Author Archive
Washington potato shipments for the new season are underway, while Vidalia onion loadings continue. In British Columbia (BC), blueberry shipments are in peak volume.
Washington state’s potato season got underway in July with some early variety chipping varieties, followed by some colored varieties out of the Yakima Valley. Then came some early processing spuds, followed by fresh market russets.
Fresh potato acerage in Washington has been stable at about 25,000 acres for several years now. Around 70 percent of the state’s potatoes are destined for export markets, comprised mostly of processed products. Most of Washington tablestock potatoes are shipped to Canada, Mexico and Taiwan. The state also has red potatoes coming out of the Skagit Valley.
While Washington potato sheds ship russets the year-round, its red, yellow and white potatoes usually are finished by March or April.
Vidalia Onion Shipments
Steady volume with Vidalia onions is expected to continue through Labor Day. Truck shipments are expected to be very similar to last year’s total volume of 6.2 million 40-pound boxes, coming off of Southeastern Georgia’s nearly 12,000 acres, As of July 26, there were still about 750,000 40-pound cartons of onions remaining in storage.
Bland Farms of Glennville, GA, expects to be shipping Vidalia onions out of storage through late August or early September, with a smooth transition expected to Peruvian imports in September. Imported Peruvian onions will continue for the U.S. into early next year.
A little over 200 truck loads per week are being shipped out of the Vidalia district
Vidalia onions – grossing about $3000 to New York City.
BC Blueberry Shipments
British Columbia’s blueberry shipments should peak through August and could last into early September. In a more normal year, most British Columbia “blues” would be shipped to markets in the Western U.S. However, with East Coast blueberry volume slashed this year due to weather factors, more BC blueberries will be trucked into the Eastern Time Zone. However, BC shipments could be off 30 to 50 percent this season due to poor pollination. As the BC season closes around Labor Day, imports of blueberries from Peru and Argentina will start arriving at U.S. ports.
by NatureFresh Farms
Leamington, ON – The heat of the summer is settling in across the Midwest though this has not deterred NatureFresh™ Farms’ mobile greenhouse tour from missing a beat. Already nearly 50 events completed since mid-April, consumers continue to flock to #GreenInTheCity events to learn more about how greenhouse vegetables are grown.
“The mobile greenhouse has not only been a conversation starter but a difference maker in how we connect with our customers”, said Ray Wowryk, Director of Business Development.
The mobile Greenhouse Education Center (GEC) is a 38’ custom-built unit that is an exact snapshot of how NatureFresh™ Farms grows its vegetables in state of the art high tech greenhouses in Leamington, ON & Delta, OH. Equipped with fruit bearing plants and complimented by a live Bumblebee Eco-System, the GEC serves as an education resource to inform consumers about how greenhouse vegetables are grown.
“We care about the future of fresh and all that it entails; we need to collectively increase fresh produce consumption. NatureFresh™ can help do that with the GEC and by getting front and center with consumers, we share our story to help inform them of the value of greenhouse vegetables. Knowing who grows what you buy is important, understanding how its grown is just as important if not more”, commented Wowryk.
Supporting the GEC this summer are 5 college students who serve as NatureFresh™ Brand Ambassadors at each event. The team is responsible for event day operations and interacting with retail partners to ensure their customers have the best possible experience. With varied backgrounds ranging from agri-business to environmental science to marketing to biology, the team provides unique perspectives of the value of greenhouse grown vegetables.
“We are able to immediately impact consumers purchasing decisions at store level with the knowledge we share about how we grow greenhouse vegetables”, said Cole Burkholder, GEC Team Member & 3rd year Environmental Science Major from Ohio State University. Agriculture is nothing new to Burkholder whose family operates a farming operation of more than 500 acres of row crops in central Ohio. “The look on people’s faces when we explain the greenhouse growing process and they see the live plants with real fruit, it’s priceless, you kind of see that ‘a-ha’ moment in their eyes. We’ve even had customers show us their shopping carts when leaving to show us the tomatoes or bell peppers they have purchased because of our conversation. It’s a pretty good feeling!” commented Burkholder.
Now in it’s 3rd year, the #GreenInTheCity Tour has completed more than 200 events to date across eastern North America connecting with consumers at retail stores, summer camps, schools, and community fairs. The 2017 tour will continue on through early November wrapping up at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, ON November 12th.
To learn more about NatureFresh™ Farms and the #GreenInTheCity Tour, visit naturefresh.ca/GEC.
About NatureFresh Farms –
NatureFresh Farms™ has grown to become one of the largest independent, vertically integrated greenhouse vegetable growers in North America. Growing in Leamington, ON and Delta, OH, NatureFresh™ Farms prides itself on exceptional flavor & quality. Family owned NatureFresh Farms™ ships Non-GMO greenhouse grown produce year-round to key retailers throughout North America.
Here’s some shipping updates including California strawberries, plus some not so obvious ones such as garlic, Indiana potatoes and imported citrus from Chile.
This has been one of the best season’s for California strawberry shipments as volume, quality and more predictable loadings have been much better than the past three or four years. Good volume should continue from Watsonville heading toward autumn. Last week about 1,000 truck loads were shipped. That should mean good loading opportunities into September, before the transition to shipments out of Oxnard, CA, which will continue into December.
For example, Well-Pict of Watsonville, CA grows and ships strawberries and raspberries for the late-season on about 700 acres in Oxnard. Naturipe Berry Growers of Salinas, CA has a fall crop in Santa Maria, CA., with best loading opportunities coming toward an end-of-August, or early September.
Salinas Valley strawberries and vegetables – grossing about $7400 to New York City.
Garlic Shipments
Most garlic shipments in the U.S. are coming out of California, where supplies are plentiful and quality is good. For example, Christopher Ranch of Gilroy, CA had to cut garlic plantings by about 10 percent the past couple of years due to the drought, but have now rebounded with volume this season being a little above normal. Loadings of garlic started last June and will continue until early September.
Meanwhile, Spice World Inc. of Orlando, FL and The Garlic Co. in Shafter, CA also have good volume out of California.
Indiana Potato Shipments
Red potato shipper Black Gold Farms of Grand Forks, ND starts harvesting spuds this week at its Winamac, IN farming operation and will be shipping through the month. This is the fifth year of the Indiana program.
