A further table grape cut is predicted by Chile’s fruit export association Asoex,, following heavy and unseasonal rains earlier this year.
Asoex President Ronald Bown Fernández, in a third estimate for the 2020-21 season, points out the forecast is now for 64.6 million boxes (8.2 kilo-equivalent).
The figure would mark a 12 percent decline from last, off from the 10 percent decline announced in late February – and a 22 percent drop from the season’s original January estimate of 82 million boxes.
He added that this third forecast of table grape exports for this season “is the best estimate that can be made to date. We hope that, as time goes by, this projection will not decrease”.
Bown also noted that this third estimate corresponds to information provided by 38 companies, which together represent 59% of the volume exported last season (2019-2020).
He said that the main decreases in Chile are being seen in white varieties. It is expected that 14.2 million boxes of green grapes will be exported, 5.7 million boxes of black grapes, 28.8 million boxes of red grapes, and 16.2 million boxes of Red Globes.
A seven percent increase in container volumes in 2020 at the Port of Philadelphia (PhilaPort) has resulted in making it the fastest-growing container port on the U.S. East Coast.
These cargo levels follow a decade-long trend for the port which has seen 10 percent compound annual growth.
Despite the shipping challenges due to COVID-19, PhilaPort has apparently done well. While the pandemic has created difficulties for global supply chains, some sectors such as perishables, have risen due to a demand for fresh, non-processed foods.
PhilaPort expressed particular pride in its cold supply chain expertise for all types of perishable cargo products including grapes, bananas, pineapples, mangos, plantains, blueberries, and asparagus, among others.
For breakbulk alone, PhilaPort terminals handled 928,000 tons. Containerized forest products were estimated to be 20,000 units.
April is typically the biggest month of the year for Florida vegetable shipments. We’re on the down side of March and volumes are building toward peak loadings. Here’s a glance at what’s happening in the Sunshine State, keeping in mind most hauls involve multiple pickups and drops.
In St. Johns County, just south of Jacksonville cabbage loadings are in full swing. The University of Florida Institute for Food and Agriculture reports some cabbage growers are doing better than others, but overall it is good.
Barnes Farms of Hastings, FL is one of the largest cabbage growers along the Eastern Seaboard, and works with several growers producing cabbage, including green, red, bok choy and Napa. Asian types of cabbage have really expanded in St. Johns County, with about 5,000 acres of Asian vegetable varieties such as bitter melon and luffa, also called Chinese okra.
Northeastern Florida potato growers started planting in January but have struggled, with a few severe thunderstorms delaying the season. About 35% of the potatoes go to the fresh market, and the rest is for chips,
Hollar and Greene Produce Co. of Boone, NC has expanded its cabbage operation this year from 1,000 acres to 1,419 at its farm just south of Hastings, in Bunnell, FL, which is still considered northeast Florida.
Cabbage is typically available in Florida from December to May,
In Central Florida closer to the west coast, early March was peak season for the 1,700 acres of strawberries at Astin Farms and the Astin Strawberry Exchange in Plant City and Wimauma, FL. Strawberry shipments normally get underway aroundcrop the end of November, lasting through early April. Overall volume may be a bit lower this year due to the slightly slower start of the season.
Astin Farms is gearing up for blueberry season, which it will begin shipping in the coming weeks.
Alderman Farms of Boynton Beach, FL is based near the east coast with other locations throughout south and central Florida. The company grows tomatoes, kale, collards, chard, sweet corn, bell peppers, eggplant, yellow straight neck squash, zucchini and cucumbers.
Alderman ships to a lot to the Northeast, Chicago and with fewer loads headed to other parts of the Midwest. Customers include major retailers such as Publix.
Tomatoes — round slicers, grape and roma — are the biggest crop for Alderman Farms. Tomato shipments started in mid-October and should continue into May. The greens follow a similar timeline.
Alderman lost three or four plantings of sweet corn in Belle Glade in Palm Beach County because of a freeze in February. The operation experience a lot of damage to vegetables, but has since returned heavy volume.
