WATSONVILLE, CA – A bountiful summer of California strawberries is ahead for California Giant Berry Farms as the company forecasts huge volumes of the company’s cornerstone product.
The berry purveyor’s high yields and forecast for excellent quality fruit come following a later-than-average start for some of its growing regions—but despite this, the company is on track to deliver peak volumes of California strawberries.
“2023 was a challenging year for some of our growing regions,” said Andy Rice, vice president of field operations and product supply at California Giant Berry Farms. “Ultimately, weather impacted crops early on—from above average amounts of rain, flooding or uncharacteristically cold weather. Like most California production, our production curve was shifted, and peak promotable volumes are arriving, albeit later than average.”
Out of the Santa Maria region, California Giant is reporting sizeable, high-quality fruit. The region is amid its peak volume window, which is forecasted to maintain through mid-June.
The Watsonville and Salinas growing region—despite initial weather challenges—are seeing week-over-week increase in volumes, with estimates projecting substantial harvested volumes beginning mid-June and spanning to early-August. Due to the area’s late start, the company is forecasting fruit will be available late into summer. The region’s ranches are reporting excellent quality and flavor, alongside sizable fruit.
California Giant’s peak promotable volumes come at a time when consumers are enjoying berries more than ever. Recent USDA data reports that gains in retail per capita consumption for berries have been very strong compared with many other fresh fruits. Strawberries consumption specifically has grown from 4.6 pounds in 2011 to 6.7 pounds in 2021, an overall gain of 45%.
To support the expected influx of strawberries, California Giant employs Instacart advertising and Ibotta consumer promotions to drive purchase intent for fresh berries. In correlation, the brand will launch consumer engagement sweepstakes to further drive brand awareness and demand.
Through the shared industry goal to drive significant increases in strawberry consumption, California Giant continues to deliver the best berry experience by providing a year-round supply of sustainably grown fresh berries that represent the highest standards for quality, consistency and smiles.
About California Giant Berry Farms
California Giant Berry Farms grows and ships berries to retailers, and foodservice providing an all-season supply of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries. The privately owned company has been in business 40 years.
Meatballs, tacos and Bolognese, not to mention mushrooms, can all be plant-based using walnut protein.
The California Walnut Commission is on a campaign from May through June to highlight the versatility of walnut meat.
The California Walnuts retail team is promoting a delicious cross-merchandising trifecta: Walnuts with Natural Delights dates and BelGioioso cheese, particularly the mascarpone and creamy gorgonzola.
The co-branded promotion will initially be featured at Hy-Vee, Marc’s, Strack & Van Til, Cub Foods and Albertsons/Vons SoCal, according to a news release. The promotion will go live on May 15.
The retail partnership builds on the popularity of walnuts as a snack. Four in five — or 191 million — American consumers eat walnuts, according to a Consumer Snacking Survey by Kelton in partnership with California Walnuts in 2021.
WALNUT MEAT
The walnut meat campaign highlights the versatility of using walnuts this way and how easy it is to prepare at home. Ground walnuts can be added to other pantry staples with favorite spices to provide an easy boost of nutrition with flavor and a similar texture of traditional meat.
Kerry Taste Charts listed walnuts as the No. 1 ingredient for meat alternatives in 2021, according to the release.
For this campaign, California Walnuts is partnering with two popular food influencers, Yumna Jawad (@Feel Good Foodie) and Justine Doiron (@Justine_Snacks). They will showcase new plant-based recipes crafted with walnut meat. For example, Jawad will develop and share her custom recipe for stuffed shells with walnut meat on Instagram and TikTok.
“Walnuts truly mimic the texture of ground beef with just a quick pulse in the food processor — and they can be flavored with virtually any type of seasoning I like,” Jawad said in the release. “It’s fast, simple and easy — and includes ingredients you already have in your pantry.”
North Bay Produce, Inc. of Traverse City, MI reports Michigan asparagus shipments will be ending in the third week of June.
Growers for North Bay have been picking twice a day to beat the heat and speed harvest before the asparagus becomes seedy.
The firm’s recent press release also provides insights into several other crops.
North Bay’s domestic blackberry season in Georgia and North Carolina was delayed by rain in late May. The dampness forced some fruit to processing markets. The company anticipates increasing domestic blackberry volume this June, while supplementing its blackberry supplies in the first half of June with imports from Mexico and Guatemala. Good blackberry volume should be available into the July 4 holiday.
North Carolina and Georgia blueberries were also set back by late May rain, although Georgia’s Rabbit Eye blueberries are expected to be on the market for the next few weeks. North Bay has positive expectations for the summer’s New Jersey blueberry crop, which is important in supplying the Fourth of July holiday.
Mexican raspberry supplies were winding down in early June, as North Bay moved to California for domestic sourcing, which will run into the fall.
It’s early in the growing season, but Michigan apple production should be good, according to the Michigan-based grower and international fruit marketing firm.
Panama Canal water levels have decreased due to severe drought, forcing vessels to lighten their loads and pay higher rates.
A restriction in weight is occurring at one of the world’s most important shipping routes from May 24, followed by another decrease on May 29.
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) reports the maximum draft allowed for vessels transiting the Canal from May 24 would be reduced to 13.56m or 44.5 ft.
Effective May 30, the maximum draft allowed for vessels dropped to 44 ft, the authority noted.
The canal is supplied by two nearby lakes which received 50% less rain than usual between February and April. Lack of rain is threatening to bring levels to historical lows in July.
Experts have warned new restrictions will likely cause delays and freight cost increases as the Panama string capacities are reduced.
