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Will South Texas surpass Nogales, Az with imports of fresh produce from Mexico n a year?
Mexican fresh produce imports entering the U.S. through the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas increased 21 percent from 2014 to 2015, and 108 percent over the past eight years. And Pharr, Tx, will likely surpass Nogales, as the busiest U.S. port of entry late this year or in early 2017.
These are some highlights of a recent study of USDA data by Texas A&M University’s Center for North American Studies.
By comparison, Arizona crossings were up 13 percent and California crossings 12 percent from 2014 to 2015.
Over the past eight years, Arizona crossings are up 31 percent, California’s 50 percent.
In 2015, about 210,000 Mexican produce loads crossed through Texas, 147,000 loads through Arizona and 65,000 loads through California. Crossings at some Texas ports were particularly high in 2015. Imports through Pharr rose 36 percent, imports through Laredo 22 percent.
The big jump over the past eight years, meanwhile, can be attributed to a number of factors: improvements in Mexican infrastructure and highways; lower production in the U.S. (due to labor, water and other issues), higher U.S. demand for fresh produce; the Mexican government’s investment in the country’s produce industry; and U.S. shippers’ investment in Mexican production.
“Importers and distributors have been business savvy in shifting volumes to Texas to be in position to take advantage of the time and cost savings for delivery to Midwest and East Coast markets when coming through Texas,” said Bret Erickson, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association, in Mission, Tx.
The biggest highway improvements in Mexico is the 143-mile Autopista Durango-Mazatlan, which connects the growing regions of west Mexico to McAllen, Tx. The new highway opened in 2013.
The surge in Texas crossings has meant more Nogales-area distributors building facilities in Texas, as well as new companies opening up shop near Texas ports.
More infrastructure is needed, handle the bigger loads in South Texas. There’s also are complaints that produce warehouses there need to become more efficient in having loads ready for trucks that arrive on schedule for pick ups.
Shipments of many Mexican fruits and vegetables through Texas have increased significantly in recent years, but none more than avocados. Tomatoes are the volume leader, but avocados are now the second-largest commodity in terms of volume.
In 2015, 1.69 billion pounds of Mexican avocados were imported through Texas ports and were the top commodity coming through Pharr in seven months of 2015.
Texas isn’t the only U.S. state benefiting from increased production in Mexico. .
“For the Mexican produce industry, the growth in the import numbers across all states is impressive. With the sustained drought problems in the Western U.S., we expect to see even more growth in Mexico in the coming years, which should mean even more produce will be imported through west Mexico into Nogales,” said Lance Jungmeyer, president of the Nogales-based Fresh Produce Association of the Americas.
South Texas and Mexican produce – grossing about $2900 to Chicago.
Record-breaking consumption of Starfruit, also known as carambola, is occurring for the fifth straight year.
Improved farming practices are attributed to increasing yields every year. The fruit is grown in Miami-Dade County as well as on Pine Island, the largest island in the state of Florida.
Thirty years ago, carambola was considered a specialty product, but over time, the fruit has become mainstream. The fast growing pace of the Asian and Hispanic population has resulted in an increase in carambola consumption. Children are said to particular love it, The product is a convenient fruit that can be eaten out of hand or sliced.
The growing season for starfruit is from August through February and is characterized by two production peaks; one in September and one in January.
Starfruit can be shipped fresh from the tree to all US states except for California without phytosanitary treatment. Starfruit grower/shipper Brooks Tropicals has developed USDA approved protocol in their groves that minimizes the opportunity for Caribbean Fruit Fly contamination. After receiving approval from the Texas Department of Agriculture, Brooks is now working closely with the USDA and Florida and California departments of Agriculture for their protocol to be approved.
Here’s an update on Washington apples shipments, as well as Florida tomato shipments and Florida orange shipments.
Washington apple shipments now shows the total crop remaining in storages at 116.7 million boxes, down a fraction from 116.9 million a month ago and 117.1 million on January 1st. Record apple shipments occurred in 2014 totaling 141.8 million boxes.
The 2015 crop is 54 percent, 62.9 million boxes, shipped versus 54 percent a year ago and 56.7 percent two years ago. Weekly shipments are averaging a healthy 2.5 million boxes.
