Author Archive
HaulProduce.com has a purpose of providing helpful and insightful information first of all to the professionals who haul nearly 100 percent of the nation’s fresh fruits and vegetables to destinations all over the United States, Canada, and now Mexico. There are health related features here as well since truckers are more often becoming health conscious and realize the benefits of eating fresh produce. There also is information on “In-Transit Issues” to help deliver a better product and hopefully reduce the chances of a claim or rejected load. Other issues covered range from trucking equipment to occasional political issues.
Yet, the heart of HaulProduce.com is the produce trucking reports providing information ranging from when shipping areas become active, to when these areas may have shipping gaps, to information relating to volume and quality of produce available for hauling. When produce rates are listed they are based upon being straight loads in 48-foot refrigerated trailers. Rates can also vary on a day-to-day, if not hourly basis, thus quoted rates are to give you a general idea of what is being paid. You should add more to your freight rate when there are multiple pickups and drops, brokerage fees, gate fees, unloading charges and possible other expenses that affect your bottom line…
As HaulProduce.com grows and evolves, look for new features on this site. Wishing you safe travels and profitable hauls. — Bill Martin
Upstate New York state is accounting for more produce shipments than the rest of the Northeast combined. New York’s biggest volume is with apples out of the Hudson Valley, as well as areas in the Central and Western part of the
state. The Western half of New York also is significant for cabbage. Orange County New York has a moderate volume of onions, as does the Oswego area in the Central part of the state….There is also light shipments of apples from the Applachian District of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virgina….Aroostock County Maine is in the far northern part of the state and is shipping around 250 loads of potatoes a week. Overall, the Northeast certainly isn’t a hotbed of loading opportunities, but if you are needing a load, all options should be considered.
Maine potatoes – grossing about $2100 to Philadelphia.
Western New York cabbage – $2200 to Atlanta
Texas grapefruit each winter is typically one of my favorites for eating. First, I can usually count on the taste and quality to be good. Second, since I live in the 
Midwest, freight rates from the Lower Rio Grande Valley are lower than to much farther destinations, thus retail prices are more reasonable. So far, my store has been carrying grapefruit that is relatively small in size, but the quality and taste has been there. One caution. I’ve been buying it in the three-pound bags which normally contain about 7 pieces of the citrus. However, upon close examination of the grapefruit in the bags, some bags contain one piece of fruit with a dark discoration indicating it is breaking down….Grapefruit will store longer if you refrigerate it, but I prefer keeping and eating it at room temperature for the full flavor.
When it comes to getting produce loads out of the Northwest this time of the 
year, we’re looking primarily looking at apples, pears, potatoes and onions. The fruit is primarily in Washington state, while the potatoes and onions are not only in Washington, but in Idaho and Oregon. When talking truck load equivalents, keep in mind this includes loads by rail, which are heavier from this region than most. In the Yakima and Wantchee valleys about 4,300 truck load equivalents of apples and pears are being shipped weekly. In Washington’s Columbia Basin and the Umatilla Basin in Oregon, both spuds and onions are being loaded. Potato movement from the Twin-Falls-Burley area of Idaho is around 2,000 truck load equivalents per week.
Idaho potatoes – grossing about $5700 to New York City.
Washington fruit – about $4100 to Chicago.
Washington potatoes – about $2300 to L.A.
Washington State apple shipments should be huge this season which continues through summer from storages when the new crop starts coming on in late
July or August. Over 104 million boxes are expected to shipped during the 2011-2012 season, primarily from the Yakima and Wantechee valleys. During the last week of December alone, 3.2 million 42-pound boxes of apples were shipped. Typically when you have a large fruit crop, it results in smaller sizing, but quality is reported as quite good. Shipments have been really heavy since the crop from the previous season had all been moved, leaving a gap between it and the new season. Thus, demand for apples has been strong.
Washington apples – grossing about $6400 to New York City.
