N Organic outlook September 7 - September 14, 2018 N www.fsproduce.com 35 LB Organic Hard Squash Season Organic Hard Squashes are now in peak season for late summer and fall. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maine, and Wisconsin growers are now shipping their fresh crop: OG Green Acorn OG Butternut OG Delicata Squash OG Spaghetti OG Pie Pumpkins OG Kabocha September and early October is the time to promote Organic Delicata Squash, a variety that has a sweet potato flavor and tender skin that does not need to be peeled, since it is the variety that is harvested earliest each season and does not hold in storage as long as the others. Peeled & Cubed Olivia s Organic Butternut Squash will be available starting in mid-september..................................................................... Og pears og berries og grapes The first Washington Organic Anjou Pears are set to arrive the second week of September. With a huge crop expected, promotional opportunities on all sizes will be available! Driscoll s Organic Raspberries have made complete 180 and are now expected to be in very good supply out of California, and then will transition into Mexico. Organic Red, Green, and Black Seedless Grapes out of CA are in excellent supply. Flavor and quality has been very good. Promote! ALERT! Driscoll s Organic Blackberries have quickly become very short in supply for the rest of September and into early October until Mexican production ramps up. Other brands of Organic Blackberries will begin by mid-september out of California and Mexico. Organic Thomcord Grapes continue with excellent quality and supply. California Organic Asian and Bosc Pears are in steady supply. Fruit from the Pacific Northwest will begin in early September. Washington Organic Bartlett and Starkrimson (Red) Pear continue in peak season supply and pricing. A late crop of 6oz Organic Blueberries will appear out of Oregon here in early September, and hopefully bridge the gap until Chile, Peru, and Mexico ramp up. ALERT! Driscoll s Organic Blueberries will be extremely limited until supplies out of Mexico ramp up in early October. Expect high prices. Pints have finished for the season. Driscoll s Organic Strawberries are firmer this week both in supply and pricing. Other brands of Organic Strawberries are in a small gap as growers wait for quality to improve. The first Marian Farms Bio-Dynamic Green Seedless Grapes of the season are expected in mid-september. These are full-ripe Thompson variety small-sized grapes sold in paper tote bags.
SEPTEMBER 7 - SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 MARKET NEWS 36 18 FOUR SEASONS PRODUCE og garlic og salads Og lettuce Organic Garlic is in good supply out of Spain. USA grown Organic Garlic is in season from PA code 42309. Quality is very nice. ALERT! Organic Baby Butter Lettuce from Olivia s will be out of stock for a few weeks. Organic Lettuce is in good supply out of CA and Canada. Prices are down slightly. Shippers are starting to see rib rubs on all California varieties. Mache, Mache Blends and Romaine Hearts from organicgirl have also seen availability issues. Due to the recent heat, Organic Romaine Lettuce has become more limited and more expensive out of CA. Og eggplant og melons og cucumbers Organic Eggplant is in adequate supply from CA, NY, NJ, and PA. Volume out of the Mid-Atlantic will start to dwindle. Organic Cantaloupe and Honeydew prices have strengthened even more this week. A slight gap is possible. Organic Cucumbers are in good supply out of Mexico, PA, and WI. Supplies are limited from NY. Organic Graffiti Eggplant is also available from NY. Organic Galia Melons are now extremely limited and expected to be in and out until the crop finishes over the next couple of weeks. og avocados Og tomatoes OG BROCCOLI & CAULIFLOWER Organic Hass Avocados supplies are increasing out of Mexico. Fruit has been generally hard and green. Four Seasons continues to offer pre-conditioned 48 count fruit from California, as a small supply is still available. Prices are dropping slowly as more fruit is available. Organic Tomatoes are in abundant supply on all varieties this week out of the mid-atlantic states. It s local season! Lady Moon Farms in particular has excellent quality and volume from their original Chambersburg, PA farm for late August. Organic Broccoli is in decent supply, and pricing out of CA and NV is moving up due to supply/ demand issues. Organic Broccoli Crowns are in good supply. Organic Round Tomatoes are in adequate supply out of PA, OH, and NY. Prices are steady and quality is excellent. Organic Cauliflower is more limited in supply out of CA at higher prices. Supplies will be tight until mid-september. Large Smooth Skin Green Organic Avocados from Florida are in now in stock. Take advantage and get these while supplies last! Organic Cluster Tomatoes are in adequate supply this week out of Mexico and Canada. Large price variances differ between growers. Adequate supplies of Organic Hothouse Cucumbers are available out of Spain and Canada.