Chilean Navel Imports
Chile’s navel orange shipments through the week of July 10th were 29 percent over a year ago with 35,591 tons, compared to last season’s 27,600 tons. However, the season started late, but will end two to three weeks earlier this year due to a smaller crop and weather issues. That means imports to the U.S. lasting through October.
The dramatic Mount Kidd, Canadian Rockies
ATHENS, GA — Carrier Transicold will begin offering the new-generation refrigerant R-452A as an alternative for use in its truck and trailer refrigeration systems, following the July 21 announcement that the Environmental Protection Agency has approved the refrigerant for transport refrigeration applications.
Developed by the refrigerant manufacturing industry to reduce environmental impact, R-452A has a global warming potential (GWP) that is almost half that of R 404A, the hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerant used in most land-based transport refrigeration applications. Carrier Transicold will offer the new refrigerant as an option to R-404A later this year.
“As a near drop-in substitute, R-452A offers similar levels of refrigeration performance, fuel efficiency, reliability and refrigerant charge in new equipment as R 404A, and we are pleased to be able to make it available to refrigerated transport operators seeking a lower GWP option to advance environmental sustainability,” said David Brondum, director, product management and sustainability, North America Truck, Trailer, Rail, Carrier Transicold.
R-452A is a refrigerant blend with a low-GWP hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) as one of its key components.
“Carrier Transicold has extensive experience with R-452A, having first offered it in 2015 to help Europe’s transport refrigeration industry respond to the European Union F Gas Regulation, which is driving down Europe’s use of traditional HFC refrigerants with higher GWPs,” Brondum explained. Extensive work has been done by Carrier Transicold in preparation for a similar transition in the U.S.
Brondum noted that the EPA has not banned R-404A for transport refrigeration applications, enabling refrigerated haulers to choose the option best suited for their operations. This allows for considerations of price and availability, fleet size and maintenance budgets.
“Going forward, fleets may want to consult with their Carrier Transicold dealers to determine which refrigerant solution is appropriate,” Brondum said.
While Carrier Transicold will continue to offer R-404A, it will also provide R-452A as an option for new model Vector™ and X4™ Series trailer refrigeration units, Supra® truck units and direct-drive truck units that currently use R 404A. The new refrigerant can also be used as a drop-in replacement for Carrier Transicold units already in service, although certain older models may require component retrofits or software updates, which can be accommodated through Carrier Transicold’s network of authorized dealers.
“Carrier Transicold’s larger goal of reducing the GWP of its transport refrigeration equipment goes well beyond the benefits of R-452A,” Brondum noted. “We are committed to pursuing the commercialization of HFC-free refrigerants in road transportation refrigeration by building upon our expertise with CO2 refrigerant, also known as R-744.”
CO2 refrigerant has a GWP of only 1, roughly 2,000 times better than R 452A and 4,000 times better than R-404A. It is also nonflammable, non-ozone-depleting, globally available and cost effective. Carrier has successfully applied CO2 refrigerant in CO2OLtec® stationary commercial refrigeration systems widely used throughout Europe, in NaturaLINE® container refrigeration systems used by major container shipping lines in support of global commerce, and prototype trailer refrigeration trials with two major European supermarket chains.
For more information about R-452A for transport refrigeration applications, turn to the experts within Carrier Transicold’s North America dealer network.
About Carrier Transicold
Carrier Transicold helps improve transport and shipping of temperature controlled cargoes with a complete line of equipment and services for refrigerated transport and cold chain visibility. For more than 45 years, Carrier Transicold has been an industry leader, providing customers around the world with advanced, energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable container refrigeration systems and generator sets, direct-drive and diesel truck units, and trailer refrigeration systems. Carrier Transicold is a part of UTC Climate, Controls & Security, a unit of United Technologies Corp., a leading provider to the aerospace and building systems industries worldwide. For more information, visit www.transicold.carrier.com. Follow Carrier on Twitter: @SmartColdChain.
by Next Big Thing, A Growers’ Cooperative
Albion, NY – An abundant crop of excellent quality SweeTango apples is coming this fall from member-growers of NBT Cooperative.
This premium apple variety is known for its outstanding sweet flavor with a lively touch of citrus, honey and spice. Its texture is unmatched; biting into this remarkably crisp apple produces a loud crunch and satisfying burst of delicious juice. Harvested in the early fall, SweeTango is an early-season category leader and consumer favorite, having been developed by the University of Minnesota and introduced in 2009 to feature the very best characteristics of the Honeycrisp and Zestar! apple varieties.
Theron Kibbe of NBT Cooperative notes that retailer success with the best-selling SweeTango is due in part to its unique position as an early-season variety. “Nielsen data shows that opportunities for SweeTango are especially strong in the early season, when it’s one of the first premium apple varieties to come on in the fall,” he said. Kibbe referenced Nielsen data dated Aug. 7 – Oct. 29, 2016 that shows SweeTango weekly volume averaging 54 lbs per store and a weekly sales average of $233 per store. “Our eye-catching packaging redesign, and the 2-lb pouch in particular, has been well received with high demand from consumers and retailers alike,” he added.
Harvest is expected to begin in late August. While Washington’s harvest is behind 2016, Midwestern crops are a few days ahead. New York, Quebec and Nova Scotia crops will complete the harvest on schedule and consumers will enjoy SweeTango soon after Labor Day.
Despite weather events — including early frost affecting some orchards in Michigan and a number of hail events in Washington, Michigan, and New York — the 2017 crop has potential to be slightly larger than that of 2016. Kibbe commented, “growers are expertly managing and thinning another fine crop of SweeTango with a good range of sizes. We’re excited to start another season.”
Retailers are urged to place orders now and can find their regional sales representative at http://sweetango.com/about/for-retailers/sales-desk/.
ABOUT NEXT BIG THING, A GROWERS’ COOPERATIVE
Next Big Thing, A Growers’ Cooperative is a 47-member cooperative of family growers, spread from Nova Scotia to Washington State, that grows and markets managed varieties of apples, beginning with SweeTango. You can find more information on SweeTango at http://www.sweetango.com or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sweetango.
Mission Produce continues it’s expansion with an agreement to distribute Columbian avocados, while Washington cherry shipments continue on its record setting marathon.
Mission Produce of Oxnard has entered into an agreement market and distribute for Colombian avocado grower-packer Cartama.