Southwest Florida’s university extension service for Hendry, Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties, reports the region’s tomato growers should continue shipping through April or early May. Many of the growers also have additional farms in Central Florida to continue harvesting after that.
Southwest Florida snap beans loading start at the end of October and last until the beginning of May. The major counties for snap, or green beans are Hendry, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade.
The USDA reports of the state’s 27,823 acres of snap beans harvested in 2017, over 23% came from Collier and Hendry counties and 51% came from Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties. Immokalee’s earliest shipments will begin in mid- to late March for the spring crop, and it lasts about a month or so. There’ also is a fall crop.
Watermelon shipments also begin in March from that region.
Central and Southern Florida veggies – grossing about $3700 to New York City.
GAINESVILLE, GA – Tribe Transportation is expanding its fleet with 111 new 53-foot trailers equipped with Carrier Transicold X4™ 7500 refrigeration units to help it meet demand in the fast-growing life sciences sector, which includes the transport of pharmaceutical products. Carrier Transicold is a part of Carrier Global Corporation (NYSE: CARR), a leading global provider of healthy, safe and sustainable building and cold chain solutions.
The acquisition includes Carrier Transicold TRU-Mount solar panels, which help to maintain the charge of the refrigeration unit batteries. Additionally, Tribe acquired 100 Carrier Transicold ComfortPro® diesel auxiliary power units (APUs) to help maintain cab climate control for its drivers.
“The new refrigeration units, with their high capacities, precise temperature control and proven reliability, are helping us to meet the exacting needs of our pharmaceutical and life sciences customers,” said Todd Gooch, Vice President of Transportation for the Gainesville, Georgia-based fleet.
Native American woman-owned Tribe Transportation is one of the fastest-growing minority carriers in North America. Now in its 16th year of operation, the fleet has more than 400 tractors and nearly 900 trailers, serving the refrigerated and deep-frozen freight needs of its expanding customer base.
“We haul everything from candy and produce to ice cream and cryogenic pharmaceutical products, and that unit serves us best over a wide array of customers,” Gooch said about the X4 7500 model, Carrier Transicold’s highest capacity trailer refrigeration unit.
For temperature monitoring and asset tracking, Tribe’s trailers are equipped with telematics devices powered by the refrigeration units’ batteries. Carrier Transicold’s high-performance TRU-Mount solar charging system supplements battery charging, helping to keep all trailers visible through Tribe’s telematics system. “That’s a big plus for us,” Gooch explained, noting that in a drop-type environment where a trailer may be parked without the refrigeration unit running, the battery could lose its charge without the support of the solar panel. Tribe considers the panel’s secure mounting to the top of the refrigeration unit an advantage because it stays with the unit if it is relocated to another trailer.
The fully featured ComfortPro diesel APUs provide air conditioning, heating, cab power, engine warming, and truck battery monitoring and charging. In addition to reducing engine wear and fuel consumption, the APUs improve comfort, which helps with driver retention.
“The APUs are rock solid and the drivers love them,” Gooch said, adding that Tribe’s commitment to the Carrier Transicold brand extends beyond the local dealership, MHC Carrier Transicold, to the entire Carrier Transicold dealer network, which provides service support to the fleet throughout the contiguous United States and Canada.
“Tribe’s fleet expansion moves the cold chain forward to help ensure that medicines reach the people who need them,” said Bill Maddox, Senior Manager, Product Management, Carrier Transicold. “We are pleased to support this effort, at a time when it matters most.”
South Texas onion yields have been reduced thanks to a mid-February freeze, as loadings are getting underway.
Various growers will start harvest mid- to late March. Texas 1015 sweet onions are available from the Rio Grande Valley from March through June, and from the Uvalde/Winter Garden area from May to July.
In recent years, 60% to 70% of Texas spring onions have been sweet and yellow onion varieties, with the remainder 30% to 40% white and red onion varieties.
The Texas International Produce Association of Mission, TX reports onions withstood the February cold much better than citrus and leafy greens.
Texas onions are traditionally harvested the first of March, but the cold weather very well could delay harvest until at least mid-March.
