The Source - April 13, 2015

New York continues to pack McIntosh, Red delicious, Empires, and Romes. They have also packed a few Cameos and Cortlands. The demand has been light for all varieties.

Michigan continues to pack Idareds, Jonagolds, Jonathans, McIntosh, Red delicious and Romes. All varieties are steady and the demand remains light.

Washington continues to pack mostly Red delicious, Golden delicious, Granny-smith, Gala's, and Fuji's. There are a few varietals left as well: Braeburns, Honeycrisp, Jazz, Jonagolds, Jonathans, Opals, Lady Alice, and Pink lady's. The reds remain large and the volume deals on 88's and larger are still available. Golden are steady on all sizes. Granny's are steady but the volume deals on 80's and larger are still available. Gala's and Fuji's are both steady to higher due to lighter supplies. The varietals are steady except Honeycrisp which are very limited. Most packers will finish Honeycrisp by the end of the month/early May.

This market is active with all suppliers. Jumbo packs from all the regions continue to be light in production and commanding a premium price. Demand exceeds supply. Standard and large sizing are the main packs available on both 11lb. and 28 lb. cases. Salinas and Mexico continue to be the main growing regions for this commodity. Peruvian product is available to load out of Miami direct. Standard and large sizing is the main packs from Peru. Expect this market to get stronger throughout the week.

California Growers are increasing production weekly, and supplies are improving. Maturity of fruit is good.

Mexico supplies and crossings are steady. Size still peaking on 60's; 48's and larger remain tight, but are showing some improvement.

Some quality issues being reported for soft berries, red cell and some mold. Supply has improved some to start this week.

Chilean season is winding down and the arrivals are lessening weekly. CA blues have been very limited so far but looks to be increasing with small volumes this week, mostly 4.4oz clams. FL blues are available out of Miami, Dover and Plant City. Mostly 4.4oz and 6oz clams though some larger packs are being packed at request. Market has come off sharply on FL blues. Mainland Mexican supplies have been limited by rain and cooler weather but looks to increase this week as weather has cleared. Varying levels of pricing and quality based on country/region of origin.

Raspberry volumes continue to decline out of both Central Mexico and Oxnard, CA growing regions. Santa Maria, CA volumes have increased some recently. We should begin to see Watsonville fruit by the end of April with decent volume. Some reports of soft and overripe berries.

DEMAND EXCEEDS SUPPLY. We are in a seasonal supply gap period after Oxnard ended major production for fresh market last week and the Santa Maria and Salinas/Watsonville districts are not putting out enough volume yet to cover the loss of the southern region. This shortage looks to remain for the next 7-10 days at least with varying levels of severity by region. Shippers are oversold/sold out each day. Orders are being pushed into the following date and/or fill-rated from most shippers daily.

Alerts:
Strawberries
DEMAND EXCEEDS SUPPLY

This market is very active on bunched product as well as crowns. Demand is up. Suppliers are gapping right now in production. Expect active markets and light supplies throughout the week. The best quality remains in the Salinas Valley. Santa Maria has light to moderate supplies with good quality. Production in Phoenix is finished. Production in Mexico is light. The quality in all of the growing regions is reported as being good.

California desert crop is going well. Size is only fair coming out of the fields. Jumbo size remains snug.

This market is very active with a few suppliers being sold out to begin the week. Salinas and Santa Maria production is moderate to light. Open business is up and most suppliers are gapping in production right now. Look for production in all the growing regions to be light throughout the week. As for the quality, reports indicate all regions to have good color and sizing on this commodity. Expect pricing to be active throughout the week.

This market is firm with most suppliers. Small sizing, thirty-six count in particular commands a higher price from all shippers. Fewer deals are being offered for bulk purchasing in comparison to past weeks. Large sizing continues to have the best availability. This market will likely be active by the middle of the week. Shippers are willing to load out of Salinas but a higher cost is being tacked onto the fob price so please be aware. Loading in Oxnard/ Santa Maria is your best price.

