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I you have loaded produce at one of the border crossings in California, Arizona or Texas then odds are those loadings have included Mexican tomatoes. The tomato is big business.
A new study by the University of Arizona points out Mexican tomatoes crossing the U.S. border contributed an estimated $4.8 billion in total economic activity to the American economy in 2016.
Even though Mexican tomatoes are grown and harvested south of the U.S. border, it supports economic activity jobs and income in the U.S. through forward and backward links in the supply chain.
A hypothetical decrease in the supply of fresh tomatoes from Mexico made by suppliers found a decrease as small as 5 percent could have a negative impact on consumers well-being, ranging in to hundreds of millions (of dollars) per year. Researchers for the study considered U.S. wholesale activity, grocery activity, foodservice sales and transportation.
According to the study, the $4.8 billion in total sales was generated through:
- $1 billion in direct wholesale activity;
- $816 million in direct grocery retail activity;
- $145 million in direct foodservice activity;
- $30 million in in-bound shipments to Canada;
- $2.8 billion from indirect and induced economic multiplier effects.
The study found that U.S. imports of Mexican tomatoes in 2016 were valued at $1.9 billion, while Canada’s tomato imports from Mexico totaled $255 million.
About 9.4 million pounds of tomatoes arrived daily to the U.S. from Mexico in 2016, with 90 percent of those imports coming through Nogales, AZ: Pharr, TX and Otay Mesa, CA.
U.S. imports from Mexico in 2016 included 1.7 billion pounds of round tomatoes, 1.5 billion pounds of roma tomatoes, 167 million pounds of grape tomatoes and 61 million pounds of cherry tomatoes, according to the study.
Those imports added $4.8 billion in economic activity, supported nearly 33,000 full and part-time jobs earning $1.4 billion in employee compensation.
In total, $2.9 billion in U.S. gross domestic product was directly and indirectly supported by the value chain delivering imported fresh tomatoes from Mexico to Canada and to U.S. consumers through grocery retail and foodservice industries. This resulted in over $400 million in federal tax revenue and roughly $350 million in state and local tax revenues.
Pleasanton, Calif. — DeltaTrak® introduces the next generation FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger.
According to Frederick Wu, President and CEO of DeltaTrak, “The FlashLink Mini PDF has been upgraded to include our patented Shadow Log® feature which sets it apart from other brands. Shadow Log® means that temperature data is recorded even if a shipper forgets to start the unit, so receivers will always be able to download trip data when a load arrives.”
The reports also have a new look, including both F° and °C scales on one chart, making it user friendly for receivers worldwide. Reports are automatically generated when the logger is plugged into the USB port of a PC, tablet, or printer, where they can be saved and shared by email in PDF and CSV formats.
The FlashLink Mini PDF has a compact, single use design that incorporates a USB connector and on-board software, making it quick and easy to access data without special reading devices or installing software. One model can be used for all domestic and export trips up to 85 days, so shippers don’t have to stock multiple brands with various recording periods.
These accurate, reliable temperature recorders are ideal for compliance with Food Safety, HACCP, FSMA, and global regulations, to verify if products have been kept within their proper temperature range. Each unit comes mounted on a bright green shipping card, making it easy to locate when a shipment arrives. A peel-away barcode label with the logger serial number can be attached to shipping documents and scanned into the shipper’s ERP system for complete traceability.
The FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger is an essential tool to help shippers, third party logistics companies, importers and exporters ensure consumer safety and deliver high quality products that are safe to eat.
About DeltaTrak®
DeltaTrak® is a leading innovator of cold chain management, environmental monitoring and food safety solutions for the food, produce, life science, and chemical industries.
Eighty percent of the nation’s domestic citrus shipments originate from California and loadings this season look favorable despite more than a month of triple digit heat. Meanwhile, a look at apple shipments in the United States reveal a double digit drop in remaining volume compared to last season.
The state has a $3.3 billion industry with over 3,000 growers farming about 320,000 acres of citrus.
Technically, the California citrus season starts each year at the beginning of October with production and lemon shipments coming out of the Imperial County. The harvest then gradually moves north to the San Joaquin Valley for mandarins and navels. This year’s crop faced 34 consecutive of temperatures well above 100 degrees. This caused citrus trees to kind of shut down, which is expected to result in fruit with a lot more smaller sizes that a year ago. Still, the industry generally believes overall quality will be good. An upside of the hot weather should be better flavor.
California citrus – grossing about $7100 to New York City.