The Onion House LLC, Weslaco, TX expects to start harvesting around about March 25 and notes this year their crop is very late.
The company observes onion crop damage from the mid-February freeze could range from 25% to 40%.
Onion acreage for The Onion House is down around 20%, with total south Texas onion acreage at less than 4,000 acres.
Shipments of Texas onions in 2020 totaled 6.05 million packages, up from 4.99 million packages in 2019 and also higher than the 5.71 million packaged shipped in 2018.
The South Texas Onion Committee of Mission, TX in February, reported onion acreage in the 35 counties making up the regulated marketing order area was about 5,000 acres, off from about 6,000 acres last year.
Industry leaders have estimated yield damage of 15% to 30% to south Texas onions due to the mid-February freeze.
Eating avocado as part of your daily diet can help improve gastrointestinal system health, a new study from the University of Illinois, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences shows.
It is well known that avocados are a healthy food that is high in dietary fiber and monounsaturated fat, which is a heart-healthy fat. However, it was unclear how avocados impact the microbes in the gut.
Researchers found that people who ate avocado every day as part of a meal had a greater abundance of gut microbes that break down fiber and produce metabolites that support gut health. They also had greater microbial diversity compared to people who did not receive the avocado meals in the study, according to the paper.
Avocado is an energy-dense food, but it is also nutrient-dense, and it contains important micronutrients that Americans don’t eat enough of, like potassium and fiber.
“We know eating avocados helps you feel full and reduces blood cholesterol concentration, but we did not know how it influences the gut microbes, and the metabolites the microbes produce,” said Sharon Thompson, a graduate student in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at U of I. “Microbial metabolites are compounds the microbes produce that influence health,” Thompson said.
“Avocado consumption reduced bile acids and increased short-chain fatty acids. These changes correlate with beneficial health outcomes.” While other research on avocado consumption has focused on weight loss, participants in this study were not advised to restrict or change what they ate. Instead, they consumed their normal diets with the exception of replacing one meal per day with the meal the researchers provided.
The purpose of the study was to explore the effects of avocado consumption on the gastrointestinal microbiota, said Hannah Holscher, assistant professor of nutrition in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at U of I. “Our goal was to test the hypothesis that the fats and the fiber in avocados positively affect the gut microbiota,” she said.
Soluble fiber content is important and a medium avocado provides around 12 grams of fiber, which goes a long way toward meeting the recommended amount of 28 to 34 grams of fiber per day. “Less than 5 percent of Americans eat enough fiber. Most people consume around 12 to 16 grams of fiber per day,” Holscher said. “We can’t break down dietary fibers, but certain gut microbes can. When we consume dietary fiber, it’s a win-win for gut microbes and us,” she said.
Consuming grapes protected against ultraviolet (UV) skin damage, according to a recent human study published in the Journal of the Academy of Dermatology.
The study, conducted at the University of Alabama, Birmingham and led by principal investigator Craig Elmets, M.D., investigated the impact of consuming whole grape powder – equivalent to 2.25 cups of grapes per day – for 14 days against photodamage from UV light.
Subjects’ skin response to UV light was measured before and after consuming grapes for two weeks by determining the threshold dose of UV radiation that induced visible reddening after 24 hours – the Minimal Erythema Dose (MED). Grape consumption was protective; more UV exposure was required to cause sunburn following grape consumption, with MED increasing on average by 74.8%.
Analysis of skin biopsies showed that the grape diet was associated with decreased DNA damage, fewer deaths of skin cells, and a reduction in inflammatory markers that if left unchecked, together can impair skin function and can potentially lead to skin cancer.
It is estimated that 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer by the age of 70.5 Most skin cancer cases are associated with exposure to UV radiation from the sun: about 90% of nonmelanoma skin cancers and 86% of melanomas, respectively. Additionally, an estimated 90% of skin aging is caused by the sun.
“We saw a significant photoprotective effect with grape consumption and we were able to identify molecular pathways by which that benefit occurs – through repair of DNA damage and downregulation of proinflammatory pathways,” said Dr. Elmets.
“Grapes may act as an edible sunscreen, offering an additional layer of protection in addition to topical sunscreen products.”
