PRO*ACT FIELD REPORT
FROM TIM LYNCH PRO*ACT QUALITY CONTROL
2-13-07
As the remnants of the latest Pacific storm system move out of the area today building high pressure will bring a welcome warming trend to the Western growing region. This will improve growth rates that have been reduced to a crawl and help with crop recovery throughout Mexico, Arizona and California. Supply shortages along with lesser quality and shelf life will vary by growing region, shipper and commodity. Extensive damage has been done and supplies may show the effects of this freeze into spring production.
LETTUCE
Field crews will continue to trim out E.P. (2-4 layers deep) producing smallish head size along with lighter carton weights and color at pack-out. Blister, peel, discoloration, fringe burn, weak tip and lesser texture will continue to be problematic through winter harvests. Gradually improving yields, size, quality, texture and shelf life are anticipated with the milder weather pattern as we approach spring, however overall quality will remain just fair to fairly good.
LEAF LETTUCE
Leaf stands are in a similar predicament with frost damage throughout the growing regions. Romaine and romaine heart acreage has been severely impacted and may not rebound with any significant improvements in overall quality. Green and red leaf fields have fared a bit better however damage is evident in most stands. Supplies have begun to rebound with the warmer temperatures lately.
BROCCOLI/CAULIFLOWER
The recent favorable weather has increased growth rates and overall volume of these supplies. Some discoloration is being reported (purpling of beads and light colored stalks on broccoli, yellowing of curd on cauliflower). Supplies will vary by shipper and location with upcoming weather patterns and demand playing an important role.
CARROTS
Jumbo sized carrots will remain in very tight supplies due to the extended cold spell in the growing regions. Current harvests (Bakersfield) are not producing many large sized carrots. Carrot size has been slow to develop in the cool temperatures, this, along with less acreage and recent freeze damage will likely keep supplies of jumbo sized carrots tight well into spring harvests.
Upcoming carrot acreage (Imperial Valley) is also expected to produce lighter yields (due to freeze damage and extended cool temperatures) especially of larger sized carrots when these fields come into production around late February. Some spring acreage has been lost as growers scramble to replant certain stands. This does not bode well for upcoming spring production.
CELERY
Supplies look to remain very light for the near term as demand is strong. Growth rates have been at a crawl for weeks on end due to the extended cold spell in the Desert growing regions. Blister, EP and discoloration remain problematic in many stands further reducing yields, quality and carton weights. High prices have encouraged growers to harvest fields well ahead of schedule (full maturity), contributing to the lack of larger sizes. It is at a point now that growers must curtail harvests due to a lack of maturity/size. At current prices this market may continue to be a self perpetuating problem until spring acreage becomes available from other growing regions, which are also a bit behind schedule at this time.
MIXED VEGETABLELS (Mexico)
A generally cool wet growing season in Mexico along with the past very cold temperatures, hindering growth rates, continues to impact supplies from this region. Asparagus, bean, snow peas, cucumber, squash, pepper, tomato and green onion supplies among others have been affected. The improved weather pattern will increase growth rates and supplies from this region fairly quickly, however accurate information concerning these supplies remains difficult to ascertain at this time. On the positive side the cool temperatures have lessened white fly concentrations which are typically a problem during spring production. Ever increasing acreage of hot or shade house operations in Mexico have also lent some protection (from the cold and insects) helping with the recovery of these crops. Contact your Pro*Act representative for up to date information on price and availability.
STRAWBERRIES
The unsettled weather pattern (rain) in the major growing regions of Florida and California will once again limit these supplies for the short term. Plants will continue to recover in Southern California however a very light bloom in the region will keep overall supplies light for the time being. If the weather pattern remains mild these plants have the ability to recover fairly quickly, however that is a big if at this point given this season’s weather so far.