Florida Tomato Shipments
Abnormal winter storms have caused shortages of all Florida grown produce. Damaging winds, heavy rains and even tornadoes have crossed the state nearly every week since the holidays. About 80 percent of the tomatoes in the U.S. are currently coming from Mexico. Meanwhile, Florida production and shipments of tomatoes should increase significantly by Mid April.
Florida Orange Shipments
The USDA 2015-16 Florida orange shipping estimate has increased 3 percent to 71 million, though it is still well below the 96.8 million boxes of oranges moved during the 2014-15 season. A 2 million box rise in Valencias to 35 million accounted for the increase, while early and mid-season varieties stayed at 36 million boxes. Florida citrus officials say its citrus crops remain in a “crisis” situation due to disease issues.
The USDA’s estimate of the 2015-16 Florida grapefruit crop also rose slightly to 10.7 million boxes from 10.5 million. Specialty citrus decreased a fraction to 1.8 million boxes.
Here’s a look at loading opportunities with New York apples, Florida blueberries, plus citrus and artichokes from California.
New York apple shipments have been steady from week to week shipments for the most part. The Empire state has between 550 and 600 primary apple growers that produce an average of 29.5 to 30 million bushels a season. That average is nudging up over time as orchards become more productive.
Florida Blueberry Shipments
A very limited amount of Florida blueberry shipments are underway, but due to an excessively warm winter, volume is expected to be much lower this season. Florida has about 8,000 acres of blueberries and is the first state to ship the fruit each year. It is closely followed by Georgia blueberry shipments. Georgia has about 25,000 acres of blueberries, with the harvest starting in a few weeks. We’ll provide more information on Georgia “blues” as it becomes available.
Central Florida berries, veggies – grossing about $2100 to New York City; Southern Florida potatoes and melons, about $2500 to New York City.
California Artichoke Shipments
Ocean Mist Farms of Castroville, CA is entering the peak season for its artichoke shipments. Peak loadings should continue through May. Ocean Mist is the largest grower shipper of the product.
California Orange Shipments
Navel orange shipments out of the San Joaquin Valley should be about 10 to 15 percent higher than originally estimated. The harvest is about 50 percent completed and shipments have been steady.
San Joaquin Valley oranges, kiwifruit and carrots – grossing about $4400 to Atlanta.
By Sunsweet
Studies suggest that one in two women and up to one in four men, age 50 and older, will break a bone due to osteoporosis.1 The good news is that a balanced diet, combined with regular exercise, can help to optimize bone health at all ages and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.2 Recently, the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF) issued a position statement specific to developing “peak bone mass,” which highlights the nutrition, physical activity and lifestyle factors recommended to optimize peak bone mass and reduce the risk of osteoporosis and related fractures later in life.
The position paper, published in the journal Osteoporosis International, is considered the first systematic review of its kind. In addition to supporting the positive effect of calcium and vitamin D intake on bone strength, the authors note that a variety of other nutrients, including dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, and vitamin C are also important for bone health.
“People often think of dairy foods for building strong bones, but a bone-healthy diet also includes fruits and vegetables, like prunes, oranges, kale and potatoes, fatty fish, like salmon, sardines and tuna, and calcium and vitamin D fortified foods,” said Taylor C. Wallace, PhD, senior director of science, policy and government relations at NOF.
Dr. Shirin Hooshmand, Associate Professor, School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences at San Diego State University, agrees as she has been conducting nutrition research on the bone health benefits of eating prunes.
“Our research suggests that the consumption of nutrients found in prunes, like potassium, magnesium and vitamin K, are important for bone health,” notes Hooshmand. “The new Peak Bone Mass Study is an exciting addition to the growing body of evidence of the role that nutrition can play in developing optimal bone health.”
Hooshmand’s recent study suggests that osteopenic, postmenopausal women who ate 50 grams of prunes per day (4-5 prunes) for six months experienced improved bone mineral density at the end of the clinical trial.3 Similar results were seen in an earlier study conducted by Hooshmand using 100 grams of prunes per day (10-11 prunes).
Sunsweet Growers is the world’s largest handler of dried fruits including prunes.
