Outlook — California citrus shipments will be down this season, while Chilean blueberries arriving in North America are expected to increase. We also take a peak at New York state produce shipments.
With a final shipment of California navels, the total was about 94 million cartons for the 2015-16 season, which was the second largest on record. The upcoming season is expected to be 10 to 15 percent less, amounting to about 84 million cartons.
The California navel orange crop as well as the specialty citrus – led by mandarin oranges – are coming along fine. Harvesting and shipping of navel oranges should be getting underway any day now, while mandarin shipments have already started. California continues to the leading shipper of fresh market citrus in the United States. While early shipping volumes for mandarins have been down a bit, the crop matures, the numbers are expected to increase.
San Joaquin Valley grapes and vegetables – grossing about $4100 to Chicago.
Chilean Blueberry Imports
The U.S. and Canada received 69 percent of the 91,500 metric tons of blueberries exported by Chile during the 2015-16 season. Light blueberry harvest began in August, with peak volume expected to begin at the end of November and continue until the first or second week of March.