Hapag Lloyd already announced a PCC (Panama Canal Charge) of $500 per container effective June 1 on all cargo loaded on its Asia to US east coast sailings via the canal.
The canal, which manages around 5% of annual global maritime trade, has been struggling with drought ever since it expanded in 2016 to allow larger ships to pass through its locks.
A 28% increase in citrus exports for Chile is projected for the 2023 season, at an estimated 345,000 tons, according to the Citrus Committee of the Chilean Association of Fruit Exporters and Producers (ASOEX).
The season began the first week of April with shipments of clementines of the Oronules, Orogrande and Clemenules varieties from the Coquimbo region.
By the end of April, 270 tons were shipped from Valparaiso to the U.S.
In 2022, Chile exported 270,000 tons of citrus. This volume represented a 32% decrease from the previous year.
Navel oranges accounted for 30% of exports, lemons represented 21%, clementines 16% and mandarins 33%.
The Citrus Committee, an organization formed by the main citrus exporters in the country and representing 75% of Chile’s citrus exports, indicates exports will level off to a normal average season and it is expected that rains in Coquimbo, for example, will result in a good fruit size.
Ciruli Bros. LLC of Rio Rico, AZ imports Mexican mangos through both Nogales and McAllen Tx and its volume through both continues to grow.
There was a slow start to the Mexican mango deal season between March and April, but the weather has improve. Mexican mango volume is at a peak due to concurrent production across three states – Chiapas, Michoacan, and Nayarit.
Good volume is expected through June.
Champagne peak volume started in mid May and will continue through June 15th, while Kents will peak between June 19 to about July 19.
As the Chiapas and Michoacan seasons slow down, Nayarit volume started picking up the second week of May and will through early July.
The state of Arkansas has about 2,000 acres of tomatoes, according to the Arkansas Farm Bureau, making the commodity one of the state’s largest specialty crops.
Gem Tomato & Vegetable Shales of Hamburg, AR is reporting an exceptional crop and is among the nation’s first field-grown vine-ripes to be harvested each year.
A few tomatoes were picked in late may, but there is now a jump in volume occurring.
Gem Tomato offers round, roma, and for the past few years, grape tomatoes and ships primarily to customers in the midwest.
Round tomatoes are the company’s bestseller, but demand for romas has increased each year since they were added to the product line more than 20 years ago.
Harrod & Hensley Tomato Co. of Hermitage, AR in Bradley County, is known nationally as a prime tomato-growing region, shipping round, grape, heirloom and roma tomatoes. The fifth generation family owned company normally has the first tomatoes shipped of Arkansas.
The company also sells tomatoes for four or five other growers.
The state’s tomato loadings continue into the first week of July.
West Coast container imports plunged 22% compared to a year ago in April, while volumes on the East Coast declined by 20%. This is according to online The McCown Report by shipping expert John D. McCown.
Los Angeles had the biggest drop in April last, down 25%, while the eastern Port of Charlston’s imports fell by 28%.
This comes as the Pacific ports have continued to be burdened by ongoing labor negotiations, thus shifting inbound volume to East and Gulf coast ports.
“If economic conditions improve and we get a labor deal in place, that will definitely help drive our volume,” Gene Seroka, executive director at the Port of Los Angeles, told The Load Star.
The executive also noted the port is currently working at 70% capacity and quoted the unstable state of the global economy as well as the labor issues as the main causes for the slide.
This April was the eighth lowest volume month since the pandemic first began to affect container volumes in March 2020.
The figures still represent an improvement over the previous month, which showed a record 32% decline in imports.
In a May 2 column by McCown, the executive stated that, however grim the latest numbers may seem, the situation could soon be reversed as both inbound and outbound volumes are expected to rise.
“Reasonable estimates show we will need additional terminal capacity in 25 years equal to 5.4 times the biggest U.S. port’s current volume and in 50 years that will be equal to 16.1 times that port’s current volume,” McCown said in his report.
Naturipe of Watsonville, CA will have strong supplies of berries throughout the spring and summer of 2023 from different growing areas.
The company was underway in early May with peak supplies of California strawberries that will last through the summer months. Good volume should continue as well with blueberries this spring and summer.
Naturipe blueberries will source from diversified farming regions in the spring, which include Mexico, California, Florida and Georgia, and then will transition in the summer months into its farms from New Jersey, Michigan, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia.
The company will continue to have good raspberry volumes from its farming regions across Mexico. Blackberries are now in peak supplies from Georgia and North Carolina farms for late spring and early summer.
Jalisco entered the U.S. market for the first time , on June 28, 2022, 29 years after the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) opened the doors for Mexico, the world’s biggest producer of avocados, to import the fruit into the U.S.
Jalisco Avocado Exporting Producers Association reports before exports to the U.S. began, Europe accounted for about 30% of its exports, Japan 31% and Canada with 33%, totaling around 115,000 tons of avocados divided among the three countries.
With the opening of the U.S. market, 50% of total exports are now destined for the U.S., with Canada and Japan going down to around 19%, while European exports have reduced drastically to around 8%.
The association notes European exports decreased due to logistical issues with the pandemic, both in terms of time and costs. In some cases, this affected the quality of the arriving fruit, reducing costs, which is why Jalisco exporters have decided to allocate more of their fruit to the U.S. which has because less risk.
For the U.S. market, the fruit travels for less than 24 hours, while the European market transit can take up to 25 days.
Avocados from Jalisco complement Michoacan (the main producing region), because the season starts in July, and usually, between May and July, there is not enough volume from Mexico to supply the U.S. market.
So the new exporting region intends to fill up that gap so Mexican avocados are available to the U.S. year-round.