MELONS
Rain and generally cool temperatures in Central America and Mexico this season continues to impact melon production. Offshore cantaloupe supplies look to slowly increase as growers break new acreage in Costa Rica, Honduras and Dominican Republic with Guatemala entering new spring acreage in late March. Quality issues due this weather pattern have affected shelf life of current supply. Volume and hopefully quality will be on the upswing as harvests gain momentum. Honeydew production is facing the same weather difficulties however with substantially less acreage planted. Strong (unexpected) demand from the processor (cut fruit) sector is taking a good chunk of available supply. Supplies look to remain light possibly until spring harvests.
Pineapple supplies from Central America have been battling the same weather patterns affecting the melon crop. Supplies look to remain light with large sizes especially difficult to come by.
AVOCADOS/CITRUS
A full assessment of these crops will not be available for weeks but it is safe to say significant crop loss is expected. Early reports indicate 25-30% on avocados, up to 80% on Navel oranges and 20-40% for lemons. These numbers will change as inspectors evaluate the numerous groves and growing regions. Trees in the numerous growing regions were in various stages of development and it will take some time to evaluate. This extreme freeze event will likely affect next season’s citrus and avocado crops as well.
Freeze damage assessments/evaluations will continue well into February as many crops will takes weeks to show the true extent of damage. As we approach the transition to spring harvests the longer day’s and anticipated warmer temperatures will help growth rates of crops throughout the various growing regions. Growers shippers and buyers alike are all hoping for a mild (normal) spring weather pattern to take shape. If you remember last year California received a tremendous amount (30 inches) of rainfall last spring severely curtailing supplies well into summer production. Upcoming weather patterns will play a crucial role as to future supply and quality. As always we will do our best to keep you up to date with the ever changing information.
FREIGHT
We continue to see more trucks than loads in California, Idaho, and the Northwest. This will continue throughout the week. Fuel prices went up slightly last week and the National Average is now $2.435. Look for fuel prices to continue to rise due to the cold weather in the Northeast. Crude oil went up $5.00 per barrel last week.
APPLES/PEARS
An increased level of demand for apples and pears out of Washington looks to continue into next week. Large sized fruit still remains tight, as well as smaller sized foodservice grade red and gold apples. Fruit coming out of the controlled atmosphere storage rooms is still peaking on 88’s and 100’s in most all varieties of apples this season. Expect this to remain the trend for the balance of the storage season. Varietal apples remain in decent supply also, but both large and small sizes remain limited there also. Cold weather in other regional apple harvesting areas is limiting their available supplies, thus putting additional pressure on Washington apples. Pears remain in light supplies and Northwest Bartlett Pears are finished for the season with the exception of a few smaller sized 100ct in limited supply. There are Chilean Bartlett Pears arriving this week and next. Overall market conditions for Apples will continue at higher levels and Pears steady going into next week.
MARKET STRONGER
ASPARAGUS
The asparagus market is steady. Supplies are increasing from Mexico. Demand is steady this week. The extra large and jumbo sized asparagus are more available. Peruvian asparagus supplies are just about finished. The new district in Mexico has increased their supplies. All shippers have started to pack 28# asparagus. Quality is reportedly marginal due to the frost damage.
MARKET STEADY
AVOCADO
California Fruit – Freeze to the new crop has growers working to assess losses. At this time it now looks like losses of around 40% to the California crop. With the crop much lighter than last year already, this will be a major short fall for California growers. Freeze damage fruit must be thrown away, and fruit that the stem is frozen must be picked right away. This picking this fruit has brought lots of fruit to market. This extra fruit will start dwindling over the 2 week and leave much lighter supplies as we go into the spring and summer months. Market is lower.
Chilean Fruit – Supplies are better, and look to be steady through the week and into next week. Quality is good and the market is steady.
Mexican fruit – Mexico is nearing mid-season on their crop. Quality and supplies are tightening a little. Market is steady. For the first time in nearly a century, starting February 1st, Mexican Avocados can be shipped into all States.
