With Florida spring vegetable shipments to peak later this month, Florida blueberry shipments are already there.
Florida’s blueberry harvest is in full swing and state officials estimate acreage at 5,200 and production near 20 million pounds.
Blueberries grow throughout the state of Florida, primarily from Hendry County in the south to Alachua and Putnam counties in the north, Doug Phillips, University of Florida’s blueberry extension coordinator, said in a news release. “There are some rabbit eye blueberries grown in the Florida Panhandle, mostly on smaller farms with U-pick operations,” he said. “Most blueberries grow in central Florida, although there is significant acreage in both the north-central and south-central regions.”
Florida has the first U.S.-produced blueberries to reach the domestic market in early spring. Harvest generally begins in March in the south-central and central regions and continues through early May, when market prices decline. Phillips said the state’s market window is when prices are typically the highest, which is an advantage for Florida growers. The state ranks eighth in the U.S. in terms of utilized blueberry production.
“We are not very large, but we do produce the first fresh fruit of the country and that makes us very relevant,” Phillips said.
Consumers are more concerned about inflation than COVID-19 these days, according to the monthly primary shopper survey series by IRI in partnership with Anne-Marie Roerink, president of 210 Analytics.
“In January, 38% of the population were extremely concerned over COVID-19, which was down sharply from 66% in April 2020,” Jonna Parker, team lead for IRI Fresh, said in a news release. “Shoppers are very aware of food inflation (89%) and the vast majority (95%) worry about it.
“In total, 42% of shoppers are extremely concerned about the price increases they are seeing across the store — which means food inflation has more people on high alert than COVID-19 as of January 2022,” Parker said.
Like the inflated prices of products overall, fresh produce prices are also higher than last year.
The combined effect of concerns over COVID-19, inflation and supply chain challenges explains why shopper demand remains in flux as we enter the third pandemic year, Roerink said. In 2022, IRI, 210 Analytics and the International Fresh Produce Association continue to team up to document the dynamic marketplace’s impact on fresh produce sales.
The January survey showed several in-depth findings about fresh produce sales, volume, prices and shopper behavior.
In January 2022, the price per pound for total fresh produce increased by 9.0% over January 2021. The latest 52-week look is milder, at 7.1% increase, given the much milder inflation in the second quarter of 2021. Vegetable inflation is far below average, but fruit prices increased by nearly 14%.
“Consumers are aware and concerned about the inflation they are seeing,” Joe Watson, vice president of retail, foodservice and wholesale for the IFPA, said in the release. “And as a volume-driven business, the industry is concerned, as well, and doing everything in its power to get adequate supply to the stores and keeping prices down.”
The consumer price index increased 7.5% for the 12 months ending January 2022, the highest increase in 40 years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
IRI-measured price per unit for all food and beverages in multioutlet stores, including supermarkets, club, mass, supercenter, drug, military and other retail food stores, also shows that prices continued to rise over and above their elevated 2020 and 2021 levels.
Perishables, including produce, seafood, meat, bakery and deli, had the highest year-over-year sales growth in 2021, at +6.2% out of all food and beverages. However, fresh produce sales gains were below average, at +4.4%. Frozen foods had the highest increase versus 2020, at +26.0%.
From a dollar sales perspective, January 2022 was another great month for fresh produce, surpassing the records set in 2020 and 2021.
However, dollar gains were inflation-boosted while units and volume sales declined year on year.
“The risk in the current levels of inflation is volume pressure,” Watson said in the release. “At the same time, it is hard to measure the effect of supply chain disruption, several winter storms affecting the Northeast and the impact of frozen and canned purchases on fresh produce sales. In all, January 2022 sales still tracked ahead of January 2020, which was not yet affected by the pandemic purchase patterns.”
Each of the five January weeks generated $1.3 billion or more for the fresh produce department, with the week ending January 16 being the biggest, at $1.43 billion. While year-on-year dollar sales were higher each week, volume sales were down. Year-on-year decreases varied from -1.7% the week ending January 16th to -6.2% the first week of the year.
“Our monthly shopper surveys are finding that consumers are hyperaware of inflation and are trying to mitigate the increases as much as possible,” Parker said in the release. “And that is exactly what we are seeing in recent trip baskets. On average, people are spending roughly the same amount of money per trip, but they have many fewer items in their baskets.