“Colombia produces avocados on a year-round basis, and is a natural complement for our destination markets around the world,” Jim Donovan, senior vice president of global sourcing for Mission Produce, said in a press release. “Our agreement with Cartama to market and distribute Colombian avocados gives us an additional source of supply as the category continues to grow globally.”
Cartama is the largest producer of hass avocados in Colombia, and has been growing and distributing avocados for over 16 years. It will have nearly 2,500 acres of hass in production by the end of 2017.
“We are very enthusiastic about the venture with Mission,” Ricardo Uribe, CEO of Cartama, said in the release. “Cartama is a world-class producer of hass avocados and working with Mission gives us access to world markets and the ability to accelerate our aggressive growth plans.”
Steve Barnard, president and CEO of Mission Produce, said Colombia is the eighth country where Mission has invested capital and infrastructure.
“We are continuing to grow our global footprint and planning for the future,” Barnard said in the release.
Just this year, Mission Produce has opened ripening centers in Beijing, Calgary, Alberta, and The Netherlands.
Record Cherry Shipments
Washington cherry shipments are expected to be the largest one on record this season with an estimated 26 million-27 million 20-pound boxes being shipped, mostly by truck.
The record, set in 2014, was 23.2 million boxes. The Washington cherry industry has averaged 530,000 boxes per day for the previous 30 days. Previously, Washington had not come close to averaging even 500,000 boxes a day for that length of time.
This season the industry has already shipped 21 million boxes, and nearly a quarter of the crop remains to be shipped. While a couple of grower-shippers have finished shipping cherries, numerous others have several weeks remaining.
By Larry Oscar
Government vs. private business. I often hear people talking about how divided our country is today. Many seem to be shocked at the fact that we don’t all think and believe alike. They act as though this nation has always been a party of 1960s flower children dancing in the daisies. Maybe it’s because people tend to live in their own little world.
Years ago we didn’t have the instant social media and communications that we have today. Decades ago we had fewer news reporters and even fewer commentators. It’s important for all of us to remember that the news media is a business. And as a business there is intense competition between the news organizations for the almighty advertising dollar. The news media would like for us to think that they are some noble profession that is looking out for us and has the utmost concern for our welfare.
It may come as a shock to some of you, but nothing could be further from the truth. Journalists are not some noble crusaders here to expose the evil in our society and save the world. Far from it. Having attended a university with journalism majors I can assure you that journalism has flaws just like any other profession.
For one thing journalists are not very good at rational cognitive thought processes. That is why they are typically not very good at math. They posses and overabundance of emotion, and they can quickly be drawn into a situation where emotions run high and reason follows very slowly behind. When you couple that with the competitive nature of the news business and throw in large amounts of money you have a recipe for journalistic disaster.
The result is what we find ourselves in today. The news media and the reporting of events simply cannot be trusted for absolute truth anymore. We are in a world where “fake news” is the norm and one has to work to uncover the truth.
Government, by its nature, should have everyone skeptical of its motivation. The saying “I’m from the government and I’m here to help” is a long standing joke that unfortunately says a lot about our government today. Business and government run very differently. Governments should run more like a business and indeed governments will be forced too. As government over spends, which is the nature of all governments, it will be forced to change as sources of funds are depleted.
It has happened in every society throughout history. There are those among us that think that businesses are “brutal” and corporations are evil. This mentality is very close to what we see from the media today. They have a fundamental misunderstanding of life.
Recently we observed the President fire the Director of the FBI James Comey. The media and the left wing lost it. They ranted and demanded to know why Comey was fired. The truth is business runs very different from government. In business you are not guaranteed a job for life. Your job security depends on how well your boss likes the job you are doing and your boss can fire you without giving you a single reason.
Take a look at what happened to Tony Romo the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. Believe it or not professional football is a business. It’s a big business. And Tony Romo didn’t do anything wrong. He lost his job simply because the management of the Dallas Cowboys thought that somebody else could do Tony Romo’s job better. Can you imagine if these government workers were treated like Tony Romo? After all they think they have a right to their job and nobody can fire them without a good cause. And in some cases not even then.
What would our government schools be like if you could fire a math teacher simply because the management found somebody who could teach math better? It is not wrong to fire someone and replace them with a better employee. That is called improving your business, and if our government schools worked to improve their business we wouldn’t have such a poor quality school system today.
The media and many in government jobs need a good dose of the realities of capitalism. Nobody has a right to their job. You are in a position of employment at the discretion of the management. You had better work to the best of your ability or you may just find yourself being replaced and looking for work with Tony Romo.
There are some new sheriffs turning up in the halls of government these days. The government workers should be treated just like the rest of us who pay their salary. They are not anything special. It’s only fair. There is however a bright side to journalism majors. All of the girls in school that were majoring in journalism were good in bed…so I’m told!
A new marketing agreement between two California produce companies should result in about one million cases of persimmons being shipping this season. Meanwhile, we take a final look at the recent Florida and Texas citrus shipping seasons, while giving a glimpse of what is to come on the West Coast.
MPG, Inc., one of the largest persimmon growers in the United States, and The Giumarra Companies of Los Angeles have announced an agreement that will kick off in late August. About one million cases of persimmon will be shipped starting at the end of August from California’s San Joaquin Valley. Fall persimmon shipments from California will conclude about December 1st. Then persimmons from Spain will be available from November through February arriving at Port of Philadelphia.
While persimmons are considerrd a niche commodity, great potential is seen by many for the fruit.
MPG was founded in 2002 as a family operation and has since grown to be among the most largest producers persimmons in the U.S. , extensive acreage of Fuyu and Hachiya persimmons in thes San Joaquin Valley. MPG is also a partnered grower of Spanish persimmons that will be imported following the conclusion of the domestic season, extending distribution for programs into February.
Fuyu persimmons will be offered in one-layer cartons or 2 lb high-graphic handle bags in a 31.5 lb master case and other specialized program packaging. Giumarra’s Nature’s Partner brand. Hachiya persimmons will be shipped in a one-layer carton or consumer packs in counts of 10, 11, or 12.
Citrus Shipping Round Up
Florida orange shipments totaled 68.7 million 90-pound boxes, down 16 percent from the 2015-16 season and down 29 percent from the 2014-15 season, according to the final USDA forecast for the 2016-17 season.
Florida orange shipments have declined significantly in the last decade as a result of rampant citrus greening disease.
The USDA projection for volume was up 200,000 boxes from its June estimate of 68.5 million boxes.