SEPTEMBER 7 - SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 MARKET NEWS 36 18 FOUR SEASONS PRODUCE OG Kiwi berries og sweet potatoes og tropical specialties The first Organic Kiwi Berries are available out of PA and the Pacific Northwest will arrive here in early Spetember. A good crop is expected Now is a great time to start thinking about BIG fall Organic Sweet Potato displays! All varieties are now new crop out of California and in plentiful supply! Organic Dragonfruit, Kiwano, Passion fruit, and Starfruit among others, will all be available in limited supplies next week! Be sure to include these items in your fall set as many of these tropical fruits window of availability only last a few weeks! og apples og stone fruit og peppers The first Organic Honeycrisp Apples out of Washington are now available! Good supplies should be expected and prices should begin to ease off here in September, allowing for fall promotions. Organic Yellow Peaches and Nectarines will continue through mid-september and then finish out of Washington. Organic Green Peppers are available out of PA, OH, and NY. Organic Red Peppers are also available out of PA. Organic Fuji and Golden Delicious Apples will begin out of the Pacific Northwest here in early September. A good size crop of large fruit is excepted on the Fuji, and there will be nice volumes on the Golden Delicious. Organic White Nectarines and White Peaches are basically done for the season. Organic Jalapeño Peppers from CA & NY and Organic Purple Peppers from NY are available. The last couple of varieties of Organic Black and Red Plums have are available and should continue until the end of September. Organic Red, Yellow, and Orange Peppers from Holland are in good supply. Prices are steady. Washington Organic Gala Apples are now in excellent supply with promotional opportunities available on all sizes and bags. Prices are coming down even more. Organic Pluots are back in good supply. Steady supplies are expected through late September between California and Washington. The first Washington Organic Tsuguru Apples have arrived with excellent quality. This variety is a cross between Gold Delicious and Orange Pippin Apples. other stories: Organic Cranberries in both bulk and clamshells should begin early to mid-october. Organic Bi-Color Sweet Corn is in good supply out of both NY and Canada. The first Organic Pomegranates of the season are expected to begin in mid to late September. Organic Black Mission figs are in steady supply. Pricing is steady as well. Other specialty varieties such as the Desert Queen and Ruby Heart will not be available. We still have plenty of Organic Mini Seedless Watermelons to promote! This market is tightening up a bit this week, but we should have good volume to support the end of summer sales. The quality has been very good. Organic Russet Potatoes continue to be in good supply from various growing regions. We have seen very nice quality coming out of Idaho and pricing on that product remains steady in price. New crop Organic Red and Yellow Potatoes are now under way out of Manitoba, Canada. Quality is very sharp! Production of Organic Zucchini Squash is down out of PA, OH, and NY, but supplies are good out of GA at higher than market prices. Organic Yellow Squash is more limited out of GA. Mexico growers report limited supplies of Organic Fancy Zucchini, but better supply on mediums. Organic Spinach is available in decent supply out of CA, but there s beetle damage on some of the leaves. Prices are up. Organic Broccoli Rabe is in good supply out of CA. Pricing is the lowest of the year for high-density bunches. ALERT! Organic Green Beans are in very tight supply out of Mexico, CA, and Southeastern US. PA and OH product is in a small gap situation until early September. Organic Lemons supplies are slowly improving out of Mexico and California with very nice quality. Prices are starting to lower.
On Friday, August 31st, the Four Seasons Family of Companies activated a 1.3 MW (megawatt) solar array installation on our main refrigerated distribution center at Wabash Road, producing power equivalent to 182 homes electricity use for one year. This project marks another milestone in Four Seasons commitment to reducing our energy and overall resources use as part of our sustainability strategy. The 3,900 solar panels will provide half the energy used by our entire offices and refrigerated warehouse on a sunny day. Given that solar panels produce peak electricity for about six hours a day, this will provide approximately 1/6 of the building s total demand for electricity in a year. The completed project is expected to pay for itself in approximately 5 years. Not only is this solar array the largest collection of solar panels on a refrigerated facility in Lancaster County, PA, but the building is cooled with recycled water, keeping efficiency high. For years, we ve wanted to do rooftop solar. Our big black empty warehouse roof felt like a lost opportunity. But we chose to first focus on reducing power before producing power. So, after many years of diligent work in energy efficiency projects, and falling solar panel prices, we felt the time was right. Knowing that our previously big empty roof is now harvesting clean energy is such a satisfying feeling! - Jason Hollinger, President of Four Seasons Family of Companies. SOLAR ARRAY AT FOUR SEASONS FAMILY OF COMPANIES 