The Source - November 2, 2015

California - Pink Ladys are steady and continue to peak on the smaller sizes. The quality has been good.
Washington - Red Delicious are steady on all sizes. Most suppliers are still heavier to 72/80/88s and have very few 125s and smaller. Golden delicious are steady and still producing mostly premium grade 100/113s. Large Goldens are limited. Granny-smiths are steady and are still peaking on 88/100/113s. Most Granny shippers don't have much larger than an 88-size. Galas are steady on all sizes. Most Gala shippers are still peaking on 100/113s and don't much available on 88's or larger. Fujis are steady on all sizes they are yielding more of the smaller sizes now. Honeycrisp are steady and still peaking on 64/72s. Some shippers still have volume buys in the lower grades. Jonagolds and Braeburns are steady and have also yielded some small fruit lately. The quality for all varieties has been good.
Michigan - Red delicious are steady on all sizes and are still peaking on the larger sizes but have decent volume of the smaller sizes. Empires are also steady on all sizes and they are peaking on small fruit. McIntosh are peaking on the larger sizes and the market is steady. Galas are steady on all sizes due to steady demand. Golden delicious are peaking on 113-138s and the market is steady to slightly lower. Honeycrisp are peaking on 100's and larger and inventories are building so the market weaker than it was. Jonathans, Cortlands, Red Romes, Fujis, and Jonamacs, are all steady and the sizing is heavier to 100/113s with only light supplies of 125/138s.
New York - Red delicious, Macs, Galas, Honeycrisp, Macouns, Empires, Cortlands, and Golden delicious are all steady. McIntosh and macoun volume is good and some shippers will flex on certain sizes and grades. The Macs are peaking on 100s and the galas are heavier to 100/113s. The quality has been good on all varieties.

This market is firm to begin the week. Good production continues out of Peru. Southern Baja has looks to have good supplies of standard packs available. Large and extra large packs are expected to be limited. Jumbos continue to be very limited. Good quality continues to be reported as good in all the growing regions.

Mexican production is steady. Replenishment supplies after the rains a week ago has started arriving to the US, but we still see a few holes in some of the forward warehouses. We are now into the new crop and are stating to see a more normal range of sizes, peaking on 48s and 60s. Limited volume on #2 fruit as quality is very good. This new crop fruit is lower in maturity and will take longer to ripen and not darken as much when ripen. Ripe fruit could still be green in color as the skin isn't mature enough for it to darken. Color is not an indication of ripeness, pressure is.

Quality is generally good and improving. Quality is improving as suppliers have more product to offer. Generally, California supplies have finished and all supplies are coming out of the Northern Mexico Region.

The blackberry crop continues to decline out of CA and should end major production by mid-late November. Mexico should be ramping up production weekly as we move into their season. However, central Mexico received significant rain over the weekend which has delayed some harvests and decreased amount of fruit crossing into Texas and California for shipments this week. Quality issues with red cell and juicing have been reported in CA and MX fruit.

Demand exceeds supply. An industry-wide shortage continues as minimal volume of fruit is arriving to the US from Uruguay, Argentina, Peru and Mexico. South America continues to struggle with inclement weather that is affecting both production and quality of shipments bound for the US. More reports are coming in with rain, hail, cold weather and even snow in particular growing region's forecasts. Growers are shipping less fruit overall due to the amount of fruit being discarded and because much of the fruit has to be flown into the US to avoid the longer transit time of shipping on the water. Arrivals have been very sporadic to the West coast as much of the fruit is arriving into Miami and has to be trucked over to the West coast for shipping. Availability has been slightly better loading out of the port cities on the East coast in New Jersey and Florida. We've seen several weeks of extremely limited availability. Depending on the weather, we could be working through production and supply issues all the way through Thanksgiving. Prices remain high as availability is limited.

Alerts:
Demand exceeds supply. An industry wide shortage continues as minimal fruit is arriving from South America and Mexico.

California crop continues to decline out of the northern district but the southern districts are still producing decent volumes. We should see good availability through the next several weeks as Central Mexico also ramps up production. However, central Mexico did receive rain and wind over the weekend and is seeing some harvest and logistical delays to begin this week. Quality has suffered some with wet, leaky fruit but harvesting crews are focusing on diverting product to pack quality.

Demand exceeds supply in all California growing regions. Availability has decreased drastically this week as we continue the transition out of the northern growing districts and major production will focus on Santa Maria, Oxnard and Central Mexico moving forward. Florida will not begin production until late November/early December. Overall volume will continue to decrease considerably through November. Quality issues are being reported in all growing regions, including Central Mexico and the fruit crossing though McAllen. Soft bruising, leaky berries, white shoulders have been common on the inspections. Due to very limited availability and industry-wide quality issues, expectations should be adjusted to what is currently available.

Alerts:
Demand exceeds supply. Strawberries remain extremely limited in all growing regions. Rain in California today and in Mexico over the weekend have caused volume to decline even further.