Florida tangerine and tangelo loadings were up 14.5 percent to 1.62 million boxes.
There were bout 7.8 million 85-pound boxes of Florida grapefruit down 27.8 percent from a year ago and down 39.5 percent from 2014-15. Shipments from California and Texas were relatively steady from last season, with 4 million and 4.8 million 80-pound boxes projected, respectively.
California orange shipments also were off, estimated at 48 million 80-pound boxes, down from 58.5 million in the 2015-16 season.
California, which accounts for most domestic lemon shipments, is expected to move about 19 million 80-pound boxes this season, down about 9 percent from 2015-16.
California tangerine and tangelo production grew 11 percent to 24 million boxes. Tangelos are shipped in 90-pound boxes, while tangerines go out in 80-pound boxes from California and in 95-pound boxes from Florida.
by The Corrugated Packaging Alliance
ITASCA, IL – A new Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) published by IFCO, a provider of reusable plastic containers (RPCs), attempts to discredit the corrugated packaging industry for having the highest recovery rate of any packaging system in America.
The LCA posits that since corrugated boxes for produce only have an average recycled content of 38.4 percent, excess recovered fiber collected for recycling displaces production of virgin fiber, which results in apparently higher greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for corrugated.
“This assumption and LCA methodology used by IFCO mischaracterizes the complexities of a balanced fiber production system,” said Dennis Colley, Executive Director of the Corrugated Packaging Alliance. “The corrugated packaging industry uses both virgin and recovered fiber for optimal and maximum production – and a high level of recycling should never be discounted.”
Recovery of old corrugated containers reached a record 92.9 percent in 2015. Around the country, 95 percent of Americans have access to community-based curbside and/or drop-off corrugated recycling programs.
Paper recovery for recycling helps extend the useful life of paper and paper-based packaging products, making it an integral part of the industry’s sustainability story. Nearly 52 percent of the recovered fiber collected for recycling in the U.S. is used to make containerboard for more boxes. Additionally, 11.5 percent is used to make boxboard for primary packaging like cereal boxes, more than 32 percent is exported to other parts of the world where virgin fiber is scarce and the remainder goes to other products like tissue and printing and writing papers.
By preventing paper from being sent to the landfill, paper recovery avoids GHG emissions. More than twice as much paper and paper-based packaging is recycled than is sent to landfills.
The IFCO LCA, “Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Reusable Plastic Containers and Display- and Non-Display Ready Corrugated Containers Used for Fresh Produce Applications,” was conducted by Franklin and Associates and evaluated three types of containers, RPCs, Display and Non-Display Corrugated Containers across ten large-volume produce commodities.
For more information about the sustainability of corrugated packaging, visit www.corrugated.org.
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The Corrugated Packaging Alliance (CPA) is a corrugated industry initiative, jointly sponsored by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA), AICC – The Independent Packaging Association, the Fibre Box Association (FBA) and TAPPI. Its mission is to foster growth and profitability of corrugated in applications where it can be demonstrated, based on credible and persuasive evidence, that corrugated should be the packaging material of choice; and to provide a coordinated industry focus that effectively acts on industry matters that cannot be accomplished by individual members. CPA members include North American corrugated manufacturers and converters.
by The New Jersey Peach Promotion Council
Sharpen up your senses, New Jersey peaches have hit the market, and is there anything closer to heavenly than a perfect peach? Bounteous supplies are available this season, with near-perfect color and sweetness; you can hardly find more delicious …and they’re nutritious — like dessert with health benefits.
Jersey-grown peaches are being celebrated with peach events and peach pie contests at community farmers markets, on-farm markets, restaurants and supermarkets. So, come on, get going and get lots. They’re only in season from late June through mid-September.
“The weather gods shone on us this year,” says Santo John Maccherone, chair, New Jersey Peach Promotion Council and a major south Jersey grower. “My crop is coming in very strong, I’ve started picking and public demand is healthy. It’s very rewarding to have people expressing appreciation for a product.”
At Holtzhauser Farms in Mullica Hill, the first two varieties of yellow (Desiree and Early Star) and white (Spring Snow and Manon) peaches are being picked, and Tom Holtzhauser is packing overtime to meet public demand, smiling all the while. His crop was decimated last year by frost. “I started picking June 20th, and customers are lining up to get my peaches,” he says. “My hours are 8am -6pm, and even at 6pm, I have customers waiting.” Holtzhausers grows 30 peach varieties and sells mainly retail from his farm.
Ron Thomas of Sunny Slope Farm in Hopewell is also a happy grower. “Our crop is clean, sweet, pretty and perfumes the air,” he says. We have a full crop and so far, no thunder storms have knocked fruit off the trees.” He’s picking and selling Sentry yellow variety now, and will have more varieties in a couple weeks.
At Melick Town Farms in Oldwick/Califon, pick-your-own peaches will be available July 4th, “Aand there are plenty,” says John Melick. “Our peaches look wonderful this season, as compared to last year when we had a thin crop. We’ll have more than enough for the entire season, through Labor Day and beyond,”
Gary Mount of Terhune Orchards in Princeton says they began picking yellow and white varieties. “We have a terrific crop” he says. Our early yellows, Flamin Fury, are some of the best.”
Demarest Farms in Hilldale has a bountiful, flavorful crop of yellow and white varieties, with pick-your-own starting the last week of July.
Greg Donaldson of Donaldson’s Farms in Hackettstown concurs with growers throughout the state. “A warm January and February delayed ripening,” says Greg, “which encouraged large and flavorful fruit.”
Jersey peaches come in yellow-flesh, white-flesh and flat/doughnut varieties. They’re rich in nutrients, each peach contains Vitamin A (570 IU per peach): orange-yellow skin indicates large amounts of beta-carotene Potassium (333 mg per peach, Fiber (2.6 grams per peach), magnesium, calcium, vitamin C and more – all packed into just 60 calories.
They’re sweetened by natural sugar, and packed with vital nutrients (Vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium fiber and more) — like dessert with health benefits. They’re also low in calories (just 60 in a medium-size peach), no saturated fats and packed with …But don’t just associate them with dessert; they’re great in green salads, cooked with pork, chicken and fish, even in chili.
The following calendar shows special peach events currently. Additional events will be added as they are planned. The calendar and other peach information can be found on www.jerseypeaches.com and facebook.com/newjerseypeaches. Watch for Jersey Peach ads on facebook’s News Feed page.