Early harvest is expected to start around April 17 - 20 with light supplies out of the San Joaquin Valley. Promotable volume is expected around the end of the month. Most shippers are predicting good quality on an average volume for the season.

Crop is peaking on 140's and larger. 165's and smaller are tight with springtime demand picking up for these sizes.

The lime market is rebounding upwards from last week's lows. High prices curbed the demand and caused the market to break then buyers stepped in and so far this week many of the sizes are higher. Supplies are increasing on smaller sizes and decreasing slightly on larger sizes this week and for the next few weeks. The forecast of lower supplies from April through mid May will more than likely keep the market from tanking to the bottom although it will be a choppy ride. The overall quality is good on the new crop that is being harvested.

California Navel crop is in its peak eating quality. Sizing is peaking 72's/56's. Demand is exceeding smaller fruit, 113's/138's. California Valencia's should be ready toward the end of the month in limited volume.

Alerts:
ORANGES:
Small oranges,113's/138's are in very tight supply.

Quality, or lack of, continues to drive this market higher. The end of the deal typically suffers with lighter supplies and a drop off in quality. This year is no exception as even the best of the storage grapes are showing some breakdown upon arrival. Expect this to continue until the Mexican and Coachella deals start towards the end of this month.

The red seedless market is beginning to firm up with slightly lighter supplies and good demand. Quality continues to be good but many shippers are predicting an earlier than normal finish to this year's crop out of Chile. They are attributing this to the exceptional weather event experienced in the late season growing regions.

This market continues to gain strength in the marketplace. A few suppliers were sold out to start the week as supplies in Mexico became difficult to come by. There have been some issues with crossing the border of Mexico. These holdups have resulted in trucks arriving late by a day or two. Most of the production continues out of the Baja region of Mexico. Light supplies are being harvested in Salinas. Small and medium sizing continues to be the main packs available. Supplies will be moderate to light all week out of the Mexico growing regions.

This market is steady. Production in Salinas is much better compared to last week. The weights are ranging from 42-46 pounds with good quality. Bugs and gnats continue to be issues from production in Huron. The weights are ranging from 41-45 pounds from this region. Blister, misshapen heads, mildew, weak tip, and epidermal peel continue to be seen sporadically upon arrivals. Santa Maria will have light to moderate production to begin the week.

The romaine market is active as demand has increased. There continues to be problems in Huron with flies and gnats being seen upon arrivals with romaine and leaf items. Temperatures were warm over the weekend with strong winds. Expect to see some fringe burn from this area on all leaf items. Salinas continues to have strong quality but availability is light. Weights on romaine are ranging from 31-35 pounds. Green and red leaf pricing is active as well. Purchasing these commodities in Salinas will offer the best quality. Huron will finish up production in about a week.

Cantaloupe supplies are a bit lighter than previous weeks. Demand is somewhat better than previous weeks, which is causing the market to perk up a bit. Cantaloupe 9's are in tight supply with sizes peaking on 12's and 15's. Arrivals of offshore melons on the west coast continue to arrive in limited volumes with 12's being the peak size with some 9's being available. Quality is good on all lopes.

Off shore honeydew supplies remain lighter than previous weeks. Demand is slightly lower today which is causing the market to remain steady to slightly lower. The peak size is 6's on both coasts. Supplies out of Mexico are increasing now with good volume on dew 8's which is going to help generate demand for loading in Nogales. The Mexican supplies will begin to apply pressure on the overall market this week. Quality has been good overall.
-Jim Murphy

New Crop Southern California and Georgia, Vidalia Onions are right around the corner. Both areas scheduled to start harvest the week of April 20th. Quality is being reported as good.
Idaho - Demand is moderate with a firm but steady market on both yellow and red onions. Supplies are getting into fewer hands as more shippers finish for the season. The remaining shippers are trying to finish up before Southern California gets going the third week of April. Quality is still being reported as good.
Washington - Demand is moderate with a firm but steady market on all colors. They are in the same boat as Idaho and are trying to finish up before California gets going. Quality is still being reported as good.
Mexico - Supplies of Yellow and White onions have improved. Red onions have limited supplies crossing. Quality is being reported as good with a few fair lots being shipped. Market is firm but steady.