An estimated 170,000 Mexican trucks hauling mostly fresh fruits and vegetables are expected to cross into the United States during 2016. These big rigs arrive from Mexico across the international bridges on the southern border and agricultural trade between the two countries has increased significantly the past 10 years.
Demand on inspectors at the Pharr, McAllen and Brownsville, Texas land ports is expected to increase in the future as the Mazatlan-Matamoros superhighway, also dubbed Supervia, is drastically changing the fresh produce industry in South Texas and in the U.S. Connecting Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico to Pharr and Brownsville, Texas, this new route for produce transportation provides a more direct route to receivers in the eastern half of the U.S from agriculture-rich regions in Mexico.
As a result multi-million dollar refrigerated storage facilities have opened in the McAllen-Edinburg area to accommodate the inflow of these fresh food products. However, Rio Grande Valley wholesalers and warehouse owners have complained a lack of agriculture inspectors at the border has dramatically increased inspection wait times.
As a result, the agriculture and transportation industry in South Texas is calling for more USDA inspectors, and they are wanting the state of Texas to pay for it. However, budget constraints has resulted in only a handful of additional inspectors being added.
Already the Texas Legislature authorized a $652,500 grant that should substantially reduce wait times at ports between Texas and Mexico. The grant requires matching funds, so collectively about $1.3 million will soon be available to add inspectors at land ports in South Texas to handle the elevated flow of fresh foods from Mexico.
Another problem, is that once Mexican produce has passed inspection and delivered to warehouses, significant delays are being reported. Often a truck will have to pick up partial loads at different warehouses, and too often the product is not ready for pick up, resulting is significant delays for truckers.
South Texas citrus, Mexican produce – grossing about $4000 to New York City.
Crowley Maritime Corp. has started clearing certain produce requiring cold-treatment from more South American countries at the Port of Charleston, S.C.
This has become possible due to expansion of the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS) cold treatment pilot program.
“We’ve worked diligently with the Florida Perishable Trade Coalition to make the cold-treatment program a reality,” Nelly Yunta, vice president, Customized Brokers, a subsidiary of Crowley, said in a press release. “Each time the program expands to another port of entry or an additional commodity, it’s a huge win for consumers looking to have fresh produce on their tables throughout the year.”
As early as this spring, Crowley will be able to accept those items such as: Peruvian citrus, blueberries, grapes; Uruguay blueberries, grapes; Argentinean blueberries, apples and pears.
The cold treatment process eliminates harsh chemical fumigation, but still ensures that foreign insect and larvae are eradicated from the cargo, according to the release. The program has previously been rolled out in both Savannah, GA and South Florida.
As with previous implementations, containers that do not pass cold treatment will be prohibited from entering the port without being offloaded from vessels. If containers do fail, they will be allowed transit by sea to a Northeastern port for retreatment, or will be re-exported to the country of origin.
This expansion not only serves to filter the import process, but also helps to lower transportation costs, prolong shelf-life by shortening the shipping distance, and help lower grocery prices for those items for southern-based consumers.
South Texas onion shipments could be down at least 10 percent this season. Plus, here’s an update on U.S. russet potato shipments.
A year ago Texas onion acreage had declined to less than 6,000 acres. This year, under 5,000 acres are believed plantedL.
Last season it rained almost non-stop for two months, resulting in less than half a crop, while some growers were literally rained out for the season. Much acreage was abandoned and couldn’t be harvested. The 2016 Texas onion harvest should get undeway in late March.
In late February, onion volume coming from Mexico and crossing the border in South Texas was lighter than normal, but it now showing substantial increases in volume.
Meanwhile, storage onions shipped from Idaho and Oregon warehouses will be declining soon. Also, California’s Imperial Valley was the only area with good supplies in April last year, but no estimates have been released on this area yet.
Potato Shipments
Russet potato shipments have been steady, with the vast majority coming from Idaho, Colorado, and Wisconsin. Wisconsin russet shipments should continue until around mid-July. At this time some Wisconsin potato shipments then buy and sell spuds from growers in mid-Southern states.
While volumes are similar to last year in Wisconsin, 2015-16 shipments will likely be up from the five-year average and up significantly from the average over the past couple of decades.