Washington potato shipments for the new season are underway, while Vidalia onion loadings continue. In British Columbia (BC), blueberry shipments are in peak volume.
Washington state’s potato season got underway in July with some early variety chipping varieties, followed by some colored varieties out of the Yakima Valley. Then came some early processing spuds, followed by fresh market russets.
Fresh potato acerage in Washington has been stable at about 25,000 acres for several years now. Around 70 percent of the state’s potatoes are destined for export markets, comprised mostly of processed products. Most of Washington tablestock potatoes are shipped to Canada, Mexico and Taiwan. The state also has red potatoes coming out of the Skagit Valley.
While Washington potato sheds ship russets the year-round, its red, yellow and white potatoes usually are finished by March or April.
Vidalia Onion Shipments
Steady volume with Vidalia onions is expected to continue through Labor Day. Truck shipments are expected to be very similar to last year’s total volume of 6.2 million 40-pound boxes, coming off of Southeastern Georgia’s nearly 12,000 acres, As of July 26, there were still about 750,000 40-pound cartons of onions remaining in storage.
Bland Farms of Glennville, GA, expects to be shipping Vidalia onions out of storage through late August or early September, with a smooth transition expected to Peruvian imports in September. Imported Peruvian onions will continue for the U.S. into early next year.
A little over 200 truck loads per week are being shipped out of the Vidalia district
Vidalia onions – grossing about $3000 to New York City.
BC Blueberry Shipments
British Columbia’s blueberry shipments should peak through August and could last into early September. In a more normal year, most British Columbia “blues” would be shipped to markets in the Western U.S. However, with East Coast blueberry volume slashed this year due to weather factors, more BC blueberries will be trucked into the Eastern Time Zone. However, BC shipments could be off 30 to 50 percent this season due to poor pollination. As the BC season closes around Labor Day, imports of blueberries from Peru and Argentina will start arriving at U.S. ports.
by NatureFresh Farms
Leamington, ON – The heat of the summer is settling in across the Midwest though this has not deterred NatureFresh™ Farms’ mobile greenhouse tour from missing a beat. Already nearly 50 events completed since mid-April, consumers continue to flock to #GreenInTheCity events to learn more about how greenhouse vegetables are grown.
“The mobile greenhouse has not only been a conversation starter but a difference maker in how we connect with our customers”, said Ray Wowryk, Director of Business Development.
The mobile Greenhouse Education Center (GEC) is a 38’ custom-built unit that is an exact snapshot of how NatureFresh™ Farms grows its vegetables in state of the art high tech greenhouses in Leamington, ON & Delta, OH. Equipped with fruit bearing plants and complimented by a live Bumblebee Eco-System, the GEC serves as an education resource to inform consumers about how greenhouse vegetables are grown.
“We care about the future of fresh and all that it entails; we need to collectively increase fresh produce consumption. NatureFresh™ can help do that with the GEC and by getting front and center with consumers, we share our story to help inform them of the value of greenhouse vegetables. Knowing who grows what you buy is important, understanding how its grown is just as important if not more”, commented Wowryk.
Supporting the GEC this summer are 5 college students who serve as NatureFresh™ Brand Ambassadors at each event. The team is responsible for event day operations and interacting with retail partners to ensure their customers have the best possible experience. With varied backgrounds ranging from agri-business to environmental science to marketing to biology, the team provides unique perspectives of the value of greenhouse grown vegetables.
“We are able to immediately impact consumers purchasing decisions at store level with the knowledge we share about how we grow greenhouse vegetables”, said Cole Burkholder, GEC Team Member & 3rd year Environmental Science Major from Ohio State University. Agriculture is nothing new to Burkholder whose family operates a farming operation of more than 500 acres of row crops in central Ohio. “The look on people’s faces when we explain the greenhouse growing process and they see the live plants with real fruit, it’s priceless, you kind of see that ‘a-ha’ moment in their eyes. We’ve even had customers show us their shopping carts when leaving to show us the tomatoes or bell peppers they have purchased because of our conversation. It’s a pretty good feeling!” commented Burkholder.
Now in it’s 3rd year, the #GreenInTheCity Tour has completed more than 200 events to date across eastern North America connecting with consumers at retail stores, summer camps, schools, and community fairs. The 2017 tour will continue on through early November wrapping up at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, ON November 12th.
To learn more about NatureFresh™ Farms and the #GreenInTheCity Tour, visit naturefresh.ca/GEC.
About NatureFresh Farms –
NatureFresh Farms™ has grown to become one of the largest independent, vertically integrated greenhouse vegetable growers in North America. Growing in Leamington, ON and Delta, OH, NatureFresh™ Farms prides itself on exceptional flavor & quality. Family owned NatureFresh Farms™ ships Non-GMO greenhouse grown produce year-round to key retailers throughout North America.
Here’s some shipping updates including California strawberries, plus some not so obvious ones such as garlic, Indiana potatoes and imported citrus from Chile.
This has been one of the best season’s for California strawberry shipments as volume, quality and more predictable loadings have been much better than the past three or four years. Good volume should continue from Watsonville heading toward autumn. Last week about 1,000 truck loads were shipped. That should mean good loading opportunities into September, before the transition to shipments out of Oxnard, CA, which will continue into December.
For example, Well-Pict of Watsonville, CA grows and ships strawberries and raspberries for the late-season on about 700 acres in Oxnard. Naturipe Berry Growers of Salinas, CA has a fall crop in Santa Maria, CA., with best loading opportunities coming toward an end-of-August, or early September.
Salinas Valley strawberries and vegetables – grossing about $7400 to New York City.
Garlic Shipments
Most garlic shipments in the U.S. are coming out of California, where supplies are plentiful and quality is good. For example, Christopher Ranch of Gilroy, CA had to cut garlic plantings by about 10 percent the past couple of years due to the drought, but have now rebounded with volume this season being a little above normal. Loadings of garlic started last June and will continue until early September.
Meanwhile, Spice World Inc. of Orlando, FL and The Garlic Co. in Shafter, CA also have good volume out of California.
Indiana Potato Shipments
Red potato shipper Black Gold Farms of Grand Forks, ND starts harvesting spuds this week at its Winamac, IN farming operation and will be shipping through the month. This is the fifth year of the Indiana program.