Washington is to packing D'anjou pears and a few red pears. The D'anjou's are still peaking on 80/90's in the US#1 grade and the fancy grade is limited on all sizes.

There are Argentinean Bartlett pears on both coasts and the fruit is peaking on 100's and larger. The Bartlett market is strong. We also have Chilean Bosc & Packhams and they are also peaking on the larger fruit. The markets for both remain strong.

Idaho - Large cartons 40 - 50 count potatoes are in a extreme demand exceeds supply situation. This looks to be a long term situation due to the small size profile in the storage potatoes. To cover these sizes shippers are buying product from Washington and transferring them over to load in Idaho. Please allow extra time to cover orders with large size cartons. All shippers are sold out 4 to 5 days in advance. Demand on 70 and 60 has increased as customer are starting to drop a size or two due to the limited availability of the larger cartons. Smaller cartons 80 count and smaller have moderate availability with slightly higher pricing. Quality is still good.
Washington - Demand is good on 40 -70 count potatoes with a firming market. Washington has better size in their storage potatoes than most other states. Quality is good.
Colorado/Wisconsin - Supplies are limited due to light retail demand which is making hard for the sheds to run full days. Market is firm. Quality is good.

Florida is steady on reds and is higher on Gold's and Whites. Both the Gold's and whites are stronger due to light supplies. The reds are still peaking on A-size while the whites and golds are heavier to B's.

North Dakota continues to pack and ship reds and they will continue through the month. The quality has ranged from poor to good. There are some volume deals as they are looking to clean-up.

Bakersfield, California is packing new-crop in all colors. All markets are steady but the size-profile is smaller so the Premium and Baker sizes are limited in all colors.

Idaho is still shipping a few reds and gold's but their season is quickly coming to an end. Some suppliers are steady while others are higher.

There are ample supplies of squash, with production coming from Homestead to South Georgia. The best volume and quality is coming from Plant City where the weather has been better. South Georgia has started even with rain storms moving through the area. Production is light and Quality is not great. Volume and Quality should get better next week as the weather clears. Homestead is still harvesting with good volume but should start to wind down late next week.

Early season peaches, nectarines and apricots have started. Quantity is limited with quality being reported as good. Sizing is running to the small volume fill and tray packs. We start the southern San Joaquin Valley this coming week with good volume on nectarines, peaches and apricots. Promotable volumes should be available by the week of April 20.

Recent cold weather in California has pushed back the expected harvest dates of peaches, nectarines and plums. The first of the early harvest is now expected to begin around the 15'th of April with volume coming on by the first week of May. The recent storms should have little to no affect on the quality of the fruit.

- Brad Tremblay

The Immokalee/Naples growing region in Florida continues to pick the last of their winter crop. Soft demand has kept shippers from selling out as they transition into newer fields. Concerns of a bloom drop in Florida have shown to be more of a cautious warning than realized loss. Spring yields from Immokalee/Naples and Palmetto/Ruskin expect promising supply mid April weather permitting favorable conditions for the sunshine state. Similar to rounds, Florida continues roma and cherry tomato production nearing the end of their winter crop with light supplies and quality also looking to better volumes mid month out of new fields.

Mainland Mexico is expected to continue production until May when Baja gets underway. Availability should remain good on rounds and romas through the transition pending no significant weather events. Quality is challenging on some fruit, as most has been through a lot of rain during the growing cycle. Improving weather conditions in Mexico are bringing more romas to market this week with mixed quality and color. Grape tomatoes are a little short out of Mexico, as crops are ending sooner than expected. Quality is only average with some reports of shrivel and ripening issues. Baja is expected to start grapes in two weeks, which should improve the situation.