As always, Idaho easily lead U.S. potato shipments and is averaging about 1750 truckloads per week. Colorado’s San Luis Valley is shipping about 750 truck loads of potatoes a week, while Central Wisconsin is loading about 400 truck loads each week.
As the federal government continues to pile rules and regulations on interstate trucking it is time shippers start treating truckers as partners. Times are rapidly changing in a world of cyberspace.
Jimmy DeMatteis is president of Des Moines Truck Brokers, Inc. (DMTB) of Norwalk, IA, that bills itself as “Iowa’s first and most nationally recognized third party logistics company.” Like it or not, DeMatteis says the day is coming when businesses are going to have to change the way they deal with the trucking industry or begin facing the consequences of government penalties.
“If you do anything to coerce these guys to go against the rules, hours of service, etc., they (the government) can issue severe penalties” that he notes can start at $2500 and go up to $25,000 for repeat offenders.
An example of these changing times comes with the implementation of e-logs.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued its final rule last December requiring the use of electronic logs in all 2000 and newer trucks in interstate commerce. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has filed a Petition for Review citing the rule as an intrusion into the rights of professional truckers and an invasion of a driver’s right to privacy.
DMTB arranges thousands of refrigerated produce and other fresh foods each year.
“There will be fines so you (shippers) have got to be careful telling motor carriers to get to their appointments, while the guy is still waiting to load at a dock. If you do anything to coerce these guys to go against the rules, hours of service, etc, they (government) can issue severe penalties. You can wait at a dock six to eight hours, and they tell the driver you have to have a load delivered in an unreasonable amount of time,” DeMatteis says. “You can’t do that anymore.”
The DMTB executive notes a down side to e-logs are many truckers feel they will make less money because of running fewer miles.
“Shippers and brokers have to be educated it is not business as usual. If you want good carriers it’s time to start treating them as partners. Carriers have always been blamed for everything and it is really inefficient shipping,,” he states.
DeMatteis calls for government to spend more time making trucking more efficient. “Instead, they too often take the adversarial route and treat everyone like an outlaw. The outlaws aren’t out there anymore.”
Continuing, he adds, “I want the carriers to survive. Shippers need to be more honest, efficient and accurate with shipping schedules and get the trucks out when they say they are going to get them out.”
ABOUT DES MOINES TRUCK BROKERS:
James A. DeMatteis starting hauling produce in 1951. As a small fleet owner in 1963 he became a broker of exempt commodities. This eventually evolved in 1969 into DMTB. The company was a one man operation until Jimmy DeMatteis joined in 1984. The third party logistics provider operates in 48 states, Canada and Mexico. It delivered over 10,000 loads last year, with over 98 percent of the deliveries being on time.
According to the DMTB website: “Our reputation on paying carriers fast is second to none. Its claims ratio is less than one half of one percent over the past five years.”
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Rimmed by hills and oil derricks, stretch miles of mandarin orange groves along the Maricopa Highway at the southwestern end of the San Joaquin Valley. These used to be cotton fields, but is now the epicenter of an agricultural boom that has turned mandarins into a rising star.
Since that expansion started in the late 1990s, California’s mandarin plantings have increased 10-fold, from 5,000 to 50,000 acres. The state now ships 92 percent of the nation’s mandarin crop, while Florida, troubled by citrus greening disease and obsolete varieties with seeds, has had its share drop to 8 percent, from 66 percent.
In the process, thanks to new offerings and skillful marketing, mandarins — popularly known as tangerines — have become very popular with American consumers. Mandarin consumption has doubled, to five pounds a year for every American, while orange sales have declined.
Native to China and northeastern India, mandarins are one of five original types of citrus (along with pummelos, citrons, kumquats and papedas) from which all others, like oranges and grapefruit, are derived. Until recently, because most mandarins were relatively small, delicate or full of seeds, they remained less cultivated than other citrus in the United States.
In the late 1990s, two companies with deep pockets and marketing savvy, Sun Pacific and Paramount Citrus (now Wonderful Citrus), gambled big with huge mandarin plantings on the Maricopa Highway, 25 miles southwest of Bakersfield, where they were isolated from other citrus whose pollen could make the fruit seedy.