This market is firm. Crown production is moderate at best. issues include yellow beading, hollow core, pin rot, light green color, as well as a rubbery texture to this commodity in all the growing regions. Theses defects are a direct result of high temperatures in past weeks. The main production continues to be out of the Salinas Valley. The Southern California production is moderate at best. There continues to be production in Mexico as well as McAllen. Yuma will not have production until approximately Thanksgiving.

Bakersfield crop is in full production. Size in the fields is good and the percentage of jumbo size carrots is good. good.

This market is stronger with most suppliers. Yuma will not begin production until approximately Thanksgiving. Salinas and Santa Maria has dropped in production numbers. The overall quality is reported to be good. With heavy rains in northern and southern California that began on Monday, look for supplies to be light all week. Pricing looks to rise steadily throughout the week.

This market continues to gain strength on all sizing. Supplies continue to be limited. Santa Maria's production is light. Production in Salinas will be limited all week. The quality continues to be reported as strong in all the growing regions. Oxnard has begun light production. Production is expected to be stronger next week out of Oxnard as more suppliers will begin harvesting.

This market is up as supplies have tapered off. Pricing continues to be competitive. The Baja region of Mexico as well as Southern California has the main production for this commodity. Rains in California will likely alter production numbers. The overall quality is reported as good.

Demand remains very good. We are seeing better availability on 140s and larger fruit, but still seeing demand exceeding supplies on 165s and smaller fruit coming from the new crop in the desert. Expect this shortage on smaller fruit to continue through January.

Alerts:
Demand exceeds supply on the smaller sized fruit 165s/200s/235s. Expect shortages to go through January.

The lime market is steady on the larger sizes and up on the smaller ones from the 200ct to the 250ct. Hard rains and flooding the past few weeks temporarily disrupted harvesting in the growing area. Bigger fruit is the result of the rains. Holiday demand from Europe mid-November and the increased size of the fruit is putting upward pressure on the small sized fruit. The overall quality is good on the new crop. We continue to have good demand on limes.

More shippers are beginning to pack this years California Navel crop this week, so look for volume to begin to pick up; last of the shippers will start by week. Clear weather last couple weeks have allowed shippers to pick every day, so inventory waiting to go into the gas rooms have start to build and we can start to get back into a more normal flow of fruit. Sizes are peaking on 113s/88s/138s. Larger sizes of 72s and 56s are very limited as fruit has not sized up yet. Volumes will continue to pick up over the up coming weeks, if weather cooperates.

Colored bell peppers continue to be in a demand exceeds situation. Green bells are still demand, some productions is improving. Red bell pepper production crossing from Northern Mexico has slightly increased but demand still exceeds supply.

Market is steady as well as supplies are increasing, but quality will vary. Recent hot weather and rain is impacting yields. Nogales has started with very few supplies and quality is improving with slightly increasing supplies.

The green grape market is strong with harvest numbers declining in the face of growing demand. We expect to see some quality issues due to the current rain event but the majority of the fruit has already been harvested. Quality is still generally very good.

The red grape market is stronger with good demand and lighter supplies. A percentage of the red grape harvest is being diverted to storage daily for the upcoming transition to Chilean fruit in December. This combined with the rains we are currently experiencing in the San Joaquin Valley will continue to accelerate the strengthening market. Quality is generally reported as good but late season rains will normally produce quality issues (mold, decay) later in the season.

Better supplies out of Mexico has softened this market. Demand is off as well. Temperatures in the Mexico region has been better for growing conditions to this commodity. Production out of Salinas will be light all week. The main sizing continues to be in small and some medium packs.

This market is steady to start the week. Supplies out of Mexico as well as California are moderate to good. The Baja region as well as California continue to be the main growing regions at this time. The overall quality continues to be good. Pricing looks to be competitive for the entire week.

Supplies exceed demand. Escalated pricing is in effect including value added items. Huron production is light. Seeder and low weights are the big issues in this region. Quality issues in Salinas and Santa Maria include small and irregular head size, lightweights, large seeder, decay, puffiness, insect damage and internal burn. The defects are directly related to past and current high temperatures. Yuma has begun production but quality is only fair. Defects include light weights, puffy, misshapen heads and overall heat damage. Seeder is minimal for now, but things can change. These defects are industry wide and will continue throughout the month. Suppliers are in fields remain ahead of schedule as demand is so very active currently.

This market is steady. There is light production in Huron and Yuma on romaine. The quality issues continue in all the growing regions. These issues include fringe burn, small and irregular sizing, insects, dehydration, seeder and internal burn. Green and red leaf are firm in pricing. Fringe burn, mildew damage, internal burn and insect pressure continue to be defects associated with these commodities. There are light supplies of green and red leaf in Yuma . Butter will be tight with all suppliers in all regions for the entire week, minimum. There will continue to be gaps in pricing amongst the different shippers.