Apple Shipments
U.S. fresh apples remaining for the 2018-19 shipping season are down 14 percent compared to a year ago. The U.S. Apple Association reports as of November 1st there were 155.5 million cartons remaining in storages. The amount of apple shipments remaining are 11 percent less compared to the five-year average of 130.3 million cartons.
Total Honeycrisp fresh apples still in storage as of November 1st were 11.15 million cartons, up 6 percent from 10.56 million cartons last year and 58 percent higher than two years ago, when 7.06 million cartons of Honeycrisp were in storage.
At the same time, fresh market gala apples remaining in storage totaled 24.4 million cartons, down from 15 pecent at 28.6 million cartons last year and off 6 pecent from two years ago. Fresh market red delicious holdings were 27.6 million cartons on November 1, down 19 percent from 34.1 million cartons a year ago and 29 percent less than holdings of 39 million cartons two years ago.
A processing/packing facility is opening by Church Brothers Farms and its processing company, True Leaf Farms. It is located just across the U.S. border in Mexico to increase year-round supplies.
The plant, in San Luis Rio Colo., south of Yuma, Ariz., will be growing whole leaf lettuce, broccoli florets, iceless broccoli and green onions with an opening anticipated by the end of the year.
The plant, at almost 111,000 square feet, will handle vegetables grown in Mexico and the U.S.
“The new facility will allow us to produce during the summer months, where in the past we were limited to only green onions and other seasonal items,” the company said in a news release. “Now we will be sourcing from Mexico year-round to meet our U.S. customers’ growing needs.”
The facility, known as CB Mexico, will be Custom Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) certified, allowing trucks to enter the U.S. faster. CB Mexico is 29 miles south of Church Brothers’ two Yuma facilities.
Other U.S. companies with facilities in the area include Kenworth, Gulfstream and Honeywell.
Earth Blend
Agrocir, a Hermosillo, Sonora, has created a Nogales sales and distribution company. The vegetable grower has been in business since the mid-1960s. The new firm is EarthBlend LLC, which expects to handle almost 4 million cases of Mexican produce this season.
EarthBlend started shipping a variety of vegetables in the October to December timeframe, running into May. These vegetables include a wide variety of hard and soft squash, green Bells, elongated red Bells, tomatillos and a handful of hot pepper varieties.
In the fall and spring seasons, EarthBlend plans to ship seedless and mini-watermelons, honeydew and cantaloupe.
The majority of EarthBlend’s production will be coming from Agrocir’s Hermosillo and Guaymas, Sonora farms. Independent growers are located throughout Sonora and Sinaloa.
Agrocir’s cucumbers and Bell peppers will be produced in shade houses. The squash varieties and melons are produced in open fields.
By Emerson
Kennesaw, Georgia — Emerson (NYSE: EMR) announced the release of its GO Real-Time CO2 Tracker. This latest innovation is suitable for produce shippers who manage and monitor carbon dioxide to help extend shelf life of fruit, such as berries, apples, and pears. Managing carbon dioxide is one of the methods used globally by shippers to help ensure the utmost freshness of produce. In addition to monitoring carbon dioxide levels in real-time, this new version of the popular GO Real-Time Tracker also provides valuable features such as temperature, location and light sensing coupled with real-time actionable alerts.
“In the produce industry, reputations are often built on delivering quality, fresh products safely to the consumer,” said Frank Landwehr, vice president and general manager, Cargo Solutions for Emerson. “Whether in a truck or in a sea cargo container, the GO Real-Time CO2 Tracker is another tool our customers can use to help protect their brands when their perishable shipments are in transit.”
The GO Real-Time CO2 Tracker is available now. Customers can continue to leverage the online Oversight dashboard or Oversight mobile app to help monitor shipments during transport of cargo. To download the app or for more information on end-to-end cold chain monitoring solutions, visit Emerson.com/Cargo.
About Emerson
Emerson (NYSE: EMR), headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), is a global technology and engineering company providing innovative solutions for customers in industrial, commercial and residential markets. Our Emerson Automation Solutions business is a leader in helping process and discrete manufacturers automate and optimize production processes through our best-inclass technologies and industry expertise. Our Emerson Commercial & Residential Solutions business develops technologies and services that improve human comfort, safeguard food, protect the environment, enable sustainable food waste disposal and support efficient construction and maintenance of buildings and municipal infrastructure. For more information, visit Emerson.com.
Peruvian grape imports by the U.S. are expected to increase this season, according to a new report from the USDA.
The new forecast has grape exports from Peru for the 2018-19 shipping season show an increase of 7 percent.