BELL PEPPERS
Western Green Bells and Colored Bells: Nogales still has lighter supplies this week due to cooler and wet weather in Mexico. The acreage is there, but the weather is holding it back. Supplies will be lighter for at least the next two weeks, and demand is better. Market is firming. Quality is mixed, some good lots and some poor. Red bells out of Nogales will increase slightly over the next several weeks, but no big increase until mid February due to the weather. Yellow bells remain tight. Nogales will not increase in much volume for two weeks. There are 11# Hot House available in Coachella and Nogales. The market is firmer with better demand.
Eastern Bells: Look for a steady to softer Bell Pepper market this week. Steady volume is expected for the next few weeks and demand has been a little light this past week. Quality reports have been good.
MARKET STEADY
STRAWBERRIES
CALIFORNIA: Increased demand for Valentine’s Day has the market reacting strongly upward. Lighter supplies due to the recent rains and cold weather; have been causing some loading delays. Berry quality is fair at this time. Fruit at this time is running 16-20ct., with 80-85% red color, and occasional soft tips. More berries will have to be discarded rather than packed so we anticipate loading delays.
FLORIDA: Cooler temperatures and rain have affected much of the Florida strawberry crop. Harvest numbers have dropped, and this has forced more demand to California, further complicating the overall picture. These cold temperatures will also have a detrimental effect on the fruit quality and size also.
PRICES FIRMER IN CALIFORNIA AND FLORIDA
RASPBERRIES
Cold weather and rain in Mexico is complicating harvest, and very limited numbers are crossing into the United States. California’s winter raspberry crop was severely damaged by the cold weather we had in January. Prices have been on the rise this week and will continue as we enter the Valentine’s Day pull.
PRICES STRONGER
BLUEBERRIES
Good supplies of imported blueberries from Chile and Argentina have kept prices reasonable going into this week. Quality is very good at this time. Look to push blueberries over the next two weeks.
PRICES STEADY
BLACKBERRIES
The cold weather and rain in Mexico have also affected crossings of blackberries. The market is significantly stronger this week. Expect light supplies and higher prices through the Valentine’s Day pull.
PRICES STRONGER
BROCCOLI
The broccoli market is steady. Prices are stabilizing on all packs of broccoli; supplies are increasing beyond our current demand. Broccoli processors are once again experiencing some raw product shortages. Quality will be marginal on all packs out of the southern and northern districts due to extreme cold temperatures.
MARKET STEADY
CARROTS
The market on jumbos is still on the rise. Jumbo, Cello and Clip top carrots are all in very light supply. Look for limited supplies on jumbos, 4” peeled and unpeeled chunk and sticks over the next few weeks.
MARKET STEADY TO HIGHER
CAULIFLOWER
The cauliflower market is in a downward trend. Demand has slowed while supplies have increased. Most cauliflower shippers are harvesting better volume. The availability of cauliflower will increase as the week progresses from Santa Maria and the Desert loading areas. Fortunately, overall quality still remains very nice. The nice white curds are abundant from most shippers.
MARKET STEADY
CELERY
The celery market is strong again. Supplies on the bigger sizes are tight. The market has a wide price range due to supplies. The 24’s and 30’s are commanding premium price as compared to smaller sizes. The prices on smaller sizes such as 36 count and 48 count are much less than the 24 and 30 count celery. Demand looks to remain good for all pack sizes. The quality of celery has been affected by the cold temperatures on all packs. Weights on celery continue to be in their normal range of 55 to 60 plus pounds. Some shippers are harvesting out of Yuma Arizona, Florida and Texas with small sized celery being the most prevalent with very light volume on all sizes.
MARKET HIGHER
CITRUS
Lemons and Oranges: Major freeze in California and Arizona has severely damage the lemon and orange crop. Early damage assessments look like very heavy losses, around 75% of the crop. Assessments will continue. It will be next week before shippers can begin to pack the previously frozen groves. There is limited volume of pre-freeze fruit in storage that shippers will be through by this weekend. Next week we will be into post-freeze fruit. Supplies are very short as shippers are prorating to help make supplies last. The smaller Choice grade sizes, 140’s through 230’s are the tightest. There may be a need to sub Standard grade for Choice grade.