1.3 MEGAWATT ROOFTOP SOLAR ARRAY AT 400 WABASH RD. EPHRATA 50% of energy used by the entire facility on a sunny day will be produced by the solar panels. WILL PRODUCE POWER EQUIVALENT TO 182 HOMES ELECTRICITY USE FOR 1 YEAR! Energy created with this solar array will reduce greenhouse gas emissions annually equivalent to: GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS FROM: 2,971,031 Miles driven by an average passenger vehicle 3,924 REC solar panels (345 watts each) Annual Production - 1,650,000 kw/hour per year 16% of our overall usage Shading over 95% of refrigerated space $$$ On some sunny days, more power will be produced than we can use at times, and will be sold back to the local utility provider. LARGEST COLLECTION OF SOLAR PANELS ON A REFRIGERATED FACILITY IN LANCASTER COUNTY, PA CO 2 EMISSIONS FROM: 1,326,237 Pounds of coal burned CARBON SEQUESTERED BY: 1,428 Acres of U.S. forests in one year
Fall is almost here, and over the next few weeks it s time to get your departments set for the new seasons bountiful harvests! Now that the last summer holiday has passed, consumers tastes and desires for the produce they eat will change. Stone fruit sets should be replaced by new crop pears, apples, ciders, and hard squashes. Pumpkins, gourds, and other fall ornamentals should also find room somewhere in your department, and if possible outdoors. Having these displays in your store adds that fall flavor and offer the opportunity to capture some impulse sales. Four Seasons offers a myriad of pumpkin/ornamental varieties to help make your store look like a roadside farmers market! When planning out your seasonal set for fall, don t forget some of the low/no risk items such as apple dips, apple crisp, apple wraps, caramel apples etc. These are great tie in items that add some incremental sales! Contact your Four Seasons Produce Merchandiser to set up a date to help you make the transition to fall! WHY YOU SHOULD STOP BY OUR BOOTH: Stop by for a delicious Organic Honeycrisp Apple! Stay for some conversation about fresh produce. Discuss program opportunities on FRESH by Four Seasons products - Meat, Dairy, Grocery, and more! Join us! September 13-15 Baltimore Convention Center Baltimore, MD BOOTH # 1516
Guide to Hard Squash Acorn/Golden Acorn Small and round like an acorn Sweet, slightly nutty vegetable flavored flesh Packed with fiber Dark green skin, patched with orange Golden Nugget Looks like a small pumpkin Sweet, orange flesh Blue/Golden Hubbard Honeynut Buttercup & Kabocha Red Kuri butternut Spaghetti Carnival Sweet dumpling delicata Turban Very hard skin Great for pie filling Excellent shelf life Green skin Sweet & Creamy orange flesh Kabocha aka Japanese Pumpkin Most popular hard squash variety Orange flesh Versatile in cooking Pale, orange flesh Relative of Acorn & Sweet Dumpling Yellow flesh Tastes like a sweet potato Edible shell Like a mini-sized butternut Flesh is much sweeter and has more squash flavor than butternut Japanese variety Orange exterior, yellow flesh Nutty & sweet Mild & sweet flavor Flesh comes out like pasta strands when cooked - hence the name Mildly sweet Tender, orange flesh Gets its name from its unique shape Use as decoration, soup bowl, or a floral arrangement
N Conventional outlook September 7 - September 14, 2018 N www.fsproduce.com 110 ct L o c al fal l v e g e ta b l e s o u t l o o k Bring the farm market look to your store! The local Stem Broccoli deal starts this week check out our Broccoli bins from Stauffer Huling Farm (code 631) for an awesome way to promote Pennsylvania-grown Broccoli! The Stem Broccoli has the tallest leaves trimmed around the top, but much of the leaf stalks and small leaves remain on the full-sized broccoli main stem, giving the product an awesome homegrown look. The bins are hydro-cooled after harvest, allowing for good shelf-life. Pennsylvania-grown Bin Cauliflower (jacket-cut, not wrapped) will come into season the week of September 17th, and will be available during early fall. Pennsylvania and New Jersey grown Bin Cabbage, with large head size and outer leaves, will be in peak season throughout the fall, starting the week of September 17th. CV TOMATOES CV LETTUCE cv pumpkins & ornamentals PA Jumbo and XLG Tomatoes will still be promotable this week. As we are now later in the season, sizing is not as big, but quality is still excellent. We also have great Heirloom Tomatoes. Both are grown in Central PA! Quality out of CA is excellent on all Iceberg and Leaf Lettuce. Prices on leaf are steady, with only Romaine Hearts commanding big money compared to the last week of August. Fall Ornamentals and Pumpkins are now available. Hothouse Tomato growers are moving to Mexico to fill the Beefsteak and Tomato-on the-vine orders this week. Quality has been great, and prices are starting to go up with the transition. Quality will be very promotable. Canadian Leaf Lettuces continue to be challenged by hot weather, but Iceberg Lettuce has improved. NJ-grown Lettuce will be available in mid-september. With all the rain in PA during August, local Face Pumpkins are slow to start, but DE and OH growers are in better shape. Bagged Gourds, Bagged Jack-Be-Littles, as well as loose, are in stock now. We also have Baby Boo s, Tiger Stripe, Corn Stalks, and Straw Bales, along with Indian Corn and Mini-Indian Corn. The time has come to decorate your stores with these great fall items!