From October 2018 to September 2019 Peruvian grape production is predicted to rise 7 percent, totaling 540,000 metric tons, according to the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
“Grape production is recovering after heavy El Niño rains and unstable temperatures in early 2017 delayed harvest, reduced yields, and reduced quality,” the USDA said in the report.
With domestic consumption estimated at 271,000 metric tons, the USDA projects grape exports at 385,000 metric tons in 2018-19, up 7 percent from the previous year.
For the calendar year 2017, the USDA reported the U.S. was the top export market for Peru grape exports, taking 33 percent of the total volume.
Peru’s dry coast and 12 hours of sunlight daily, combined with irrigation, allows Peru to mature its grape crop 55 percent faster than neighboring countries, according to the report.
Grapes are grown primarily in Ica with 41 percent of the production and Piura with 22 percent of the production. The total area under cultivation, is estimated at more than 74,000 acres.
The harvest season starts in late October and continues into in April.
While the red globe variety dominates production — it remains popular in the growing Chinese market. The report notes growers are moving to higher-value varieties to supply other markets such as Crimson seedless, flame seedless, thompson seedless and sugraon.
One acre of grapes in Peru requires an initial investment of approximately $16,000, not counting the cost of land.
The report said about 30 percent of the cost of production is soil preparation and the irrigation system, 25 percent is establishing the trellis, and 14 percent goes toward the plant itself.
At $3,070 per metric ton, prices in the U.S. market were 27 percent higher than the average export price of $2,419 per metric ton in 2017. In the same period, the U.S. market represented 42 percent by value and 33 percent by volume of total Peruvian grape exports.
Here is a trifecta of produce loading opportunities. Granted two of the three will be limited volume (mandarins and broccoli), but Idaho potatoes always have big time shipments.
In another week or so Kishu mandarin loadings will get underway from California’s Orange Cove growing region.
The delicate, hand-picked item has relatively overall light volume and provides partial loads at best.
Kishu mandarins are a golf ball-sized mandarin that are sweet and easy to peel and sold for Ripe to You under the Lil’ Ninja Mandarins label. Harvest begins in mid-November.
“We’re still competing with our retail partner’s inventory of citrus from the Southern Hemisphere,” says Madalyn McCracken of Ripe to You, based in Reedley, CAs.
That said, she adds that the Kishus are a variety sought after by higher-end grocery stores. “We’ve had great feedback on our 1 lb. bag with a new Giro design and we look forward to the consumer’s reaction to it,” she says.
Idaho Potato Shipments
Shipments of Idaho potatoes through early October have been running ahead of a year ago, according to USDA statistics. As of October 6th, truck shipments of Idaho potatoes were 61.9 million pounds, up 9 percent from the same week a year ago.
Season-to-date truck shipments of Idaho potatoes through October 6th totaled 458.7 million pounds, up 14 percent compared with the season.
Rail shipments were also up, with season-to-date movement of 28.5 million pounds, up 6 percent compared with year-ago levels.
Fresh potato loadings are expected to ramp up as the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays approach.
Idaho potatoes – grossing about $4700 to Atlanta.
Georgia Broccoli Shipments
While Maine broccoli shipments are finishing, shipper Fresh from the Start is launching its second season in Georgia with broccoli shipments starting in mid-November.
The company dodged the bullet with Hurricane Michael and is expecting good volume this season. Once its Georgia season is finished it will begin shipping out of Florida in January.
Playing the spot market with freight rates on fresh produce is common with owner operators and small fleet owners. However, refrigerated fleets for years have often negotiated seasonal, if not year around rates.
The fleets see advantages to having more predictable produce rates with higher rates in the slower winter months, but lower ones during the peak shipping seasons of spring and summer.
However, record produce rates this past year has changed ways of doing business, not only for the fleets, but the produce shippers. For example, uncertainty surrounding freight rates has resulted in some Idaho grower-shippers of potatoes to shy away from quoting delivered prices for potato price contracts.
Sun-Glo of Idaho Inc., in Sugar City, has chosen not to take on the risk of volatile transportation rates by quoting delivered prices. The company has found trucking companies refusing to quote set rates, because of the uncertainties in trucking. If those fleets are unwilling to take the risk of contract rates, then the grower-shippers are not going to risk giving delivered prices.
Much higher truck rates have occurred, at least in part, by the implementation of electronic logging device (ELD) regulations last year. Higher truck rates is one of the biggest complaints of grower-shippers. Instead, companies such as Sun-Glo are quoting prices for their potatoes, something which they are in control.