Oranges are now into the post freeze pack. Sunkist is packing there fancy grade oranges in a Pure Gold label. Demand slowed so much at the higher market prices; orange shippers have dropped the market to spark movement.
MARKET is firm on lemons, but has adjusted down some on Oranges.
CUCUMBERS
Western Cucumbers: Nogales supplies continue on the lighter side to start the week, with quality on many lots poor, and demand is good. Cooler weather is still an issue, and it still looks like mid February before any real volume starts coming back. Quality is fair to poor. Market has firmed up.
Eastern Cucumbers: Cucumber supplies are a little better this week. Florida supplies are decreasing but the off-shore volume is picking up steam. Off-shore cucumbers come into the Miami port and quality has been excellent .No major quality issue to report.
MARKET STEADY TO STRONGER
GRAPES
Prices will be steady on red seedless and green seedless this week. The deals remain in the smaller fruit, but beware of customer preferences, because even at lower price levels, fruit can vary widely in quality and condition. Flame Red Seedless and Thompson Green Seedless dominate the market for available varieties and quality is very good on both. Increased demand continues this week, and supplies are a little lighter for the next seven days. There are better supplies of Black Seedless, and Red Globe Seeded grapes, and a few early Crimsons are being seen.
PRICES STEADY
GREEN ONIONS
The green onion market is loosing steam and will be less active as the week moves on. Warmer weather in growing regions has improved supplies. Demand continues to be good on all iceless packs, while the iced packs are seeing lower demand. Quality is still variable with some yellowing and brown discolored tops in both iced and iceless packs. Signs of slimy decay continue to pop up in some lots.
MARKET LOWER
KIWI
Kiwi supplies continue light after the freeze in California, but the market has leveled off. Demand continues very strong and markets will hold at higher levels. Quality is still excellent for the limited amount of California fruit as well as Italian Kiwi on the East and West Coast.
LEAF LETTUCE
The leaf market has a wide range from shipper to shipper. The romaine market has found support at the current level. The cold weather we had experienced affected supplies and quality. The weather trend has warmed somewhat which has lifted the huge strain icy conditions had caused. All other leaf packs have steady supplies and are seeing steady demand for the rest of the week. Prices will vary from shipper to shipper on all leaf packs. All shippers are quoting EPIDERMAL PEEL and FEATHER. The quality continues to be acceptable on romaine with weights in the 34 to 38 pound range. Quality on the other leaf packs remains acceptable as well.
MARKET STEADY
LETTUCE
The lettuce market is also experiencing steady demand with good supplies. The direct result of extremely cold temperatures, shorter harvesting days, and great demand has also been alleviated, at least temporarily, by the lack of icy conditions. Most shippers will have adequate supplies for the rest of the week. Prices will be tapering off for the rest of the week as demand struggles to keep up with supplies. Quality continues to be marginal and weights are in the mid to low 40’s on all packs. Insects, EPIDERMAL PEEL, and BLISTER can be found in lettuce products from the desert.
MARKET STEADY
MELONS
Honeydews: Honeydews remain tight, especially on the West Coast. More consistent arrivals seem to be coming in, but the limited supplies are getting booked out early each week. Ordering weekly quantities in advance will assist in getting orders covered for late in the week. Quality is varied from lot to lot with some softness and scarring, along with low brix levels. Sizes available are mostly 5/6s on imported product and 8/9s from Mexico. Mexican honeydews continue to cross into Nogales and McAllen. This short supply situation looks to continue until March.
Cantaloupe: The cantaloupe market has eased a bit since last week as arrivals seem to be coming more consistent. Better supplies are available in Texas and the East Coast ports and prices are lower than on the West Coast. Offshore cantaloupes are showing some sunken areas and a green cast, with occasional low sugars.