Will South Texas surpass Nogales, Az with imports of fresh produce from Mexico n a year?
Mexican fresh produce imports entering the U.S. through the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas increased 21 percent from 2014 to 2015, and 108 percent over the past eight years. And Pharr, Tx, will likely surpass Nogales, as the busiest U.S. port of entry late this year or in early 2017.
These are some highlights of a recent study of USDA data by Texas A&M University’s Center for North American Studies.
By comparison, Arizona crossings were up 13 percent and California crossings 12 percent from 2014 to 2015.
Over the past eight years, Arizona crossings are up 31 percent, California’s 50 percent.
In 2015, about 210,000 Mexican produce loads crossed through Texas, 147,000 loads through Arizona and 65,000 loads through California. Crossings at some Texas ports were particularly high in 2015. Imports through Pharr rose 36 percent, imports through Laredo 22 percent.
The big jump over the past eight years, meanwhile, can be attributed to a number of factors: improvements in Mexican infrastructure and highways; lower production in the U.S. (due to labor, water and other issues), higher U.S. demand for fresh produce; the Mexican government’s investment in the country’s produce industry; and U.S. shippers’ investment in Mexican production.
“Importers and distributors have been business savvy in shifting volumes to Texas to be in position to take advantage of the time and cost savings for delivery to Midwest and East Coast markets when coming through Texas,” said Bret Erickson, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association, in Mission, Tx.
The biggest highway improvements in Mexico is the 143-mile Autopista Durango-Mazatlan, which connects the growing regions of west Mexico to McAllen, Tx. The new highway opened in 2013.
The surge in Texas crossings has meant more Nogales-area distributors building facilities in Texas, as well as new companies opening up shop near Texas ports.
More infrastructure is needed, handle the bigger loads in South Texas. There’s also are complaints that produce warehouses there need to become more efficient in having loads ready for trucks that arrive on schedule for pick ups.
Shipments of many Mexican fruits and vegetables through Texas have increased significantly in recent years, but none more than avocados. Tomatoes are the volume leader, but avocados are now the second-largest commodity in terms of volume.
In 2015, 1.69 billion pounds of Mexican avocados were imported through Texas ports and were the top commodity coming through Pharr in seven months of 2015.
Texas isn’t the only U.S. state benefiting from increased production in Mexico. .
“For the Mexican produce industry, the growth in the import numbers across all states is impressive. With the sustained drought problems in the Western U.S., we expect to see even more growth in Mexico in the coming years, which should mean even more produce will be imported through west Mexico into Nogales,” said Lance Jungmeyer, president of the Nogales-based Fresh Produce Association of the Americas.
South Texas and Mexican produce – grossing about $2900 to Chicago.
Record-breaking consumption of Starfruit, also known as carambola, is occurring for the fifth straight year.
Improved farming practices are attributed to increasing yields every year. The fruit is grown in Miami-Dade County as well as on Pine Island, the largest island in the state of Florida.
Thirty years ago, carambola was considered a specialty product, but over time, the fruit has become mainstream. The fast growing pace of the Asian and Hispanic population has resulted in an increase in carambola consumption. Children are said to particular love it, The product is a convenient fruit that can be eaten out of hand or sliced.
The growing season for starfruit is from August through February and is characterized by two production peaks; one in September and one in January.
Starfruit can be shipped fresh from the tree to all US states except for California without phytosanitary treatment. Starfruit grower/shipper Brooks Tropicals has developed USDA approved protocol in their groves that minimizes the opportunity for Caribbean Fruit Fly contamination. After receiving approval from the Texas Department of Agriculture, Brooks is now working closely with the USDA and Florida and California departments of Agriculture for their protocol to be approved.
Here’s an update on Washington apples shipments, as well as Florida tomato shipments and Florida orange shipments.
Washington apple shipments now shows the total crop remaining in storages at 116.7 million boxes, down a fraction from 116.9 million a month ago and 117.1 million on January 1st. Record apple shipments occurred in 2014 totaling 141.8 million boxes.
The 2015 crop is 54 percent, 62.9 million boxes, shipped versus 54 percent a year ago and 56.7 percent two years ago. Weekly shipments are averaging a healthy 2.5 million boxes.