Other shippers are doing business in a similar fashion. Wada Farms Marketing Group LLC of Idaho Falls, ID has indicated it may lose some customers this shipping season because Wada no longer is offering a delivered price contract. It has some contracts with trucking companies to haul potatoes, but it is on a month-to-month contract basis. Six month to one year contracts with truckers has become a rarity. Since Wade Farms cannot get seasonal or yearly contracts with trucking companies, it is avoiding offering delivered price contracts to customers.
Wade Farms has even inserted some flexibility clauses into contracts. For example. if there is an extreme shortage of trucks or holiday overages, it is not locked in to the same price.
Shippers have long complained of retail chains driving down prices on the produce they purchase. Potandon Produce LLC of Idaho Falls, ID has pointed out in the current truck rate environments, some retailers are looking to drive down f.o.b. prices to maintain delivered costs.
In a effort to cut shipping costs Potandon say if offers potato buyers a premium Idaho potato, or it can source spuds from 16 other states which may be closer to their customers. The company continues to seek alternative shipping methods to cut costs.
Potandon is still offering customers delivered prices and says it has the advantage of an in-house transportation department which is in constant contact with freight carriers to get the amount of trucks needed.
Six container ships will be replacing existing boats owned by Del Monte Fresh Produce for its East Coast fleet used for delivering produce from Central and South America to the U.S. In other news, the Port of Tampa is now receiving pineapples.
The first ship is estimated to be ready in late 2019, according to a news release.
The vessels were designed by Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute in Shanghai, China, and are being built at the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute, Guangzhou, China.
Each vessel will have a capacity of 634 40-foot high cube container capacity, according to the release.
Dennis Christou, vice president of marketing for Del Monte, said the new container vessels will increase the company’s tonnage capacity and “speed to market.”
“The new energy efficient vessels are designed to meet the most stringent (International Maritime Organization) emission control regulations coming into effect in 2020,” Christou said.
Christou noted Del Monte was one of the first large-scale banana companies to receive SCS Carbon Neutral Certification for banana operations in Costa Rica.
The new ships will reduce air pollution and fuel consumption.
“These new ships are an extension of our sustainability commitment on the high seas,” he said in the release.
Port Tampa Bay
Port Logistics Refrigerated Services at Port Tampa Bay, FL, recently received its first shipment of pineapples.
Chestnut Hills Farms of Miami was the recipient of the initial arrival, which came from Costa Rica to the cold storage company at the port. Refrigerated containers of the fruit arrived at the cold storage facility several weeks ago. The shipment, loaded at the Port of Moin in Costa Rica, was delivered by the Seacat Line in a new ship, the M/V Juice Express.
“This new routing provides us with excellent access to serve our customers in Florida and throughout the Southeastern United States,” Raul Romero, president and chief operating officer at Chestnut Hill Farms, said in the release. “We expect this will be the first of regular ongoing shipments.”
The new Port Logistics Refrigerated Services on-dock cold storage facility has on-site USDA/Customs and Border Protection inspection and fumigation services. The 130,000-square-foot facility has 102 refrigerated container plugs and a dedicated mobile harbor crane.
In February, the facility made possible the first shipments of bananas in more than 20 years at the port. The shipment, of more than 3,900 pallets of Chiquita-brand bananas, originated from Ecuador.
North American blueberry imports for the 2018-19 season will be good despite volume declining slightly from the record levels of a year ago.
With only a 5 percent decline in volume this season, it will hardly be noticed.
Chile has about 1,300 blueberry growers, primarily found in central and southern Chile. The country has about 100 exporters shipping 100 metric tons or more.
With nearly perfect growing conditions last season, Chilean exporters shipped about 110,351 metric tons of fresh blueberries to all export markets with 64 percent destined for North America, 24 percent to Europe and 12 percent to Asia.
This season,Chilean fresh blueberry exports are forecast near 105,000 metric tons with distribution of the crop to be similar to a year ago.
Chilean blueberry exports started in mid-October. Peak shipments will get underway the last week of November, and continuing through February. The season continues through March.
Organic blueberry exports continue and upward trend. Last season, organic blueberry shipments accounted for 9.5 percent of total fresh exports, or about 10,000 metric tons. About 85 percent of the organic “blues” were exported to the U.S.
Total Chilean blueberry acreage was 38,550 acres in July 2017, of which 17 percent was organic production.
Boat vs. Air Shipments
About 90 percent of Chilean blueberry volume to North America is shipped by sea container, and 10 percent by air. Few airplanes for shipping Chilean blueberries in the future is predicted since there is increasing competition from other exporting countries.
Last season, Chile exported about 40,000 metric tons of frozen blueberries — equal to about 40 percent of fresh volume.
