September 12th, 2024 Market Report
Lettuce:
Lettuce markets are coming off. Weights are being reported around 39 to 45 pounds. Quality is good.
Leaf:
Romaine markets are coming off. Expect to see slight fringe burn. Quality is good.
Romaine Heart markets are coming off. Quality is good.
Green Leaf markets are coming off. Expect to see slight fringe burn. Quality is good.
Red Leaf markets are steady. Quality is good.
Lettuce Tender Leaf:
Arcadian, Arugula, Spring Mix, Italian Parsley, Spinach & Cilantro Expect to see yellowing and wilting. There is an AOG increase on all Cilantro value-added products. Quality is fair to good.
Broccoli:
Markets are steady. There is an AOG increase on all value-added products. Quality is fair to good.
Cauliflower:
Markets are coming off. Quality is good.
Carrots:
Cello markets are steady out West. Canada crop is in great shape with great quality. Costs are steady.
Loose market is steady on Mexican crossings with good quality. Canada market is steady. Quality has been very nice.
Value-add Snack Carrots are steady. Quality is good.
Celery:
California markets are slightly up while Canada markets are steady. Quality is good.
Strawberries & Bush Berries: Alert
Strawberry markets are coming off. Supplies are continuing to decline in the Watsonville and Salinas areas as their season winds down. Santa Maria is starting to increase production. Oxnard will start production in late September / early October. Quality is fair to good.
Raspberry markets are steady, but still limited. Most product is coming from the Baja region, with limited availability from California’s Central Coast and Central Mexico. Baja’s transition to new growing areas is causing a temporary gap in production. Quality is fair.
Blueberries markets are up and very active. We are still facing an industry-wide product shortage. The Pacific Northwest season has ended, and we are awaiting improved production from Peru. Central Mexico is expected to increase volumes by mid to late October. Currently, only small amounts of Peruvian fruit are being flown in, with offshore ocean containers expected to arrive at ports by mid-October. Quality is fair.
Blackberries markets have slightly come off, but are still limited with the bulk of production expected from Central Mexico to arrive in 3 to 4 weeks. Quality is fair.
Pineapples:
Market is steady on product from Costa Rica. Quality has been good on recent arrivals from Costa Rica.
Potatoes:
The Potato market is strong. Quality Has been good.
Onions:
The onion market is steady. Quality has been good.
Cucumbers:
Cucumber The market is steady/ strong with light volume on both selects and supers. Cooler weather especially in NY, Michigan and Canada are slowing things down. We are sourcing from New Jersey, Canada, and PA. Quality has been good on inbound.
Euro Cucumbers markets remain active and strong. Great quality and larger size cucumbers continue to bring a few dollars more.
Squash:
The green squash market is steady to higher with fair supplies in NJ and NY. Yellow squash steady with limited supplies of good quality squash. Cooler temperatures have also slowed the squash harvest. We will have a mix of New Jersey, New York and Canadian product for next week.
Eggplant:
Quality on New Jersey Eggplant has been better on recent arrivals. Market remains high with very light volume.
Peppers:
Green bell market is steady to higher on green pepper. Quality on inbound has been good. New Jersey, NY, and Canada all experiencing a drop in production due to the cooler weather.
Red Pepper markets are lower with supplies improving. Quality has been fair to good on recent inbounds.
Chile Pepper Jalapeno pepper market is steady on the lower end. Quality has been sharp on recent arrivals. New Jersey has good volume. Mexico has good supplies and the market is steady
Herbs:
Basil: quality is good.
Citrus:
- Orange Alert Markets out of California are very active and sold out. Shippers are only covering Contracts. There is a peak in fruit production for 72ct and larger; 88/113/138ct are extremely scarce and will remain so until the end of the Val season. Quality is good.
- Import Orange market remains high with vessels delayed. Product is very short. Quality has been good on both South African and Chilean fruit.
- Lemon Markets out of California are steady on sizes 115ct and larger. Markets on sizes 140ct and smaller are steady and extremely tight. Quality is good
- Imports are steady with good quality.
- Limes
- Supplies of quality limes continues to be limited. Mexico saw more wind and rain over the weekend as a storm system went through Veracruz area on the way up to the Gulf of Mexico. We continue to see lower inbound loads than normal for this time of year, and the market is expected to see a shortage for at least 1-2 more weeks. There also continues to be rain every day in the forecast for the next 2 weeks, which will not help any. With the lower amount of fruit coming in, as well as having to rerun and regrade every box coming in, we are seeing some shipping delays on orders. We are doing our best to minimize this but are currently prioritizing quality product for our customers. Stylar, skin break down, and oil spotting continues to be seen on inbound fruit and is being graded out as much as possible.
Grapes:
Markets are steady for both red and green grapes. Quality has been good on California fruit.
Tomatoes:
The market on round tomatoes is about steady with very light volume on the east coast. Light volume on Mexican crossings as well. Many East coast shippers are gapping. Romas out of the south and Mexico are up slightly. Grape tomatoes and cherries are steady with good quality out of Virginia.
Cabbage:
Green Cartons: Markets are steady to a few dollars higher on green cabbage. Canada, New York, Pa, and NJ all in production. Quality has been sharp on inbound.
Red Cartons: Markets are elevated with good demand. Quality is good.
Bagged Cabbage: We have bag cabbage in stock from NY and Canada. Market steady.
Market Alerts:
The items listed below are either being prorated or are in short supply.
1.) Yukon unclassified potatoes
2.) Specialty peppers
3.) Avocados
4.) Green Onions
5.) Oranges
6.) Tomatoes, Round
7.) Radishes
8.) Limes
9.) Snipped beans
10.) Blueberries, Raspberries, & Blackberries
11.) Cello Cucumbers
12.) Kirby cucumbers
13.) Asparagus