Florida Tomato Shipments
Abnormal winter storms have caused shortages of all Florida grown produce. Damaging winds, heavy rains and even tornadoes have crossed the state nearly every week since the holidays. About 80 percent of the tomatoes in the U.S. are currently coming from Mexico. Meanwhile, Florida production and shipments of tomatoes should increase significantly by Mid April.
Florida Orange Shipments
The USDA 2015-16 Florida orange shipping estimate has increased 3 percent to 71 million, though it is still well below the 96.8 million boxes of oranges moved during the 2014-15 season. A 2 million box rise in Valencias to 35 million accounted for the increase, while early and mid-season varieties stayed at 36 million boxes. Florida citrus officials say its citrus crops remain in a “crisis” situation due to disease issues.
The USDA’s estimate of the 2015-16 Florida grapefruit crop also rose slightly to 10.7 million boxes from 10.5 million. Specialty citrus decreased a fraction to 1.8 million boxes.
Here’s a look at loading opportunities with New York apples, Florida blueberries, plus citrus and artichokes from California.
New York apple shipments have been steady from week to week shipments for the most part. The Empire state has between 550 and 600 primary apple growers that produce an average of 29.5 to 30 million bushels a season. That average is nudging up over time as orchards become more productive.
Florida Blueberry Shipments
A very limited amount of Florida blueberry shipments are underway, but due to an excessively warm winter, volume is expected to be much lower this season. Florida has about 8,000 acres of blueberries and is the first state to ship the fruit each year. It is closely followed by Georgia blueberry shipments. Georgia has about 25,000 acres of blueberries, with the harvest starting in a few weeks. We’ll provide more information on Georgia “blues” as it becomes available.
Central Florida berries, veggies – grossing about $2100 to New York City; Southern Florida potatoes and melons, about $2500 to New York City.
California Artichoke Shipments
Ocean Mist Farms of Castroville, CA is entering the peak season for its artichoke shipments. Peak loadings should continue through May. Ocean Mist is the largest grower shipper of the product.
California Orange Shipments
Navel orange shipments out of the San Joaquin Valley should be about 10 to 15 percent higher than originally estimated. The harvest is about 50 percent completed and shipments have been steady.
San Joaquin Valley oranges, kiwifruit and carrots – grossing about $4400 to Atlanta.
By Sunsweet
Studies suggest that one in two women and up to one in four men, age 50 and older, will break a bone due to osteoporosis.1 The good news is that a balanced diet, combined with regular exercise, can help to optimize bone health at all ages and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.2 Recently, the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF) issued a position statement specific to developing “peak bone mass,” which highlights the nutrition, physical activity and lifestyle factors recommended to optimize peak bone mass and reduce the risk of osteoporosis and related fractures later in life.
The position paper, published in the journal Osteoporosis International, is considered the first systematic review of its kind. In addition to supporting the positive effect of calcium and vitamin D intake on bone strength, the authors note that a variety of other nutrients, including dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, and vitamin C are also important for bone health.
“People often think of dairy foods for building strong bones, but a bone-healthy diet also includes fruits and vegetables, like prunes, oranges, kale and potatoes, fatty fish, like salmon, sardines and tuna, and calcium and vitamin D fortified foods,” said Taylor C. Wallace, PhD, senior director of science, policy and government relations at NOF.
Dr. Shirin Hooshmand, Associate Professor, School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences at San Diego State University, agrees as she has been conducting nutrition research on the bone health benefits of eating prunes.
“Our research suggests that the consumption of nutrients found in prunes, like potassium, magnesium and vitamin K, are important for bone health,” notes Hooshmand. “The new Peak Bone Mass Study is an exciting addition to the growing body of evidence of the role that nutrition can play in developing optimal bone health.”
Hooshmand’s recent study suggests that osteopenic, postmenopausal women who ate 50 grams of prunes per day (4-5 prunes) for six months experienced improved bone mineral density at the end of the clinical trial.3 Similar results were seen in an earlier study conducted by Hooshmand using 100 grams of prunes per day (10-11 prunes).
Sunsweet Growers is the world’s largest handler of dried fruits including prunes.
