Georgia peach shipments enter the final weeks of the season, while Vidalia onions continue providing consistent, steady loads. In the Northwest pears, potatoes and onions are in light, but increasing volume.
Following a shipping in late July, Ft. Valley, GA area shippers are expecting a final season surge of peaches before loadings wind down around August 16-17. The first half of the season was off to a slow start until the middle of June, but it has ramped up and should continue for a couple more weeks. Total Georgia peach shipments this year are expected to be up about 25 percent from a year ago. Some shippers have already finished their season, but a couple of larger ones remain in operation.
Meanwhile, sweet onions from the Vidalia district continue to be shipped from storages, averaging about 250 truck loads per week.
Vidalia onion shipments – grossing about $3000 to New York City.
Northwest Pear Shipments
Northwest pear shipments, primarily from Washington state and Oregon should be very similar to the 2015-16 shipping season, with a 2 percent increase in volume being forecast. Growers in Washington and Oregon should produce about 18.7 million boxes of pears this season, The initial estimate was made last spring and a revised shipping estimated is expected soon. Harvest of bartletts and Starkrimson pears was beginning in late July, with winter pears expected to begin in mid-August.
However, apple shipments continue to have the heaviest volume, even though it is late in the season, with a few early varieties already kicking off the start of the 2016-17 shipping season. Rates to the East Coast may vary by as much $500 to a $1000. For example, recent rates to Atlanta have ranged from $4800 to $5800, although the majority of the shipments seem to going for the higher end of this range.
Potato and Onion Shipments
Northwest potato shipments and onion shipments for the new season are increasing in volume. In the Columbia Basin of Washington and the adjacent Umatilla Basin of Oregon potato loadings are expected to have a sharp increase as the old crop has finished and the 2016-17 is now the primary focus. This same area also has very light onion volume, but it will increasing in the weeks to come.