“Saving by buying less is typically one of the later money-saving measures during periods of high inflation, but with the lack of promotions and already cooking a lot more at home, consumers are drawing on the lessons they learned and fine-turned during the Great Recession,” she said. “For many, that means buying less quantity and we are seeing that very clearly in fresh produce.”
January 2022 gains were down from the fourth quarter growth numbers across the board. Year on year, vegetables dropped into the negative.
Despite above-average inflation for fresh produce, its share of dollars remained below average in January 2022. Shelf-stable fruits had a very strong January, with year-on-year sales gains of 7.5%. Both frozen and shelf-stable are heavily impacted by supply chain disruptions and assortment, and inventory levels have been down significantly over recent months.
January Fresh Fruit Sales
“On the fruit side, all top 10 sellers gained versus a year ago with the exception of bananas,” Parker said in the release.
In a change from 2021’s reporting methods, this year’s reports will show the increase in dollars and the increase in volume versus a year ago.
“The difference between the two percentages is a close match for inflation on a per-pound basis, though lower promotional levels also play into higher dollar gains,” she said.
For instance, while January 2022 avocado dollar sales were up 13.3%, pound sales were down 12.4%, which would translate into inflation of about 26% on a per-pound basis, Parker said. In looking at the actual numbers, the average price per pound for avocados in January 2022 was up 29.4% versus a year ago, while promotional levels were down by 15.4%.
“This new reporting will help provide a better look at the effects of inflation, plus less promoting, on the dollar performance,” she said.
January Fresh Vegetables Sales
“The top 10 sellers on the vegetable side had a mixed performance in terms of dollar sales growth but has been very consistent in makeup,” Watson said in the release. “Tomatoes, potatoes and packaged salads have been the top three sellers for many months running. The importance of salads is further underscored by lettuce sales, in fourth place.”
Carrots had the strongest volume growth performance, pulling even with year-ago levels.
What’s next?
The marketplace disruption caused by inflation, supply chain challenges and COVID-19 is not showing signs of letting up any time soon, the report shows.
Shoppers are reacting several ways:
At 82.4%, the at-home share of all meals reached its highest level in a year, which favors spending at food retail;
At the same time, the inflationary levels in retail have two-thirds of shoppers looking for one or more money-saving measures. Inflation will likely continue to drive dollar gains for most categories in the foreseeable future but is pressuring unit and volume sales;
For the first time since the onset of the pandemic, a greater share of shoppers (29%) feel their financial situation a year from now will be worse versus better (23%). About half, 48%, think it will be unchanged. This outlook may prompt a greater focus on money-saving measures beyond the current marketplace behaviors alone; and
Continued rising inflation and shortages are driving stock-up behaviors among 42% of shoppers. While 58% do not buy more than they need, 14% stocked up on one or more items out of concerns for continued price increases and 19% stocked up out of fear that the item will be out of stock next time.
Griff Lynch, Georgia Ports Authority’s (GPA) executive director has unveiled plans to expand the port’s container capacity by 60 percent. The enhancements will bring the Port of Savannah’s annual capacity from 6 million twenty-foot equivalent container units to 9.5 million TEUs by 2025.
“Our expansion is being matched by incredible growth in both warehouse space and workforce,” Lynch said. “The public and private investment that we’re seeing, as well as the number of people being drawn to the business, make Savannah the hottest market in the country for transportation and logistics.”
Projects now under way will add 1.7 million TEUs of annual capacity in four months. GPA’s Peak Capacity project has already added 400,000 TEUs in container handling space to the Garden City Terminal and will make room for another 820,000 TEUs by June. In the same month, a new container yard just upriver will add another 500,000 TEUs of capacity. Separately, the Garden City Terminal West project will add up to 1 million TEUs in phases by 2024.
“GPA’s role facilitating commerce – even in difficult times – is key to Georgia’s long-term economic success, and I am proud of the can-do spirit that sets our ports apart from the rest of the nation,” said Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. “The Ports of Savannah and Brunswick together play a major role in positioning Georgia as the go-to state for economic development, and I am thankful for all the hardworking men and women who have hunkered down to move Georgia forward over the past year.”
During Lynch’s presentation, he showed how Savannah has become a national leader in supply chain solutions and effectively eliminated its backlog, while accommodating 18 consecutive months of growth. In Calendar Year 2021 alone, the GPA moved a record 5.6 million TEUs, for an unprecedented expansion of nearly a million TEUs, or 20 percent, compared to 2020.