I you have loaded produce at one of the border crossings in California, Arizona or Texas then odds are those loadings have included Mexican tomatoes. The tomato is big business.
A new study by the University of Arizona points out Mexican tomatoes crossing the U.S. border contributed an estimated $4.8 billion in total economic activity to the American economy in 2016.
Even though Mexican tomatoes are grown and harvested south of the U.S. border, it supports economic activity jobs and income in the U.S. through forward and backward links in the supply chain.
A hypothetical decrease in the supply of fresh tomatoes from Mexico made by suppliers found a decrease as small as 5 percent could have a negative impact on consumers well-being, ranging in to hundreds of millions (of dollars) per year. Researchers for the study considered U.S. wholesale activity, grocery activity, foodservice sales and transportation.
According to the study, the $4.8 billion in total sales was generated through:
- $1 billion in direct wholesale activity;
- $816 million in direct grocery retail activity;
- $145 million in direct foodservice activity;
- $30 million in in-bound shipments to Canada;
- $2.8 billion from indirect and induced economic multiplier effects.
The study found that U.S. imports of Mexican tomatoes in 2016 were valued at $1.9 billion, while Canada’s tomato imports from Mexico totaled $255 million.
About 9.4 million pounds of tomatoes arrived daily to the U.S. from Mexico in 2016, with 90 percent of those imports coming through Nogales, AZ: Pharr, TX and Otay Mesa, CA.
U.S. imports from Mexico in 2016 included 1.7 billion pounds of round tomatoes, 1.5 billion pounds of roma tomatoes, 167 million pounds of grape tomatoes and 61 million pounds of cherry tomatoes, according to the study.
Those imports added $4.8 billion in economic activity, supported nearly 33,000 full and part-time jobs earning $1.4 billion in employee compensation.
In total, $2.9 billion in U.S. gross domestic product was directly and indirectly supported by the value chain delivering imported fresh tomatoes from Mexico to Canada and to U.S. consumers through grocery retail and foodservice industries. This resulted in over $400 million in federal tax revenue and roughly $350 million in state and local tax revenues.
Pleasanton, Calif. — DeltaTrak® introduces the next generation FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger.
According to Frederick Wu, President and CEO of DeltaTrak, “The FlashLink Mini PDF has been upgraded to include our patented Shadow Log® feature which sets it apart from other brands. Shadow Log® means that temperature data is recorded even if a shipper forgets to start the unit, so receivers will always be able to download trip data when a load arrives.”
The reports also have a new look, including both F° and °C scales on one chart, making it user friendly for receivers worldwide. Reports are automatically generated when the logger is plugged into the USB port of a PC, tablet, or printer, where they can be saved and shared by email in PDF and CSV formats.
The FlashLink Mini PDF has a compact, single use design that incorporates a USB connector and on-board software, making it quick and easy to access data without special reading devices or installing software. One model can be used for all domestic and export trips up to 85 days, so shippers don’t have to stock multiple brands with various recording periods.
These accurate, reliable temperature recorders are ideal for compliance with Food Safety, HACCP, FSMA, and global regulations, to verify if products have been kept within their proper temperature range. Each unit comes mounted on a bright green shipping card, making it easy to locate when a shipment arrives. A peel-away barcode label with the logger serial number can be attached to shipping documents and scanned into the shipper’s ERP system for complete traceability.
The FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger is an essential tool to help shippers, third party logistics companies, importers and exporters ensure consumer safety and deliver high quality products that are safe to eat.
About DeltaTrak®
DeltaTrak® is a leading innovator of cold chain management, environmental monitoring and food safety solutions for the food, produce, life science, and chemical industries.
Eighty percent of the nation’s domestic citrus shipments originate from California and loadings this season look favorable despite more than a month of triple digit heat. Meanwhile, a look at apple shipments in the United States reveal a double digit drop in remaining volume compared to last season.
The state has a $3.3 billion industry with over 3,000 growers farming about 320,000 acres of citrus.
Technically, the California citrus season starts each year at the beginning of October with production and lemon shipments coming out of the Imperial County. The harvest then gradually moves north to the San Joaquin Valley for mandarins and navels. This year’s crop faced 34 consecutive of temperatures well above 100 degrees. This caused citrus trees to kind of shut down, which is expected to result in fruit with a lot more smaller sizes that a year ago. Still, the industry generally believes overall quality will be good. An upside of the hot weather should be better flavor.
California citrus – grossing about $7100 to New York City.
