Lettuce 

Production continues from Salinas , Santa Maria, Huron and now  Yuma .  A  few  shippers  are currently overlapping production areas but most are relegated to only one district.  Quality is comparable  in most locations  but  Huron has the slight edge  with Yuma  likely to make the most improvement in coming weeks .  Salinas quality has peaked and will likely show some rib discoloration on arrivals. Weights , Color and Sizing continue to vary in all shipping districts.  The market  is mostly  steady with  good weather forecast for the next week allowing supplies to increase slightly before leveling out  as shippers transition fully into their Winter home.  Quality from  Las Cruces , NM  has been very nice and will continue through mid  November.   Take advantage of cost savings in freight and fresher production location.

 

Mix Leaf

Production continues from Salinas and Santa Maria Valley’s as well as Yuma for a handful of shippers.  Demand has gradually improved especially from the East as regional production areas finish for the season. Most shippers   will transition to the desert  beginning next week   Quality has been good although some discoloration has been showing up on arrival especially after this past weekends  rain. Continue to  shop for color and lighter weights to avoid problems.

 

Brussels Sprouts

Heavy production continues  from Salinas with  light production starting up  in Mexico . Demand  has been good  with many value added packs  contributing to am improving  market despite the excess supplies although there are still deals available for volume orders.  Quality has  been very nice and should continue to improve demand  through the traditionally strong Holiday season.

 

Celery

This market has been gaining momentum over the past 2 weeks.  With Michigan product dried up, buyers are looking to the west coast and gathering up what they can.  Thanksgiving pull will start towards the latter half of next week and shippers are preparing inventory to keep up with demand.  Supplies are lighter this week as they stock up. Expect strong markets through the month of November. Quality is nice and is expected to continue with mild weather and minimal rain in the forecasted for the next two weeks.

 

Broccoli

Supplies remain limited as the Salinas season begins to wind down and most of the Home Grown product on the East Coast and Canada finishes up.  Markets will remain at current trading levels into next week.  Production out of Mexico will continue to increase but at a slower rate than expected.  Mexico will not be in full swing until the middle of December.

 

Cauliflower

Shippers will be looking to make deals on all sizes to finish up the week.  There is good supplies available in Salinas and Santa Maria.  Get with your Produce West representative and run you offers by us.

 

Artichokes

Steady  production from  Salinas  is expected to continue with improving demand .  Predominate sizing will be the larger sizes with very good quality.   Thornless or seeded varieties continue to dominate the category  with the preferred Heirloom or Green Globe  not scheduled til the Spring.

Strawberries

The majority of growers had to strip plants again today as the Monday stripping did not completely clear the fields of the pin rot problems caused by the weekend rains. We had light variable rains on Monday afternoon which contributed to today’s quality field issues. The rains we had 10 days ago of less than a 1/2 inch , interrupted shipments for 3 to 4 days. The 1/1/2 inches of moisture we received over the weekend will certainly effect quality and suppress volume well into next week.  Shippers will to continue to ship to less “picky” customers in hopes the strawberries will arrive in the best condition possible given the quality issues we have been dealt. Otherwise, diverting to the freezers may be the best option from a financial standpoint.  Currently, there is no rain in the forecast for the next 10 days in the California growing regions.the volume out of McAllen has been very limited, but we are expecting better numbers to start crossing next week.

Organic Strawberries 

You can expect the organic berries to not bounce back for 2 to 3 weeks as they are virtually non-existent due to our recent wet weather.  Typically, the Organic berries don’t recover as fast as conventional berries, so we are not surprised that we will be in short supply in the short term.

Raspberries 

Volumes were projected to be good, but cooler weather has slowed down growth.  Even with the fruit being grown under hoops we have limited cases of wet and leaky berries.The main production areas are Baja, Central Mexico, Oxnard and Santa Maria. Very limited supplies out of Watsonville. Golden & Sunshine Raspberries will wind down over the next few weeks.

Blackberries

The main production areas are Baja, Central Mexico, Oxnard and Santa Maria. Supplies out of these combined areas will be plentiful next week. McAllen, Texas will see increased supplies for the remainder of the month. Organic Blackberries will decline in volume and not pick up until the new year.

Blueberries

Estimates for next week are forecasted to be higher and will continue until the end of the month. Quality has been excellent and we have been buying with in a wide price range. The main production areas are Baja, Chile, Central Mexico, with limited supplies out of California.  Organic Blueberries are very limited and expected to light thru the end of the year.

 

Cantaloupes

Supplies are light, as the Westside is history and the Caribbean is 2-4 weeks off. Nogales is going in a moderate way but few domestic users want Mexican cantaloupes. There are only a few players in the Yuma-Phoenix deal and they are left to cover the lion’s share of current needs. Demand has been typically slow as consumers start looking for autumn and winter fruits.  Sizes have become more evenly distributed, but with retail demand centered on 9s, they remain snug.

Prices finished steady. Next week we see little change. We see little change, in fact, coming until the Caribbean deal going.

 

Honeydews

Like with cantaloupes, the northern area are finished. Caribbean is a ways off.  There are fewer dews planted in Yuma-Phoenix this year, but there are plenty in Mexico. Demand is typically slow for this off season product.  Market was therefore weaker in Mexico & slightly weaker domestically, as typically, Mexican honeydews are more acceptable to US consumer than the cantaloupes. Market should remain dull and uneventful next week.