In his comments before a capacity crowd, Lynch addressed a series of key logistics solutions, including the role six pop-up container yards – which add 500,000 TEUs of annual container space – are playing as a supply chain relief valve. He also spoke to the nation’s trucker shortage, and how Savannah has reversed that trend by registering 80 new drivers a week to serve Garden City Terminal, or a total of 1,200 new drivers and 370 new trucking companies just since November. Lynch also detailed GPA’s workforce development effort, the YES+ program. Now, in addition to hiring new high school graduates to work in maintenance and container operations, GPA has broadened the program to include career opportunities for young workers in other departments.
“Higher demand for our services is the reason we have expedited major expansions at the Port of Savannah,” said GPA Board Chairman Joel Wooten. “Georgia’s growing manufacturing, distribution and retail sectors will mean additional cargo through the Port of Savannah, driving the need for increased container handling capacity.”
The Savannah market added 6.5 million square feet of industrial space in 2021, for a total of 84 million, according to Colliers International. Savannah led the nation in terms of net absorption of overall inventory, so the vacancy rate remains at 2.3 percent. Another 17 million square feet are now under construction, lifting the market beyond 100 million square feet to better accommodate heightened cargo volumes.
Lynch thanked the 1,200 guests for coming to the first live State of the Port since 2019, and congratulated them on persevering through the previous, challenging year. The unprecedented level of trade crossing GPA’s docks is expected to continue well into 2022, Lynch said.
To ensure Savannah’s ability to handle these volumes, GPA is super-sizing its Berth 1, increasing on-dock capacity by 25 percent. In the spring of 2023, the expanded berth will allow Savannah to simultaneously serve four 16,000-TEU vessels as well as three additional ships. The renovations will add an estimated 1.5 million TEUs per year of berth capacity.
Another game changer for the GPA is the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project, which will come online in March. The deeper river channel will allow 16,000+ TEU vessels to take on heavier loads and transit the river with greater scheduling flexibility.
“This project has been more than 20 years in the making,” Lynch said. “Through it all, there has been strong support across several administrations, from the General Assembly and our congressional delegation. A special debt of gratitude goes to the late Senator Johnny Isakson, who shepherded our harbor deepening efforts through the federal process.”
Shipments of Chilean table grapes and other fruits do not have sufficient coverage from shipping lines to reach the United States market at the height of its growing season.
According to a statement from the Chilean fruit growers association Fedefruta, a lack of cargo space for fresh fruit in the Valparaiso port is generating the problem.
Fedefruta president Jorge Valenzuela said that growers are asking that “for these two weeks they give us space with cold storage that can operate with greater frequency”. The timeframe is particularly tight since “we are looking at the last shipments before the marketing order takes effect in the United States”.
The scenario is affecting table grapes to the greatest extent, as they are subject to market controls in April, and also when the industry is harvesting at its highest level.
“We are talking about a very perishable product, and this dictates the timeframe for when it is harvested, packed and transported. We thought that the fruit would have shipping priority in these weeks of the year:, Valenzuela added.
He also called on the port operators, TPS and TPV, to make greater commitments in future seasons to offer conditions that allow the industry to return to the full shipping capacity required to export this crop.
While table grapes have the biggest impact, stone fruit and the last of blueberry shipments from the central growing regions are also impacted. Valenzuela said that the weekly shipping frequency is about half of what it used to be, which “is having an important affect on most table grape growers that depend on these weeks to get their product to the North American market”.
The statement clarified that this issue is independent from delays in arriving to the market, which have also led to problems in meeting commitments with the supply chain to the north.
He also said that there must be an understanding that fruit must ship in a certain timeframe, despite that the ports are under high pressure to receive imported goods and products which are exported year round.
Texas onion shipments are underway with spring underway, just in time as Northwest storage onions are running low on supplies.
In fact Northwest storage shipments are expected to finish the season sooner than normal. Washington state onion loadings should be finished in early April, instead of lasting through May.
Texas yellow onions are in good supply, along with red onions from the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
Idaho/Oregon onion shipments will continue into April, although some suppliers have completed their season. Stocks typically ship into May.
California onions will be available from the Imperial Valley beginning the week of April 18.
New Mexico onion shipments will open in early June.
Keystone Fruit Marketing based in Greencastle, PA. will start Vidalia onions April 12th and Walla Walla, WA onions in June.
Texas and Mexican onions – grossing about $5000 to Chicago.
Peru is now the world’s third largest exporter of ginger, according to the Center for Research on Global Economy and Business of the Association of Exporters (Cian-Adex).