An estimated 170,000 Mexican trucks hauling mostly fresh fruits and vegetables are expected to cross into the United States during 2016. These big rigs arrive from Mexico across the international bridges on the southern border and agricultural trade between the two countries has increased significantly the past 10 years.
Demand on inspectors at the Pharr, McAllen and Brownsville, Texas land ports is expected to increase in the future as the Mazatlan-Matamoros superhighway, also dubbed Supervia, is drastically changing the fresh produce industry in South Texas and in the U.S. Connecting Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico to Pharr and Brownsville, Texas, this new route for produce transportation provides a more direct route to receivers in the eastern half of the U.S from agriculture-rich regions in Mexico.
As a result multi-million dollar refrigerated storage facilities have opened in the McAllen-Edinburg area to accommodate the inflow of these fresh food products. However, Rio Grande Valley wholesalers and warehouse owners have complained a lack of agriculture inspectors at the border has dramatically increased inspection wait times.
As a result, the agriculture and transportation industry in South Texas is calling for more USDA inspectors, and they are wanting the state of Texas to pay for it. However, budget constraints has resulted in only a handful of additional inspectors being added.
Already the Texas Legislature authorized a $652,500 grant that should substantially reduce wait times at ports between Texas and Mexico. The grant requires matching funds, so collectively about $1.3 million will soon be available to add inspectors at land ports in South Texas to handle the elevated flow of fresh foods from Mexico.
Another problem, is that once Mexican produce has passed inspection and delivered to warehouses, significant delays are being reported. Often a truck will have to pick up partial loads at different warehouses, and too often the product is not ready for pick up, resulting is significant delays for truckers.
South Texas citrus, Mexican produce – grossing about $4000 to New York City.
Crowley Maritime Corp. has started clearing certain produce requiring cold-treatment from more South American countries at the Port of Charleston, S.C.
This has become possible due to expansion of the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS) cold treatment pilot program.
“We’ve worked diligently with the Florida Perishable Trade Coalition to make the cold-treatment program a reality,” Nelly Yunta, vice president, Customized Brokers, a subsidiary of Crowley, said in a press release. “Each time the program expands to another port of entry or an additional commodity, it’s a huge win for consumers looking to have fresh produce on their tables throughout the year.”
As early as this spring, Crowley will be able to accept those items such as: Peruvian citrus, blueberries, grapes; Uruguay blueberries, grapes; Argentinean blueberries, apples and pears.
The cold treatment process eliminates harsh chemical fumigation, but still ensures that foreign insect and larvae are eradicated from the cargo, according to the release. The program has previously been rolled out in both Savannah, GA and South Florida.
As with previous implementations, containers that do not pass cold treatment will be prohibited from entering the port without being offloaded from vessels. If containers do fail, they will be allowed transit by sea to a Northeastern port for retreatment, or will be re-exported to the country of origin.
This expansion not only serves to filter the import process, but also helps to lower transportation costs, prolong shelf-life by shortening the shipping distance, and help lower grocery prices for those items for southern-based consumers.
South Texas onion shipments could be down at least 10 percent this season. Plus, here’s an update on U.S. russet potato shipments.
A year ago Texas onion acreage had declined to less than 6,000 acres. This year, under 5,000 acres are believed plantedL.
Last season it rained almost non-stop for two months, resulting in less than half a crop, while some growers were literally rained out for the season. Much acreage was abandoned and couldn’t be harvested. The 2016 Texas onion harvest should get undeway in late March.
In late February, onion volume coming from Mexico and crossing the border in South Texas was lighter than normal, but it now showing substantial increases in volume.
Meanwhile, storage onions shipped from Idaho and Oregon warehouses will be declining soon. Also, California’s Imperial Valley was the only area with good supplies in April last year, but no estimates have been released on this area yet.
Potato Shipments
Russet potato shipments have been steady, with the vast majority coming from Idaho, Colorado, and Wisconsin. Wisconsin russet shipments should continue until around mid-July. At this time some Wisconsin potato shipments then buy and sell spuds from growers in mid-Southern states.
While volumes are similar to last year in Wisconsin, 2015-16 shipments will likely be up from the five-year average and up significantly from the average over the past couple of decades.