Washington (Columbia Basin) potatoes and onions – about $4400 to Detroit
These furry looking little “critters” are one of my favorites! Great for breakfast or snacks. My local supermarket has been carrying Kiwis from both Italy and New 
Zealand. Nobody loves Italian pasta more than I, but I’m sorry the kiwi from Italy I’ve bought is hard a rock. I take it home and two weeks later it’s still that way. Out of desperation, I finally cut it open. It lacks juice, sweetness and taste. On the other hand the New Zealand kiwi has been excellent…..When purchasing kiwi look for firmness when feeling the fruit that “gives” slightly when pressing it. Kiwi with wrinkels is showing shrink, and will be — if not already, over ripe and past its prime….Pricewise, it’s been one of the best buys in the produce department.
With a huge Washington state apple crop in full swing now, choices are good for 
different varieties of apples in you supermarket. Soaring popularity is the Honeycrisp variety. The Pink Lady also is becoming more popular, while in recent years the Fuji and Gala varieties have become favorites. Washington state hand picks 10 to 12 billion, that’s billion with a “B” apples a year. No machine harvesting is done. The state provides as many apples each season as all the other states combined. Washington also has older varieties such as the Red Delicious and Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Jonagold and Cameo. Many supermarkets will carry recipes and suggestions for what varieties are best for certain uses, or you can look this info up on line.
California citrus has dodged a winter weather “bullet” over the holidays as 
frost hit the San Joaquin Valley. While oranges and lemons loads should not be affected, it could be mid January or so before clementines and mandrins are evalulated for possible frost damage. Those latter items have a thinner skin and are more susceptable to freezes. The good news is that citrus escaping freeze damage tends to toughen up and be more freeze resist, plus have better color. California expects to ship around 88 million cartons of navel oranges during the 2011-2012 shipping season. That’s a respectable volume, although it falls short of the 96 million boxes shipped last year, which was a record. Only about 15% of the crop has been harvested so there will loading opportunties for months and months to come.
California citrus – grossing about $4000 to Chicago.
Sadly, the California table grape season is all but over. The red grapes,
particularly the last half of the season have been fantastic — so firm and sweet! We’re fortunate, because some seasons the fruit has been history before the end of the year….We’ll now starting getting imported grapes. As it typical with early season grapes from just about anywhere, you’ll be disappointed in the first arrivals in your stores. They normally lack the sugar content. Perhaps Chile will prove me wrong this season. Let’s hope. But get prepared for sour grapes at the get go.
If these Texas produce firms remain in business, produce haulers should be extra cautious.
Two produce companies in San Antonio, TX are making news with multiple sources regarding possible bankruptcy fillings. The operations in question are Delta Produce LP and Superior Tomato and Avocado. The firms, which are believed to be related, are facing compliants from the Perishable Agriculture Commodities (PACA). As of December 29th around $600,000 in PACA claims have been filed by other produce firms, which are owed monies.
The PACA comes under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and requires U.S. produce companies buying or selling fresh produce in commercial quanities to be licensed by USDA. This helps to provide protection to the produce industry when dealings between produce companies cannot be resolved between themselves.
Trucking is not afforded these same protections and often have no recourse when monies are owed, except through the courts. This can be costly, not to mention the inconvenience of fighting a company for money who may be located in a different state thousands of miles away. Also, PACA protected produce companies get their monies first, if any is left in a bankruptcy.
Bill Martin of haulproduce.com for decades has been calling for trucker protections under the PACA.
HaulProduce.com has a purpose of providing helpful and insightful information first of all to the professionals who haul nearly 100 percent of the nation’s fresh fruits and vegetables to destinations all over the United States, Canada, and now Mexico. There are health related features here as well since truckers are more often becoming health conscious and realize the benefits of eating fresh produce. There also is information on “In-Transit Issues” to help deliver a better product and hopefully reduce the chances of a claim or rejected load. Other issues covered range from trucking equipment to occasional political issues.