The West Side finished packing for the season. The desert has been producing good volumes of large sized fruit with nice color and sugar content with a peak size of 9ct and 6ct. Lope 18's are very scarce currently and 15's are in very light volumes with 12ct being short overall too. Mexico is crossing small volumes of 9ct cantaloupes. The current market on the 9ct is steady. The 12ct, 15ct and 18ct lopes are higher since the demand for them outstrips the supplies of them. The large size fruit trend will continue for the near future. We are experiencing decent demand for cantaloupes at this time. Offshore melons are set to arrive in Florida around the middle of November.

The peak size is currently 5ct with very few 8ct coming in. Our honeydew market is steady on the 5ct, slightly up on the 6ct and 8ct. Honeydews are now finished West Side district. Mexican dews are shipping out of Nogales AZ. We continue to experience good demand across the board. The quality and sugar contents from both regions continue to be good and this looks to continue. Offshore dews are set to arrive during the later part of November.

Most product coming in bins and cartons . Light supplies are coming from Southern California and Southern Texas. Market continues to be in a demand exceeds on larger fruit. Nogales has crossings in bins and cartons and are increasing in volume.

Washington - the yellow market is steady on colossals with only light supplies available while jumbos and mediums are steady to lower. Some shippers will deal on jumbo yellow volume. Reds and whites are steady on both sizes. The quality for all colors has been good.

Idaho/Oregon - The yellow market is mostly steady with some lower on jumbos and larger, mediums are steady. Some suppliers are dealing on colossal and jumbo yellow volume. Reds and whites are both mostly steady but some shippers are higher on different sizes. The quality for all colors has been good.

Washington - The Bartlett market is steady and they are peaking on 110/120s. Large size Bartletts remain short. Bosc are steady and are still peaking on 90/100/110s. D'anjou pears are steady and peaking on 90/100s. Most shippers have limited supplies of 80 and larger D'anjous. Red pears are steady on all sizes and are still producing mostly half carton 45/50s and full carton 90/100s. The quality has ranged on the bartletts as some suppliers are between regular storage and C.A. The D'anjou, Bosc, and red pear quality is good.

Washington - the carton market is steady on all sizes. The large counts are still priced at a slight premium due lower availability. The norkotah quality has been good.
Idaho - Cartons are steady on all sizes and in both varieties. Norkotahs are still the bulk of what is being packed and both varieties remain heavier to 60-count and larger. The small counts remain limited. The norkotah quality has been good, burbanks have ranged from fair to good.
Colorado - the carton market is steady on all sizes. They are also peaking on 60-count and larger but have a more even spread across al sizes. The quality has been good.
Wisconsin - The carton market is steady on all sizes andthey have a nice even spread on sizing. The quality has been good.

Bakersfield, California - Washington reds, golds, and whites are all steady. Premium size reds and gold supplies remain limited. The quality has been good.
Western Washington - all colors are steady. The quality for all colors has been good.
Central/Eastern Idaho - both reds and golds are steady on all sizes and continue to peak on A-size. The quality has been good.
Wisconsin - Reds and golds are steady on all sizes and both are peaking on A-size. Premium and baker reds, premium and baker golds, and gold Cs remain limited. The quality has been good.
North Dakota - both colors are steady and are heavy to A-size. B-size reds remain limited and number-twos volume is still short but is getting better. Premiums and bakers remain very short. The quality has been good.

Italian and yellow squash are steady. Quality varies throughout available lots. Nogales has started with Italian and yellow squash with good supplies and steady. Nogales has also started with a few supplies of Grey squash.

Rounds - The market is steady/higher. SE has wrapped up production. Florida seeing fewer supplies. Weather continues to curtail production in the east. Market will continue to be steady in the east with heavy rains in the west. Mexico will also see decreased numbers due to additional weather conditions. Quality good
Roma - The market is steady. Supplies continue to increase in the east and west. Demand has remained constant. Quality good.
Cherry/Grape - Cherry market is higher. Supplies continue to fall short in all areas. Florida slowly beginning production in areas. Quality good. Grape market continues to be high. Production in Florida is helping supplies, however, demand continues to be strong. Not much change in the west, and heavy rains forecasted. Quality Good.

Rounds - The market is steady. California finishing up. Mexico continues to see rough weather conditions, curtailing harvest. Demand continues to be constant in the east and west. Quality is Good.
Roma - The market is lower / steady. Baja is coming on with additional supplies. However, demand continues to be constant. Wet and Colder weather forecasted will slow up harvest a bit. Quality is Good.
Cherry/Grape - Cherry market is steady/higher. Not much has changed in the market. The west continues to see lower volume. The west beginning to see rains. The east opening up areas slowly, however, supplies still lower until all regions come on. Quality Good. Grape market is steady/higher. Weather in mexico continues to slow up supplies. East is supplying market, however, demand continues to be strong. Quality fair to good.