Apple Shipments
U.S. fresh apples remaining for the 2018-19 shipping season are down 14 percent compared to a year ago. The U.S. Apple Association reports as of November 1st there were 155.5 million cartons remaining in storages. The amount of apple shipments remaining are 11 percent less compared to the five-year average of 130.3 million cartons.
Total Honeycrisp fresh apples still in storage as of November 1st were 11.15 million cartons, up 6 percent from 10.56 million cartons last year and 58 percent higher than two years ago, when 7.06 million cartons of Honeycrisp were in storage.
At the same time, fresh market gala apples remaining in storage totaled 24.4 million cartons, down from 15 pecent at 28.6 million cartons last year and off 6 pecent from two years ago. Fresh market red delicious holdings were 27.6 million cartons on November 1, down 19 percent from 34.1 million cartons a year ago and 29 percent less than holdings of 39 million cartons two years ago.
A processing/packing facility is opening by Church Brothers Farms and its processing company, True Leaf Farms. It is located just across the U.S. border in Mexico to increase year-round supplies.
The plant, in San Luis Rio Colo., south of Yuma, Ariz., will be growing whole leaf lettuce, broccoli florets, iceless broccoli and green onions with an opening anticipated by the end of the year.
The plant, at almost 111,000 square feet, will handle vegetables grown in Mexico and the U.S.
“The new facility will allow us to produce during the summer months, where in the past we were limited to only green onions and other seasonal items,” the company said in a news release. “Now we will be sourcing from Mexico year-round to meet our U.S. customers’ growing needs.”
The facility, known as CB Mexico, will be Custom Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) certified, allowing trucks to enter the U.S. faster. CB Mexico is 29 miles south of Church Brothers’ two Yuma facilities.
Other U.S. companies with facilities in the area include Kenworth, Gulfstream and Honeywell.
Earth Blend
Agrocir, a Hermosillo, Sonora, has created a Nogales sales and distribution company. The vegetable grower has been in business since the mid-1960s. The new firm is EarthBlend LLC, which expects to handle almost 4 million cases of Mexican produce this season.
EarthBlend started shipping a variety of vegetables in the October to December timeframe, running into May. These vegetables include a wide variety of hard and soft squash, green Bells, elongated red Bells, tomatillos and a handful of hot pepper varieties.
In the fall and spring seasons, EarthBlend plans to ship seedless and mini-watermelons, honeydew and cantaloupe.
The majority of EarthBlend’s production will be coming from Agrocir’s Hermosillo and Guaymas, Sonora farms. Independent growers are located throughout Sonora and Sinaloa.
Agrocir’s cucumbers and Bell peppers will be produced in shade houses. The squash varieties and melons are produced in open fields.
By Emerson
Kennesaw, Georgia — Emerson (NYSE: EMR) announced the release of its GO Real-Time CO2 Tracker. This latest innovation is suitable for produce shippers who manage and monitor carbon dioxide to help extend shelf life of fruit, such as berries, apples, and pears. Managing carbon dioxide is one of the methods used globally by shippers to help ensure the utmost freshness of produce. In addition to monitoring carbon dioxide levels in real-time, this new version of the popular GO Real-Time Tracker also provides valuable features such as temperature, location and light sensing coupled with real-time actionable alerts.
“In the produce industry, reputations are often built on delivering quality, fresh products safely to the consumer,” said Frank Landwehr, vice president and general manager, Cargo Solutions for Emerson. “Whether in a truck or in a sea cargo container, the GO Real-Time CO2 Tracker is another tool our customers can use to help protect their brands when their perishable shipments are in transit.”
The GO Real-Time CO2 Tracker is available now. Customers can continue to leverage the online Oversight dashboard or Oversight mobile app to help monitor shipments during transport of cargo. To download the app or for more information on end-to-end cold chain monitoring solutions, visit Emerson.com/Cargo.
About Emerson
Emerson (NYSE: EMR), headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), is a global technology and engineering company providing innovative solutions for customers in industrial, commercial and residential markets. Our Emerson Automation Solutions business is a leader in helping process and discrete manufacturers automate and optimize production processes through our best-inclass technologies and industry expertise. Our Emerson Commercial & Residential Solutions business develops technologies and services that improve human comfort, safeguard food, protect the environment, enable sustainable food waste disposal and support efficient construction and maintenance of buildings and municipal infrastructure. For more information, visit Emerson.com.
Peruvian grape imports by the U.S. are expected to increase this season, according to a new report from the USDA.
The new forecast has grape exports from Peru for the 2018-19 shipping season show an increase of 7 percent.