As always, Idaho easily lead U.S. potato shipments and is averaging about 1750 truckloads per week. Colorado’s San Luis Valley is shipping about 750 truck loads of potatoes a week, while Central Wisconsin is loading about 400 truck loads each week.
As the federal government continues to pile rules and regulations on interstate trucking it is time shippers start treating truckers as partners. Times are rapidly changing in a world of cyberspace.
Jimmy DeMatteis is president of Des Moines Truck Brokers, Inc. (DMTB) of Norwalk, IA, that bills itself as “Iowa’s first and most nationally recognized third party logistics company.” Like it or not, DeMatteis says the day is coming when businesses are going to have to change the way they deal with the trucking industry or begin facing the consequences of government penalties.
“If you do anything to coerce these guys to go against the rules, hours of service, etc., they (the government) can issue severe penalties” that he notes can start at $2500 and go up to $25,000 for repeat offenders.
An example of these changing times comes with the implementation of e-logs.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued its final rule last December requiring the use of electronic logs in all 2000 and newer trucks in interstate commerce. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has filed a Petition for Review citing the rule as an intrusion into the rights of professional truckers and an invasion of a driver’s right to privacy.
DMTB arranges thousands of refrigerated produce and other fresh foods each year.
“There will be fines so you (shippers) have got to be careful telling motor carriers to get to their appointments, while the guy is still waiting to load at a dock. If you do anything to coerce these guys to go against the rules, hours of service, etc, they (government) can issue severe penalties. You can wait at a dock six to eight hours, and they tell the driver you have to have a load delivered in an unreasonable amount of time,” DeMatteis says. “You can’t do that anymore.”
The DMTB executive notes a down side to e-logs are many truckers feel they will make less money because of running fewer miles.
“Shippers and brokers have to be educated it is not business as usual. If you want good carriers it’s time to start treating them as partners. Carriers have always been blamed for everything and it is really inefficient shipping,,” he states.
DeMatteis calls for government to spend more time making trucking more efficient. “Instead, they too often take the adversarial route and treat everyone like an outlaw. The outlaws aren’t out there anymore.”
Continuing, he adds, “I want the carriers to survive. Shippers need to be more honest, efficient and accurate with shipping schedules and get the trucks out when they say they are going to get them out.”
ABOUT DES MOINES TRUCK BROKERS:
James A. DeMatteis starting hauling produce in 1951. As a small fleet owner in 1963 he became a broker of exempt commodities. This eventually evolved in 1969 into DMTB. The company was a one man operation until Jimmy DeMatteis joined in 1984. The third party logistics provider operates in 48 states, Canada and Mexico. It delivered over 10,000 loads last year, with over 98 percent of the deliveries being on time.
According to the DMTB website: “Our reputation on paying carriers fast is second to none. Its claims ratio is less than one half of one percent over the past five years.”
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Rimmed by hills and oil derricks, stretch miles of mandarin orange groves along the Maricopa Highway at the southwestern end of the San Joaquin Valley. These used to be cotton fields, but is now the epicenter of an agricultural boom that has turned mandarins into a rising star.
Since that expansion started in the late 1990s, California’s mandarin plantings have increased 10-fold, from 5,000 to 50,000 acres. The state now ships 92 percent of the nation’s mandarin crop, while Florida, troubled by citrus greening disease and obsolete varieties with seeds, has had its share drop to 8 percent, from 66 percent.
In the process, thanks to new offerings and skillful marketing, mandarins — popularly known as tangerines — have become very popular with American consumers. Mandarin consumption has doubled, to five pounds a year for every American, while orange sales have declined.
Native to China and northeastern India, mandarins are one of five original types of citrus (along with pummelos, citrons, kumquats and papedas) from which all others, like oranges and grapefruit, are derived. Until recently, because most mandarins were relatively small, delicate or full of seeds, they remained less cultivated than other citrus in the United States.
In the late 1990s, two companies with deep pockets and marketing savvy, Sun Pacific and Paramount Citrus (now Wonderful Citrus), gambled big with huge mandarin plantings on the Maricopa Highway, 25 miles southwest of Bakersfield, where they were isolated from other citrus whose pollen could make the fruit seedy.