's. Demand is good on larger sizes. The Ataulfo variety is experiencing some quality issues. The fruit is showing staining, scarring, and higher maturity. Melons Local season has completed. Mexican Avocado Supplies on MX Avocados are down. Rains are expected to be very heavy this week and limiting harvesting while prices on all sizes are firming up. We are currently in the last part of the season which will produce darker fruit between now and June 30th. Mexican Oniona Local season has completed. Pineapples Mexican Pineapple are in good demand. Prices are increasing due to rains in the growing area and nearing the end of the season. Watermelons Local season has completed. visit us: www.superiorfoods.co