In 2020 China was the world’s leading exporter of ginger with $718.5 million, accounting for 52.9 percent of the total. China was followed by the Netherlands with $155.6 million and Peru with $105.6 million, as reported by Andina.
Peru mainly exports fresh ginger (91.9 percent) followed by dehydrated ginger (3.8 percent), juice (3.6 percent), and powdered ginger (.7 percent). Exports of puree, candied ginger, and infusions jointly represented .03 percent.
In 2020, organic exports grew 206.4 percent and conventional 102.5 percent. From January to November 2021, shipments of Peruvian ginger totaled $81.2 million, 13.4 percent lower when compared to the same time period in 2020.
The ginger produced in Peru reached 42 nations, led by the U.S. with $39.1 million, representing 48 percent.
The U.S. was the world’s leading importer of ginger with $173.4 million (12.2 percent of the total), followed by the Netherlands with $150.2 million (10.5 percent), and Japan with $106.8 million (7.5 percent).
Murrieta, CA – With California avocado season officially underway, West Pak Avocado, a California-based avocado supplier, saw record volume in February.
“Between a later big game this year and the week-long hiccup in supply from Mexico, California fruit saw a record 10.2 percent market share in February,” said Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing Doug Meyer. “At this point, over 10 percent of the California fruit for the season has been harvested, which is typically only a few percent by the end of February.”
Early preseason forecasts by the California Avocado Commission (CAC) project a 15 percent increase in volume over 2021 with a 306-million-pound crop in 2022, with the Hass variety making up the majority of the harvest. Most of the California avocado season volume is expected to occur from mid-April through mid-July, with the season winding down during the months of August, September, and October.
West Pak is looking to have a good variety of sizes by mid to late April, which is when the company typically sees the first major uptick in harvest volume of locally-grown avocados in preparation for Cinco de Mayo (May5th).
For 2021, the Hass Avocado Board lists the volume of California avocados at nearly 251.6 million pounds, which is just under 9 percent of the almost 3 billion pounds total incoming volume of avocados arriving in the U.S. market from all suppliers.
California has nearly 3,000 commercial avocado growers and according to Rabo Research, per capita consumption of avocados in the U.S. currently stands at 9 pounds but could surpass 11 pounds by 2026.
West Pak Avocado is a family owned and operated company that has been growing, packing, shipping, and distributing premium avocados for nearly 40 years.
Fresh produce prices are up, and the majority of consumers are concerned about the rising cost of their food and beverage bill, including fruits and vegetables.
That’s according to the March 2022 fresh produce report titled “Inflation Remained the Big Story for Fresh Produce in February 2022,” from IRI and 210 Analytics.
The report, covering the four weeks ending Feb. 27, shows that, while dollar sales are “looking good,” the “volume pressure is real,” 210 Analytics President Anne-Marie Roerink told The Packer in an email. “Combined fruit/vegetable inflation is now trending in the double digits with no signs of slowing down any time soon.”
Measuring multi-outlet stores in the U.S., including supermarkets, club, mass, supercenter, drug, military and other retail food stores in February, market research company IRI found continued grocery price inflation over and above the elevated 2020 and 2021 levels. In February 2022, the average price per unit across all foods and beverages was up 10.3% versus the same weeks in 2021, and up 16.8% versus February 2020.
“In our February IRI shopper survey, we found that 90% of shoppers have noticed the price increases across the various grocery departments and a whopping 96% of those consumers are concerned about it,” Jonna Parker, team lead for IRI, said in the report. “In response, 75% of consumers have already made one or more changes to their grocery shopping, up considerably from 64% in January 2022.”
Fresh produce prices are elevated over last year and at a slightly higher rate than total food and beverages, reported Roerink, noting that in February 2022, the price per pound for total fresh produce increased by 10.9% over February 2021. “The latest 52-week look was lower, at 7.6%, given the much milder inflation in the second quarter of 2021,” she reported.
While fruit inflation reached its highest level yet (up 16.1%) in February, fresh vegetable inflation was far below average (up 6.2%), according to IRI data.
“Fresh produce inflation reached double digits and consumers’ concern over these kinds of price increases is shared by the industry,” said Joe Watson, vice president of retail, foodservice and wholesale for the International Fresh Produce Association. “Consumers are focused on finding good prices and promotions and minimizing waste at home, which puts great emphasis on freshness and shelf life in the store. At the same time, consumers balance their spending across canned, frozen and fresh purchases, and many simply buy less to stick to their budgets. Many of the measures pressure volume sales.”