Chilean Navel Imports
Chile’s navel orange shipments through the week of July 10th were 29 percent over a year ago with 35,591 tons, compared to last season’s 27,600 tons. However, the season started late, but will end two to three weeks earlier this year due to a smaller crop and weather issues. That means imports to the U.S. lasting through October.
The dramatic Mount Kidd, Canadian Rockies
ATHENS, GA — Carrier Transicold will begin offering the new-generation refrigerant R-452A as an alternative for use in its truck and trailer refrigeration systems, following the July 21 announcement that the Environmental Protection Agency has approved the refrigerant for transport refrigeration applications.
Developed by the refrigerant manufacturing industry to reduce environmental impact, R-452A has a global warming potential (GWP) that is almost half that of R 404A, the hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerant used in most land-based transport refrigeration applications. Carrier Transicold will offer the new refrigerant as an option to R-404A later this year.
“As a near drop-in substitute, R-452A offers similar levels of refrigeration performance, fuel efficiency, reliability and refrigerant charge in new equipment as R 404A, and we are pleased to be able to make it available to refrigerated transport operators seeking a lower GWP option to advance environmental sustainability,” said David Brondum, director, product management and sustainability, North America Truck, Trailer, Rail, Carrier Transicold.
R-452A is a refrigerant blend with a low-GWP hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) as one of its key components.
“Carrier Transicold has extensive experience with R-452A, having first offered it in 2015 to help Europe’s transport refrigeration industry respond to the European Union F Gas Regulation, which is driving down Europe’s use of traditional HFC refrigerants with higher GWPs,” Brondum explained. Extensive work has been done by Carrier Transicold in preparation for a similar transition in the U.S.
Brondum noted that the EPA has not banned R-404A for transport refrigeration applications, enabling refrigerated haulers to choose the option best suited for their operations. This allows for considerations of price and availability, fleet size and maintenance budgets.
“Going forward, fleets may want to consult with their Carrier Transicold dealers to determine which refrigerant solution is appropriate,” Brondum said.
While Carrier Transicold will continue to offer R-404A, it will also provide R-452A as an option for new model Vector™ and X4™ Series trailer refrigeration units, Supra® truck units and direct-drive truck units that currently use R 404A. The new refrigerant can also be used as a drop-in replacement for Carrier Transicold units already in service, although certain older models may require component retrofits or software updates, which can be accommodated through Carrier Transicold’s network of authorized dealers.
“Carrier Transicold’s larger goal of reducing the GWP of its transport refrigeration equipment goes well beyond the benefits of R-452A,” Brondum noted. “We are committed to pursuing the commercialization of HFC-free refrigerants in road transportation refrigeration by building upon our expertise with CO2 refrigerant, also known as R-744.”
CO2 refrigerant has a GWP of only 1, roughly 2,000 times better than R 452A and 4,000 times better than R-404A. It is also nonflammable, non-ozone-depleting, globally available and cost effective. Carrier has successfully applied CO2 refrigerant in CO2OLtec® stationary commercial refrigeration systems widely used throughout Europe, in NaturaLINE® container refrigeration systems used by major container shipping lines in support of global commerce, and prototype trailer refrigeration trials with two major European supermarket chains.
For more information about R-452A for transport refrigeration applications, turn to the experts within Carrier Transicold’s North America dealer network.
About Carrier Transicold
Carrier Transicold helps improve transport and shipping of temperature controlled cargoes with a complete line of equipment and services for refrigerated transport and cold chain visibility. For more than 45 years, Carrier Transicold has been an industry leader, providing customers around the world with advanced, energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable container refrigeration systems and generator sets, direct-drive and diesel truck units, and trailer refrigeration systems. Carrier Transicold is a part of UTC Climate, Controls & Security, a unit of United Technologies Corp., a leading provider to the aerospace and building systems industries worldwide. For more information, visit www.transicold.carrier.com. Follow Carrier on Twitter: @SmartColdChain.
by Next Big Thing, A Growers’ Cooperative
Albion, NY – An abundant crop of excellent quality SweeTango apples is coming this fall from member-growers of NBT Cooperative.
This premium apple variety is known for its outstanding sweet flavor with a lively touch of citrus, honey and spice. Its texture is unmatched; biting into this remarkably crisp apple produces a loud crunch and satisfying burst of delicious juice. Harvested in the early fall, SweeTango is an early-season category leader and consumer favorite, having been developed by the University of Minnesota and introduced in 2009 to feature the very best characteristics of the Honeycrisp and Zestar! apple varieties.
Theron Kibbe of NBT Cooperative notes that retailer success with the best-selling SweeTango is due in part to its unique position as an early-season variety. “Nielsen data shows that opportunities for SweeTango are especially strong in the early season, when it’s one of the first premium apple varieties to come on in the fall,” he said. Kibbe referenced Nielsen data dated Aug. 7 – Oct. 29, 2016 that shows SweeTango weekly volume averaging 54 lbs per store and a weekly sales average of $233 per store. “Our eye-catching packaging redesign, and the 2-lb pouch in particular, has been well received with high demand from consumers and retailers alike,” he added.
Harvest is expected to begin in late August. While Washington’s harvest is behind 2016, Midwestern crops are a few days ahead. New York, Quebec and Nova Scotia crops will complete the harvest on schedule and consumers will enjoy SweeTango soon after Labor Day.
Despite weather events — including early frost affecting some orchards in Michigan and a number of hail events in Washington, Michigan, and New York — the 2017 crop has potential to be slightly larger than that of 2016. Kibbe commented, “growers are expertly managing and thinning another fine crop of SweeTango with a good range of sizes. We’re excited to start another season.”
Retailers are urged to place orders now and can find their regional sales representative at http://sweetango.com/about/for-retailers/sales-desk/.
ABOUT NEXT BIG THING, A GROWERS’ COOPERATIVE
Next Big Thing, A Growers’ Cooperative is a 47-member cooperative of family growers, spread from Nova Scotia to Washington State, that grows and markets managed varieties of apples, beginning with SweeTango. You can find more information on SweeTango at http://www.sweetango.com or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sweetango.
Mission Produce continues it’s expansion with an agreement to distribute Columbian avocados, while Washington cherry shipments continue on its record setting marathon.
Mission Produce of Oxnard has entered into an agreement market and distribute for Colombian avocado grower-packer Cartama.