SEPTEMBER 7 - SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 MARKET NEWS 36 18 FOUR SEASONS PRODUCE CV BLACKBERRIES & RASPBERRIES CV BLUEBERRIES cv strawberries ALERT! Blackberries, quickly and unexpectedly, went from being plentiful and promotable to expensive and tight supply. Blueberries are finishing for the season out of British Columbia, and we ll be in transition. Look for pricing to remain much higher this week on both 6oz. and pints until import volumes improve. We ll have beautiful fruit from Peru, but supplies will be more on the limited side. Strawberries will continue to be in tighter supply this week out of California. We re still loading out of Watsonville and Salinas, CA, but we ll begin to transition south later in September to Santa Maria and Oxnard. Expect pricing to remain firm until we get into fall production. Quality has been very nice. CV ONIONS CV POTATOES CV PLUMCOTS & APRIUMS Onion pricing remains flat. At this time of the year, supplies tend to be abundant; however, due to heavy rains in almost every region, growers have been unable to get to their fields to harvest We should see Red, Yellow, and White Potatoes coming out of Stockton, CA until early October, which at that time we will make the transition up to Washington-grown product. Quality is outstanding! All varieties of Plumcots will be available for the next couple weeks. Red varieties will be harvested through the end of October, while Black and Green varieties will finish by the end of September. We have more Flavor Gators on the way! When harvest is able to begin, a heavy downward pressure on all varieties is expected, as demand may not be steady enough for prices to hold. Russet Potatoes are in good supply, which is causing pricing to slide down slightly as more shippers are up and running new crop Russet Potatoes at full pace. CV WATERMELONS CV Apple Cider Raspberries will be in tighter supply this week. Cooler weather has slowed product, and pricing will begin to rise this week. Watermelons will transition to South Texas and New Mexico as fields in Maryland and Delaware are quickly ending. The transition from bins to cartons look to be prolonged as the hot summer weather continues. Mini Seedless Watermelons remain in peak season for September. It s Apple Cider season! PA produced Country Acres brand is in stock with gallons, half gallon, and flavored ciders. At the beginning of September, Zeigler s brand was purchased by Mayer Brothers out of New York. Apriums are coming to an end for the season. CV PEACHES & NECTARINES White Peaches and Nectarines will be in good supply through the end of September out of California. Fruit is sizing very well, so plenty of large sizes are available on this premium fruit. Yellow Peaches will come to an end by mid to late September. Quality has been very nice on the Autumn Flames. Sizes will be mostly 40 and 50 ct.
SEPTEMBER 7 - SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 MARKET NEWS 36 18 FOUR SEASONS PRODUCE CV broccoli CV citrus CV SQUASH Broccoli markets were very firm coming out of the Labor Day weekend, and shippers expect prices to continue their slow climb through this week. Large Grapefruit sizes are in excellent supply right now out of California. The current variety (Summer Ruby) is producing jumbo fruit mostly 23 s and 27 s. Smaller sizes on the other hand are extremely limited and a bit pricey. Quality has been very nice. Regional Green and Yellow Squash supplies remain tight. Most growers are between plantings. Heat and higher than average rainfall are handicapping growth. Light availability is expected to continue for the next few weeks. Canadian Broccoli Crown markets also remain very firm, with minimal product available due to extended hot weather. Small fruit is very tight on Valencia Oranges, but larger sizes 88+ are in good supply. Pricing will climb again next week, and imports will continue through mid-october. CV ASPARAGUS CV CARROTS CV CUCUMBERS Asparagus prices are starting to tick up on larger sizes but holding pretty steady on standard size. Fewer flights coming out of Peru are causing the minimal rise in prices. Canadian Cello Carrots are an excellent value and quality this year is outstanding. We ll transition back to NJ-grown Bunched Carrots (code 855) by mid-september. Regionally grown Cucumbers continue to tighten. We ll continue to source from our growers in PA, NY, and NJ, but will augment with NC-grown as needed. Pricing and availability continue to be steady on CA Cello Carrots. The Nogales, AZ deal is expected to start around the last week of September.