From October 2018 to September 2019 Peruvian grape production is predicted to rise 7 percent, totaling 540,000 metric tons, according to the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
“Grape production is recovering after heavy El Niño rains and unstable temperatures in early 2017 delayed harvest, reduced yields, and reduced quality,” the USDA said in the report.
With domestic consumption estimated at 271,000 metric tons, the USDA projects grape exports at 385,000 metric tons in 2018-19, up 7 percent from the previous year.
For the calendar year 2017, the USDA reported the U.S. was the top export market for Peru grape exports, taking 33 percent of the total volume.
Peru’s dry coast and 12 hours of sunlight daily, combined with irrigation, allows Peru to mature its grape crop 55 percent faster than neighboring countries, according to the report.
Grapes are grown primarily in Ica with 41 percent of the production and Piura with 22 percent of the production. The total area under cultivation, is estimated at more than 74,000 acres.
The harvest season starts in late October and continues into in April.
While the red globe variety dominates production — it remains popular in the growing Chinese market. The report notes growers are moving to higher-value varieties to supply other markets such as Crimson seedless, flame seedless, thompson seedless and sugraon.
One acre of grapes in Peru requires an initial investment of approximately $16,000, not counting the cost of land.
The report said about 30 percent of the cost of production is soil preparation and the irrigation system, 25 percent is establishing the trellis, and 14 percent goes toward the plant itself.
At $3,070 per metric ton, prices in the U.S. market were 27 percent higher than the average export price of $2,419 per metric ton in 2017. In the same period, the U.S. market represented 42 percent by value and 33 percent by volume of total Peruvian grape exports.
Here is a trifecta of produce loading opportunities. Granted two of the three will be limited volume (mandarins and broccoli), but Idaho potatoes always have big time shipments.
In another week or so Kishu mandarin loadings will get underway from California’s Orange Cove growing region.
The delicate, hand-picked item has relatively overall light volume and provides partial loads at best.
Kishu mandarins are a golf ball-sized mandarin that are sweet and easy to peel and sold for Ripe to You under the Lil’ Ninja Mandarins label. Harvest begins in mid-November.
“We’re still competing with our retail partner’s inventory of citrus from the Southern Hemisphere,” says Madalyn McCracken of Ripe to You, based in Reedley, CAs.
That said, she adds that the Kishus are a variety sought after by higher-end grocery stores. “We’ve had great feedback on our 1 lb. bag with a new Giro design and we look forward to the consumer’s reaction to it,” she says.
Idaho Potato Shipments
Shipments of Idaho potatoes through early October have been running ahead of a year ago, according to USDA statistics. As of October 6th, truck shipments of Idaho potatoes were 61.9 million pounds, up 9 percent from the same week a year ago.
Season-to-date truck shipments of Idaho potatoes through October 6th totaled 458.7 million pounds, up 14 percent compared with the season.
Rail shipments were also up, with season-to-date movement of 28.5 million pounds, up 6 percent compared with year-ago levels.
Fresh potato loadings are expected to ramp up as the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays approach.
Idaho potatoes – grossing about $4700 to Atlanta.
Georgia Broccoli Shipments
While Maine broccoli shipments are finishing, shipper Fresh from the Start is launching its second season in Georgia with broccoli shipments starting in mid-November.
The company dodged the bullet with Hurricane Michael and is expecting good volume this season. Once its Georgia season is finished it will begin shipping out of Florida in January.
Playing the spot market with freight rates on fresh produce is common with owner operators and small fleet owners. However, refrigerated fleets for years have often negotiated seasonal, if not year around rates.
The fleets see advantages to having more predictable produce rates with higher rates in the slower winter months, but lower ones during the peak shipping seasons of spring and summer.
However, record produce rates this past year has changed ways of doing business, not only for the fleets, but the produce shippers. For example, uncertainty surrounding freight rates has resulted in some Idaho grower-shippers of potatoes to shy away from quoting delivered prices for potato price contracts.
Sun-Glo of Idaho Inc., in Sugar City, has chosen not to take on the risk of volatile transportation rates by quoting delivered prices. The company has found trucking companies refusing to quote set rates, because of the uncertainties in trucking. If those fleets are unwilling to take the risk of contract rates, then the grower-shippers are not going to risk giving delivered prices.
Much higher truck rates have occurred, at least in part, by the implementation of electronic logging device (ELD) regulations last year. Higher truck rates is one of the biggest complaints of grower-shippers. Instead, companies such as Sun-Glo are quoting prices for their potatoes, something which they are in control.