“Colombia produces avocados on a year-round basis, and is a natural complement for our destination markets around the world,” Jim Donovan, senior vice president of global sourcing for Mission Produce, said in a press release. “Our agreement with Cartama to market and distribute Colombian avocados gives us an additional source of supply as the category continues to grow globally.”
Cartama is the largest producer of hass avocados in Colombia, and has been growing and distributing avocados for over 16 years. It will have nearly 2,500 acres of hass in production by the end of 2017.
“We are very enthusiastic about the venture with Mission,” Ricardo Uribe, CEO of Cartama, said in the release. “Cartama is a world-class producer of hass avocados and working with Mission gives us access to world markets and the ability to accelerate our aggressive growth plans.”
Steve Barnard, president and CEO of Mission Produce, said Colombia is the eighth country where Mission has invested capital and infrastructure.
“We are continuing to grow our global footprint and planning for the future,” Barnard said in the release.
Just this year, Mission Produce has opened ripening centers in Beijing, Calgary, Alberta, and The Netherlands.
Record Cherry Shipments
Washington cherry shipments are expected to be the largest one on record this season with an estimated 26 million-27 million 20-pound boxes being shipped, mostly by truck.
The record, set in 2014, was 23.2 million boxes. The Washington cherry industry has averaged 530,000 boxes per day for the previous 30 days. Previously, Washington had not come close to averaging even 500,000 boxes a day for that length of time.
This season the industry has already shipped 21 million boxes, and nearly a quarter of the crop remains to be shipped. While a couple of grower-shippers have finished shipping cherries, numerous others have several weeks remaining.
By Larry Oscar
Government vs. private business. I often hear people talking about how divided our country is today. Many seem to be shocked at the fact that we don’t all think and believe alike. They act as though this nation has always been a party of 1960s flower children dancing in the daisies. Maybe it’s because people tend to live in their own little world.
Years ago we didn’t have the instant social media and communications that we have today. Decades ago we had fewer news reporters and even fewer commentators. It’s important for all of us to remember that the news media is a business. And as a business there is intense competition between the news organizations for the almighty advertising dollar. The news media would like for us to think that they are some noble profession that is looking out for us and has the utmost concern for our welfare.
It may come as a shock to some of you, but nothing could be further from the truth. Journalists are not some noble crusaders here to expose the evil in our society and save the world. Far from it. Having attended a university with journalism majors I can assure you that journalism has flaws just like any other profession.
For one thing journalists are not very good at rational cognitive thought processes. That is why they are typically not very good at math. They posses and overabundance of emotion, and they can quickly be drawn into a situation where emotions run high and reason follows very slowly behind. When you couple that with the competitive nature of the news business and throw in large amounts of money you have a recipe for journalistic disaster.
The result is what we find ourselves in today. The news media and the reporting of events simply cannot be trusted for absolute truth anymore. We are in a world where “fake news” is the norm and one has to work to uncover the truth.
Government, by its nature, should have everyone skeptical of its motivation. The saying “I’m from the government and I’m here to help” is a long standing joke that unfortunately says a lot about our government today. Business and government run very differently. Governments should run more like a business and indeed governments will be forced too. As government over spends, which is the nature of all governments, it will be forced to change as sources of funds are depleted.
It has happened in every society throughout history. There are those among us that think that businesses are “brutal” and corporations are evil. This mentality is very close to what we see from the media today. They have a fundamental misunderstanding of life.
Recently we observed the President fire the Director of the FBI James Comey. The media and the left wing lost it. They ranted and demanded to know why Comey was fired. The truth is business runs very different from government. In business you are not guaranteed a job for life. Your job security depends on how well your boss likes the job you are doing and your boss can fire you without giving you a single reason.
Take a look at what happened to Tony Romo the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. Believe it or not professional football is a business. It’s a big business. And Tony Romo didn’t do anything wrong. He lost his job simply because the management of the Dallas Cowboys thought that somebody else could do Tony Romo’s job better. Can you imagine if these government workers were treated like Tony Romo? After all they think they have a right to their job and nobody can fire them without a good cause. And in some cases not even then.
What would our government schools be like if you could fire a math teacher simply because the management found somebody who could teach math better? It is not wrong to fire someone and replace them with a better employee. That is called improving your business, and if our government schools worked to improve their business we wouldn’t have such a poor quality school system today.
The media and many in government jobs need a good dose of the realities of capitalism. Nobody has a right to their job. You are in a position of employment at the discretion of the management. You had better work to the best of your ability or you may just find yourself being replaced and looking for work with Tony Romo.
There are some new sheriffs turning up in the halls of government these days. The government workers should be treated just like the rest of us who pay their salary. They are not anything special. It’s only fair. There is however a bright side to journalism majors. All of the girls in school that were majoring in journalism were good in bed…so I’m told!
A new marketing agreement between two California produce companies should result in about one million cases of persimmons being shipping this season. Meanwhile, we take a final look at the recent Florida and Texas citrus shipping seasons, while giving a glimpse of what is to come on the West Coast.
MPG, Inc., one of the largest persimmon growers in the United States, and The Giumarra Companies of Los Angeles have announced an agreement that will kick off in late August. About one million cases of persimmon will be shipped starting at the end of August from California’s San Joaquin Valley. Fall persimmon shipments from California will conclude about December 1st. Then persimmons from Spain will be available from November through February arriving at Port of Philadelphia.
While persimmons are considerrd a niche commodity, great potential is seen by many for the fruit.
MPG was founded in 2002 as a family operation and has since grown to be among the most largest producers persimmons in the U.S. , extensive acreage of Fuyu and Hachiya persimmons in thes San Joaquin Valley. MPG is also a partnered grower of Spanish persimmons that will be imported following the conclusion of the domestic season, extending distribution for programs into February.
Fuyu persimmons will be offered in one-layer cartons or 2 lb high-graphic handle bags in a 31.5 lb master case and other specialized program packaging. Giumarra’s Nature’s Partner brand. Hachiya persimmons will be shipped in a one-layer carton or consumer packs in counts of 10, 11, or 12.
Citrus Shipping Round Up
Florida orange shipments totaled 68.7 million 90-pound boxes, down 16 percent from the 2015-16 season and down 29 percent from the 2014-15 season, according to the final USDA forecast for the 2016-17 season.
Florida orange shipments have declined significantly in the last decade as a result of rampant citrus greening disease.
The USDA projection for volume was up 200,000 boxes from its June estimate of 68.5 million boxes.