CANTALOUPE PRICES LOWER, HONEYDEW PRICES FIRM
ONIONS
Idaho Onion Market is steady on Yellow and Reds the start of this week. Once demand picks up, the market will firm up quickly. Mexico has started to cross some onions into Texas. The first few weeks Mexico will be mainly crossing 40lb carton sweet onions. There are a few shippers that are getting some 50lb sack Jumbo Yellow onions. Market is firm. Quality is being reported as good. The White onion market is very active with very limited supplies and fair quality. Quality on yellow and reds are good. Colorado is done. In addition, some Utah and Idaho shippers will also finish by the middle of February. Texas onions should start up the middle of March.
POTATOES
Moderate demand and supplies is keeping the potato market steady. Quality is good on both varieties out of Idaho. Continued split market pricing between Norkotahs and Burbank’s out of Idaho. Washington, Colorado and Wisconsin have good supplies and quality. Steady market out these areas. Red, White and Gold potato are coming out of Washington, North Dakota, Colorado, California and Wisconsin. Market is steady. Yukon and White potatoes are done for the season out of Washington. They will have supplies of Reds until at least the middle of March.
SQUASH
Western Squash: Cooler, wet weather in Mexico continues to slow growth on both on Zucchini and Yellow squash. This looks to continue to mid month .Supplies out of Nogales is still short, but demand has eased some. Market is steady on zucchini and very active on yellow. Quality remains good on Zucchini, but only fair on Yellow.
Eastern Squash: Squash supplies are good on all flavors and sizes this week...This week we should see steady supplies coming out of South Florida. We should see pricing on all squash remain steady toward this weekend.
MARKET IS STEADY
STONE FRUIT
Supplies will continue very light again next week on Nectarines, as the crop is packing out very light. Elegant Lady Peaches are here and quality is excellent. Black Amber plums and red Fortunes are in good supply. Eating quality continues to be very good on all fruit. Good supplies of peaches and plums for the next few weeks.
TOMATOES
Western: Vine Ripe tomatoes from Baja loading in Southern California have about finished for the season. Vine Ripe from Nogales are going in a light way. Cool, wet weather still hampers increased production and now looks be running better volume buy mid February, weather permitting. Market is firm. Mature Greens out of Nogales has started with light volume, and will continue to increase over the next two weeks, with good supplies by mid February. Market is firm. Romas supplies out of Baja are done. Nogales romas are going with light volume, but increasing volume slowly through the next two weeks. Production is slowed due to the cooler weather. Some time mid February, supplies should be good. Quality is fair. Market is steady. Cherry tomato supplies are dropping and the market is steady. Grape tomatoes quality is very poor, with very limited supplies coming in, and the market very stronger.
Eastern: Vine Ripe from Florida are lighter in supplies, with some firming to the market. Looks like better supplies in a week or two. Mature greens supplies are also lighter in supplies. Supplies will become more consistent as we move into February. Market is firmer. Roma supplies are still light, but look to increase slightly over the next two weeks. Market is firm. Cherry tomatoes and Grape tomatoes supplies lighter, and looks to remain so for the next 2 weeks. Market is firmer.
WATERMELON
Prices are much firmer on Mexican watermelons as demand increases, due to the lack of product coming in from Central America. Much of the Mexican product is now crossing into Texas to accommodate East Coast demand. Mini seedless watermelons are available to load in Florida and Texas and prices have gotten stronger, in conjunction with other watermelons. Brix levels are being reported in the 11-12 range on the Mini’s.
PRICES FIRMER ON MEXICAN AND CENTRAL AMERICAN PRODUCT
VALUE ADDED
California and Arizona growing districts continue to struggle with quality for available supplies of raw product. Quality and availability for all value added products and their related components are being negatively affected. Overall yields are down and with the current product quality, shelf life shortened. Heavy crop losses and damaged young plants will continue to have negative effects on product quality for at least the next 4 weeks and possibly throughout the remainder of the desert growing season.