Fresh produce sales reached $5.6 billion in February 2022, and while this figure surpasses the record set in 2021, dollar gains were inflation-boosted and units and volume sales declined year on year, reported Roerink.
“We certainly have to acknowledge that big price increases tend to pressure volume sales,” said Watson. “But it is also important to note that it is hard to measure the effect of supply chain disruption: we cannot sell what we do not have. Out-of-stocks have been a severe problem for departments across the store since the start of the pandemic and fresh produce has also been affected by the labor, transportation and other supply chain issues. Actively communicating and providing recommendations for alternatives are important best practices in case of out-of-stocks.”
A deeper dive into dollar versus volume sales shows that fresh produce pound sales trailed behind year-ago levels all throughout 2021, according to the report. “In January 2022, pound growth dropped to its lowest level since the second quarter of 2021, and the performance worsened in February,” noted Roerink. “While dollars increased by 4.6%, volume dropped by 5.7%, creating a 10.3 percentage point gap between volume and dollars due to inflation, as well as lower levels of promoting.”
A look at the top 10 fresh produce items in terms of dollar gains further reveals rising inflationary pressure.
“The top 10 in absolute dollar gains showed that smaller sellers, limes and mixed fruit, can still be big contributors to department growth,” said Parker. “But more than anything, it shows the impact of inflation. With the exception of mixed fruit and salad kits, all top 10 growth areas had double-digit inflation, led by much higher prices year over year for limes and avocados.
“Meanwhile, salad kits continue to be strong sellers, and I think at-home lunch is an important part of that,” Parker continued. “We still have a lot more people working from home today than we did pre-pandemic and our February survey showed that salads are among the top five things people make for lunch when at home.”
On the Saturday before Super Bowl Sunday, avocado imports from Mexico into America were put to a complete halt after threatening messages were sent to a United States plant safety inspector’s official phone.
The avocado industry is another victim of the turf battle between the cartels in the western parts of Michoacán and will put a strain on avocado imports into the United States for the foreseeable future. The U.S. health inspector was carrying out inspections in Michoacán when the threat was received, but luckily for consumers, it was the day before the Super Bowl so all shipments of avocados for Super Bowl parties and restaurants were already shipped and weren’t affected.
Avocados are considered “green gold” in Mexico, as it is a multibillion-dollar business and the industry even broke records in 2020 to become the world’s largest producer of “green gold.”Unfortunately, however, as the growth continues to rise, so does the threats from the nine identified cartels operating in the area.
In response to the issues going on with cartels, farmers have been starting to arm themselves and establish self-defense groups to combat this to the reluctance of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. This violence and issues in Michoacán will hopefully subside sooner than later.
The U.S. responded to the threatening messages by putting more security measures in place for inspectors. On February 18, 2022, it was announced that the inspection of avocados in Michoacán would resume. The rapid response to the threat shows the importance of a working supply chain between Mexico and the U.S.
It would have been hard to fill the large gap left by the lack of avocados coming from Mexico. Mexico provides around 80% of avocados consumed in the U.S. and a longer ban would have drastically impacted the supply of avocados in the U.S. With the resumption of imports, consumers do not have to worry about a shortage or price hikes and can continue to enjoy avocados.
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Brandon Demack has been with the Allen Lund Company since July 2011. He first started in the Dallas office and in March of 2019 he transferred to the McAllen office becoming the operations manager of produce. Demack attended the University of North Texas with a Bachelor of Science in Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
Mas Melons and Grapes of Rio Rico, AZ has spring shipments of honeydew, seedless watermelon, orange candy melons and hard squash. The company also ships a broad variety of table grapes, including early sweets, sweet celebrations, sweet globes, Ivory, perlette, sugraone, flame and some other new late reds.
The fruit and vegetable shipper has over 25 years of experience in the industry and its core items are melons and grapes. This also will be the first time for handling spring hard squash.
Mas has just wrapped up its winter season and is transitioning to northern Mexico for the start of its busy season in early April. This is when the company offers all of its commodities.
The shipper’s seedless watermelon and table grape programs will be in peak volume following ideal growing conditions last winter. It will be loading trucks with both cartons and bins of seedless watermelon and a whole lineup of table grapes through spring and summer. Honeydew and orange candy melons should have supply until early July.