Florida tangerine and tangelo loadings were up 14.5 percent to 1.62 million boxes.
There were bout 7.8 million 85-pound boxes of Florida grapefruit down 27.8 percent from a year ago and down 39.5 percent from 2014-15. Shipments from California and Texas were relatively steady from last season, with 4 million and 4.8 million 80-pound boxes projected, respectively.
California orange shipments also were off, estimated at 48 million 80-pound boxes, down from 58.5 million in the 2015-16 season.
California, which accounts for most domestic lemon shipments, is expected to move about 19 million 80-pound boxes this season, down about 9 percent from 2015-16.
California tangerine and tangelo production grew 11 percent to 24 million boxes. Tangelos are shipped in 90-pound boxes, while tangerines go out in 80-pound boxes from California and in 95-pound boxes from Florida.
by The Corrugated Packaging Alliance
ITASCA, IL – A new Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) published by IFCO, a provider of reusable plastic containers (RPCs), attempts to discredit the corrugated packaging industry for having the highest recovery rate of any packaging system in America.
The LCA posits that since corrugated boxes for produce only have an average recycled content of 38.4 percent, excess recovered fiber collected for recycling displaces production of virgin fiber, which results in apparently higher greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for corrugated.
“This assumption and LCA methodology used by IFCO mischaracterizes the complexities of a balanced fiber production system,” said Dennis Colley, Executive Director of the Corrugated Packaging Alliance. “The corrugated packaging industry uses both virgin and recovered fiber for optimal and maximum production – and a high level of recycling should never be discounted.”
Recovery of old corrugated containers reached a record 92.9 percent in 2015. Around the country, 95 percent of Americans have access to community-based curbside and/or drop-off corrugated recycling programs.
Paper recovery for recycling helps extend the useful life of paper and paper-based packaging products, making it an integral part of the industry’s sustainability story. Nearly 52 percent of the recovered fiber collected for recycling in the U.S. is used to make containerboard for more boxes. Additionally, 11.5 percent is used to make boxboard for primary packaging like cereal boxes, more than 32 percent is exported to other parts of the world where virgin fiber is scarce and the remainder goes to other products like tissue and printing and writing papers.
By preventing paper from being sent to the landfill, paper recovery avoids GHG emissions. More than twice as much paper and paper-based packaging is recycled than is sent to landfills.
The IFCO LCA, “Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Reusable Plastic Containers and Display- and Non-Display Ready Corrugated Containers Used for Fresh Produce Applications,” was conducted by Franklin and Associates and evaluated three types of containers, RPCs, Display and Non-Display Corrugated Containers across ten large-volume produce commodities.
For more information about the sustainability of corrugated packaging, visit www.corrugated.org.
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The Corrugated Packaging Alliance (CPA) is a corrugated industry initiative, jointly sponsored by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA), AICC – The Independent Packaging Association, the Fibre Box Association (FBA) and TAPPI. Its mission is to foster growth and profitability of corrugated in applications where it can be demonstrated, based on credible and persuasive evidence, that corrugated should be the packaging material of choice; and to provide a coordinated industry focus that effectively acts on industry matters that cannot be accomplished by individual members. CPA members include North American corrugated manufacturers and converters.
by The New Jersey Peach Promotion Council
Sharpen up your senses, New Jersey peaches have hit the market, and is there anything closer to heavenly than a perfect peach? Bounteous supplies are available this season, with near-perfect color and sweetness; you can hardly find more delicious …and they’re nutritious — like dessert with health benefits.
Jersey-grown peaches are being celebrated with peach events and peach pie contests at community farmers markets, on-farm markets, restaurants and supermarkets. So, come on, get going and get lots. They’re only in season from late June through mid-September.
“The weather gods shone on us this year,” says Santo John Maccherone, chair, New Jersey Peach Promotion Council and a major south Jersey grower. “My crop is coming in very strong, I’ve started picking and public demand is healthy. It’s very rewarding to have people expressing appreciation for a product.”
At Holtzhauser Farms in Mullica Hill, the first two varieties of yellow (Desiree and Early Star) and white (Spring Snow and Manon) peaches are being picked, and Tom Holtzhauser is packing overtime to meet public demand, smiling all the while. His crop was decimated last year by frost. “I started picking June 20th, and customers are lining up to get my peaches,” he says. “My hours are 8am -6pm, and even at 6pm, I have customers waiting.” Holtzhausers grows 30 peach varieties and sells mainly retail from his farm.
Ron Thomas of Sunny Slope Farm in Hopewell is also a happy grower. “Our crop is clean, sweet, pretty and perfumes the air,” he says. We have a full crop and so far, no thunder storms have knocked fruit off the trees.” He’s picking and selling Sentry yellow variety now, and will have more varieties in a couple weeks.
At Melick Town Farms in Oldwick/Califon, pick-your-own peaches will be available July 4th, “Aand there are plenty,” says John Melick. “Our peaches look wonderful this season, as compared to last year when we had a thin crop. We’ll have more than enough for the entire season, through Labor Day and beyond,”
Gary Mount of Terhune Orchards in Princeton says they began picking yellow and white varieties. “We have a terrific crop” he says. Our early yellows, Flamin Fury, are some of the best.”
Demarest Farms in Hilldale has a bountiful, flavorful crop of yellow and white varieties, with pick-your-own starting the last week of July.
Greg Donaldson of Donaldson’s Farms in Hackettstown concurs with growers throughout the state. “A warm January and February delayed ripening,” says Greg, “which encouraged large and flavorful fruit.”
Jersey peaches come in yellow-flesh, white-flesh and flat/doughnut varieties. They’re rich in nutrients, each peach contains Vitamin A (570 IU per peach): orange-yellow skin indicates large amounts of beta-carotene Potassium (333 mg per peach, Fiber (2.6 grams per peach), magnesium, calcium, vitamin C and more – all packed into just 60 calories.
They’re sweetened by natural sugar, and packed with vital nutrients (Vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium fiber and more) — like dessert with health benefits. They’re also low in calories (just 60 in a medium-size peach), no saturated fats and packed with …But don’t just associate them with dessert; they’re great in green salads, cooked with pork, chicken and fish, even in chili.
The following calendar shows special peach events currently. Additional events will be added as they are planned. The calendar and other peach information can be found on www.jerseypeaches.com and facebook.com/newjerseypeaches. Watch for Jersey Peach ads on facebook’s News Feed page.