Primo

 Lettuce: 

Lettuce markets are slowly coming down. Huron is almost finished with production. Salinas will have moderate availability this week. Yuma had late plantings, but the crop is nearing its end due to warm temperatures in this region. Escalated pricing continues on value-added items. Light weights, puffiness, and misshapen heads are being reported. Quality is fair. 

Leaf: 

– Romaine markets are steady. Huron will likely finish this week. Escalated pricing continues on value-added items. Some common defects being reported include tip and fringe burn, blistering, and peeling. Quality is fair to good. 

– Romaine Heart markets are slightly coming off. Huron will likely finish this week. Escalated pricing continues on value-added items. Some common defects being reported include tip and fringe burn, blistering, and peeling. Quality is fair to good. 

– Green and Red Leaf markets are steady on Green Leaf, but active on Red Leaf. Huron will likely finish this week. Escalated pricing continues on value-added items. Some common defects being reported include tip and fringe burn, blistering, and peeling. Quality is fair to good. 

Lettuce Tender Leaf: 

– Italian Parsley, Cilantro, and Arugula all remain tight. The product in Salinas continues to be behind schedule. This is due to the heavy rains they had last month. The product is slowly sizing up and the weights are not to spec. They hope growth improves as the weather warms up slightly in the next weeks in the Salinas Valley. Quality is fair at best. 

– Spring Mix and Spinach are in good supply. Quality is fair to good. 

Broccoli: 

Broccoli markets are coming off. Supplies in Santa Maria and Mexico are steady. Quality is good. 

Cauliflower: 

Markets are coming off, but supplies including florets continue to be tight as production in Salinas has started. Supplies have slowly improved with the warmer weather. Quality is fair. 

Carrots: 

– Cello and Loose markets are steady. Quality is good. 

– Value-add Snack Carrots are steady. Quality is good. 

Celery: 

Celery markets are active and sold out. Oxnard & Santa Maria production will be moderate this week and next week is expected to be very light. There have been reports of defects such as pith and seeder. Expect this market to strengthen over the next few weeks. Quality is fair to good. 

Strawberries & Bush Berries: 

– Strawberry markets are steady. The Mother’s Day pull has begun and unlike in recent years, we are experiencing good availability. Quality is good. 

– Raspberry markets are still active. This item remains tight coming out of Central Mexico. Central California production is not expected to begin for a few more weeks. Raspberries need summer heat to mature and so far, they have not seen much of that. Quality is fair to good. 

– Blueberries markets are steady. Quality is good. 

– Blackberries markets are still active, but steady. There are a few more blackberries coming into the market out of Baja Mexico and Central Coast California. Shippers expect numbers to slowly increase once the weather warms up. Quality is fair. 

Potatoes: 

The potato market is strong and starting to tighten up. 40ct through 80ct are becoming very tight. Quality is fair to good. 

Onions: 

The onion market is very unstable. Heavy rains in most growing areas are causing pricing to fluctuate day by day. Overall quality is good. 

Cucumbers: 

– Cucumber market is steady. Quality is good. 

– Euro cucumbers markets are steady at the bottom. Quality is good. 

Peppers: 

– Green bells markets are steady but we are finishing up the final picks so quality is diminishing. Quality is fair to good. 

– Red Pepper markets are steady. Quality is good. 

Herbs: 

– Basil: We are still seeing minor quality issues. Overall, quality is fair to good. 

Citrus 

– Orange markets are up and tight on small fruit with significantly less volume. Val’s have started, but volume is very light. Quality is good. 

– Lemon markets are up. Small fruit is tight due to the past rain increasing fruit size. Markets continue to climb higher each week. Quality is good. 

– Limes market continues to soften. Overall quality is good. 

Grapes 

Grapes are limited, and will be for the balance of import season. Mexican grapes are late and will start end of May, ramping up in June. 

Tomatoes: 

The tomato market continues to be steady on most items. Supplies are coming from Florida and Mexico. Baja has started and will be in better production in about 2 weeks. Quality is good on all tomatoes. 

Cabbage: 

– Green Cartons: Markets are rising as Canadian product becomes scarce. Quality has been good. 

– Red Cartons: Markets are rising as Canadian product becomes scarce. Quality has been good. 

– Bagged Cabbage: Markets are rising as Canadian product becomes scarce. Quality is good. 

Market Alerts: 

The items listed below are being prorated by Shippers. 

1.) Snipped beans 

2.) Red grapes 

3.) watermelons