Post holiday demand is light. Market has overlapped between Yuma and Salinas causing price to bottom out. Quality is decent, however should improve as Salinas growers increase yields.
Romaine supplies are plentiful and quality is good. Some growers have seen insect related issues as the weather has been unseasonably warm. Pricing is low. Romaine hearts and chopped romaine supplies and quality are good. Green Leaf supplies exceed demand. Spring Mix quality is good supply is good. Pricing remains steady.
Jumbo yellow onions are tight and quality is fair to poor as we near transition to California and Texas. Pricing is elevated but not overly exaggerated. We are seeing surface mold in yellow onions. Air circulation in storage is critical. Jumbo whites are very high and supply is very tight. Quality is mediocre.
Pricing on jumbo reds is high. Quality is good considering it is the end of storage. Expect to field some quality concerns until we move to California in the coming weeks.
Market is steady from last week. Demand is low on the back side of the holiday. Supplies and quality are good.
This market remains steady. Larger sizes remain the value. No real change is expected in the near future.
Florida tomato supplies continue to be light on all varieties. A few growers are getting started in south Florida, however do not expect any change until harvest begins in the Ruskin/Palmetto areas. Quality has been spotty and pricing remains elevated.
The bell pepper market continues to challenge throughout the country. Florida yields are down and sizing and quality are poor. The Mexican season is coming to an early end and the California start is about 3 weeks away. Expect pricing to remain high for the next few weeks. Red Pepper market is steady as product continues to come from Honduras. Expect California to begin in May.
Market is strengthening as demand is high. Quality and sizing are good with value in larger sizes. This market will begin to see some pressure as the desert winds down. The quality, color and internal juice content is very good.
Once again Mother Nature has disrupted the strawberry season. Winds in the Santa Maria and Salinas regions hit 55 MPH causing many delays in harvesting and loading. Yesterday the temps dipped below 39 degrees as growers are assessing wind damage. One grower reported a normal harvest would support 80,000 flats but on Monday the harvest was below 40. Outlook is calling for shortages for the next 2 weeks and fingers crossed that the normal rainfalls that hit the Salinas region in April will not hamper further harvesting. Blues: Market is tight on supplies as domestic crops come on. It should remain strong as Chile winds down. Also issues due to recent weather patterns. Rasp: Demand exceeds supply a bit, market steady to tight. Black: Market is also very tight.
Limes are headed up and word is the trend shall continue mostly due to weather changes. Supplies are low and should remain thus until around May.