Another record-breaking year of exports is expected in 2021 as New Zealand kicks off its kiwifruit season.
Last year’s record of 157 million trays of export Green and Gold is expected to be topped, reports New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers Incorporated.
The Gold variety is usually picked first, followed by Green kiwifruit in late March. Harvest peaks in mid-April and runs through until June.
Following the Green and Gold kiwifruit, Zespri’s sweet, the berry-tinged tasting Red kiwifruit, which goes primarily to supermarkets in New Zealand, will be exported to some overseas markets this year.
New Zealand has some 2,800 growers who produce kiwifruit across more than 32,000 acres of orchards between Kerikeri in the north and Motueka in the south.
U.S. fruit imports into the U.S. for 2020 lost a decade of momentum, although there were gains for fresh citrus and frozen fruit, according to new USDA data.
Imports under the ‘Fruits and Preparations’ category – which includes all fresh, frozen and processed fruit – rose marginally to $19.9 billion in 2020 from $19.8 billion in 2019.
The minor increase comes in contrast to the impressive and steady annual growth the category has witnessed since 2010, when imports were registered at $10.4 billion.
The largest category, ‘Other Fresh Fruit’ – which includes avocados, bananas, and berries – held steady at $10.1 billion. Avocados dropped by 12 percent to $2.3 billion, bananas dropped by 2 percent to $1.9 billion, blueberries fell by 5 percent to $982 million, and strawberries declined by 2 percent to $819 million.
Deciduous fruit imports also remained flat at $2.2 billion. Table grapes rose by 4 percent to $1.7 billion, but apples fell by 18 percent to $110 million.
Meanwhile, fruit juices fell by 13 percent to $1.8 billion and processed fruit rose by 2 percent to $1.8 billion.
Citrus imports rose by 11 percent to $1.4 billion, driven mainly by growth in mandarins and to a lesser extent in oranges.
Frozen fruit rose by 26 percent to $1.1 billion, fresh melons fell by 12 percent to $607 million, while dried fruit rose by 10 percent to $520 million, and prepared fruit grew by 14 percent to $504 million.
Looking at the different supplying countries across the total fruit category, imports from Mexico and Chile both fell by 3 percent to $8.2 billion and $1.9 billion, respectively.
Peru was the biggest winner of the top five countries, with imports into the U.S. growing by 17 percent to $1.7 billion. Meanwhile, imports from Guatemala fell by 2 percent to $1.9 billion, while from Costa Rica they rose by 2 percent to $1.1 billion.
Volume with Mexican produce crossings at Nogales set a record in February and it should only increase in the coming weeks.
Ciruli Bros. of Rio Rico, AZ is shipping bell peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, some hot pepper varieties and tomatoes from the West Mexico growing region. The company says crossings at the border during February has set a record for volume.
The shipper also has launched its Champagne mango program a little earlier this year from Oaxaca, Chiapas and Michoacán. Volume is steady and the company hopes to keep this momentum for the next four months.
At MAS Melons & Grapes in Rio Rico, Ariz., it will continue with core items including several varieties of table grapes, honeydew melons, seedless watermelons.
The shipper also is increasing its volumes on soft squashes such as Italian, yellow and gray, as well as on cucumbers and hard squashes, mainly kabocha, butternut and spaghettis.
The company also is producing a new variety of melons it’s calling Orange Candy. The variety has bright yellow skin with light orange flesh.
Fresh Farms of Rio Rico, Ariz., is loading a wide array of dry vegetables, with increased volumes in varietal corn, green beans and watermelon.
The company will have increased volume of green and red grape varieties from the Jalisco growing region, which has been under development for several years. Jalisco grapes will enter the marketplace around Mid-March and ship to the end of April.
The early grapes are experiencing very strong demand from retailers. The early grapes from Mexico are especially well-timed this year, when Chile is expected to struggle with late season quality.
Grapes from the major production area in Sonora, Mexico, about 800 miles to the north of Jalisco, typically begin in early May. However, the Sonora harvest could be slightly later this year because of cooler weather there.