Other shippers are doing business in a similar fashion. Wada Farms Marketing Group LLC of Idaho Falls, ID has indicated it may lose some customers this shipping season because Wada no longer is offering a delivered price contract. It has some contracts with trucking companies to haul potatoes, but it is on a month-to-month contract basis. Six month to one year contracts with truckers has become a rarity. Since Wade Farms cannot get seasonal or yearly contracts with trucking companies, it is avoiding offering delivered price contracts to customers.
Wade Farms has even inserted some flexibility clauses into contracts. For example. if there is an extreme shortage of trucks or holiday overages, it is not locked in to the same price.
Shippers have long complained of retail chains driving down prices on the produce they purchase. Potandon Produce LLC of Idaho Falls, ID has pointed out in the current truck rate environments, some retailers are looking to drive down f.o.b. prices to maintain delivered costs.
In a effort to cut shipping costs Potandon say if offers potato buyers a premium Idaho potato, or it can source spuds from 16 other states which may be closer to their customers. The company continues to seek alternative shipping methods to cut costs.
Potandon is still offering customers delivered prices and says it has the advantage of an in-house transportation department which is in constant contact with freight carriers to get the amount of trucks needed.
Six container ships will be replacing existing boats owned by Del Monte Fresh Produce for its East Coast fleet used for delivering produce from Central and South America to the U.S. In other news, the Port of Tampa is now receiving pineapples.
The first ship is estimated to be ready in late 2019, according to a news release.
The vessels were designed by Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute in Shanghai, China, and are being built at the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute, Guangzhou, China.
Each vessel will have a capacity of 634 40-foot high cube container capacity, according to the release.
Dennis Christou, vice president of marketing for Del Monte, said the new container vessels will increase the company’s tonnage capacity and “speed to market.”
“The new energy efficient vessels are designed to meet the most stringent (International Maritime Organization) emission control regulations coming into effect in 2020,” Christou said.
Christou noted Del Monte was one of the first large-scale banana companies to receive SCS Carbon Neutral Certification for banana operations in Costa Rica.
The new ships will reduce air pollution and fuel consumption.
“These new ships are an extension of our sustainability commitment on the high seas,” he said in the release.
Port Tampa Bay
Port Logistics Refrigerated Services at Port Tampa Bay, FL, recently received its first shipment of pineapples.
Chestnut Hills Farms of Miami was the recipient of the initial arrival, which came from Costa Rica to the cold storage company at the port. Refrigerated containers of the fruit arrived at the cold storage facility several weeks ago. The shipment, loaded at the Port of Moin in Costa Rica, was delivered by the Seacat Line in a new ship, the M/V Juice Express.
“This new routing provides us with excellent access to serve our customers in Florida and throughout the Southeastern United States,” Raul Romero, president and chief operating officer at Chestnut Hill Farms, said in the release. “We expect this will be the first of regular ongoing shipments.”
The new Port Logistics Refrigerated Services on-dock cold storage facility has on-site USDA/Customs and Border Protection inspection and fumigation services. The 130,000-square-foot facility has 102 refrigerated container plugs and a dedicated mobile harbor crane.
In February, the facility made possible the first shipments of bananas in more than 20 years at the port. The shipment, of more than 3,900 pallets of Chiquita-brand bananas, originated from Ecuador.
North American blueberry imports for the 2018-19 season will be good despite volume declining slightly from the record levels of a year ago.
With only a 5 percent decline in volume this season, it will hardly be noticed.
Chile has about 1,300 blueberry growers, primarily found in central and southern Chile. The country has about 100 exporters shipping 100 metric tons or more.
With nearly perfect growing conditions last season, Chilean exporters shipped about 110,351 metric tons of fresh blueberries to all export markets with 64 percent destined for North America, 24 percent to Europe and 12 percent to Asia.
This season,Chilean fresh blueberry exports are forecast near 105,000 metric tons with distribution of the crop to be similar to a year ago.
Chilean blueberry exports started in mid-October. Peak shipments will get underway the last week of November, and continuing through February. The season continues through March.
Organic blueberry exports continue and upward trend. Last season, organic blueberry shipments accounted for 9.5 percent of total fresh exports, or about 10,000 metric tons. About 85 percent of the organic “blues” were exported to the U.S.
Total Chilean blueberry acreage was 38,550 acres in July 2017, of which 17 percent was organic production.
Boat vs. Air Shipments
About 90 percent of Chilean blueberry volume to North America is shipped by sea container, and 10 percent by air. Few airplanes for shipping Chilean blueberries in the future is predicted since there is increasing competition from other exporting countries.
Last season, Chile exported about 40,000 metric tons of frozen blueberries — equal to about 40 percent of fresh volume.