Yet, the heart of HaulProduce.com is the produce trucking reports providing information ranging from when shipping areas become active, to when these areas may have shipping gaps, to information relating to volume and quality of produce available for hauling. When produce rates are listed they are based upon being straight loads in 48-foot refrigerated trailers. Rates can also vary on a day-to-day, if not hourly basis, thus quoted rates are to give you a general idea of what is being paid. You should add more to your freight rate when there are multiple pickups and drops, brokerage fees, gate fees, unloading charges and possible other expenses that affect your bottom line…
As HaulProduce.com grows and evolves, look for new features on this site. Wishing you safe travels and profitable hauls. — Bill Martin
Upstate New York state is accounting for more produce shipments than the rest of the Northeast combined. New York’s biggest volume is with apples out of the Hudson Valley, as well as areas in the Central and Western part of the state. The Western half of New York also is significant for cabbage. Orange County New York has a moderate volume of onions, as does the Oswego area in the Central part of the state….There is also light shipments of apples from the Applachian District of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virgina….Aroostock County Maine is in the far northern part of the state and is shipping around 250 loads of potatoes a week. Overall, the Northeast certainly isn’t a hotbed of loading opportunities, but if you are needing a load, all options should be considered.
Maine potatoes – grossing about $2100 to Philadelphia.
Western New York cabbage – $2200 to Atlanta
Texas grapefruit each winter is typically one of my favorites for eating. First, I can usually count on the taste and quality to be good. Second, since I live in the Midwest, freight rates from the Lower Rio Grande Valley are lower than to much farther destinations, thus retail prices are more reasonable. So far, my store has been carrying grapefruit that is relatively small in size, but the quality and taste has been there. One caution. I’ve been buying it in the three-pound bags which normally contain about 7 pieces of the citrus. However, upon close examination of the grapefruit in the bags, some bags contain one piece of fruit with a dark discoration indicating it is breaking down….Grapefruit will store longer if you refrigerate it, but I prefer keeping and eating it at room temperature for the full flavor.
When it comes to getting produce loads out of the Northwest this time of the year, we’re looking primarily looking at apples, pears, potatoes and onions. The fruit is primarily in Washington state, while the potatoes and onions are not only in Washington, but in Idaho and Oregon. When talking truck load equivalents, keep in mind this includes loads by rail, which are heavier from this region than most. In the Yakima and Wantchee valleys about 4,300 truck load equivalents of apples and pears are being shipped weekly. In Washington’s Columbia Basin and the Umatilla Basin in Oregon, both spuds and onions are being loaded. Potato movement from the Twin-Falls-Burley area of Idaho is around 2,000 truck load equivalents per week.
Idaho potatoes – grossing about $5700 to New York City.
Washington fruit – about $4100 to Chicago.
Washington potatoes – about $2300 to L.A.
Washington State apple shipments should be huge this season which continues through summer from storages when the new crop starts coming on in late July or August. Over 104 million boxes are expected to shipped during the 2011-2012 season, primarily from the Yakima and Wantechee valleys. During the last week of December alone, 3.2 million 42-pound boxes of apples were shipped. Typically when you have a large fruit crop, it results in smaller sizing, but quality is reported as quite good. Shipments have been really heavy since the crop from the previous season had all been moved, leaving a gap between it and the new season. Thus, demand for apples has been strong.
Washington apples – grossing about $6400 to New York City.
Washington (Columbia Basin) potatoes and onions – about $4400 to Detroit
These furry looking little “critters” are one of my favorites! Great for breakfast or snacks. My local supermarket has been carrying Kiwis from both Italy and New Zealand. Nobody loves Italian pasta more than I, but I’m sorry the kiwi from Italy I’ve bought is hard a rock. I take it home and two weeks later it’s still that way. Out of desperation, I finally cut it open. It lacks juice, sweetness and taste. On the other hand the New Zealand kiwi has been excellent…..When purchasing kiwi look for firmness when feeling the fruit that “gives” slightly when pressing it. Kiwi with wrinkels is showing shrink, and will be — if not already, over ripe and past its prime….Pricewise, it’s been one of the best buys in the produce department.
With a huge Washington state apple crop in full swing now, choices are good for different varieties of apples in you supermarket. Soaring popularity is the Honeycrisp variety. The Pink Lady also is becoming more popular, while in recent years the Fuji and Gala varieties have become favorites. Washington state hand picks 10 to 12 billion, that’s billion with a “B” apples a year. No machine harvesting is done. The state provides as many apples each season as all the other states combined. Washington also has older varieties such as the Red Delicious and Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Jonagold and Cameo. Many supermarkets will carry recipes and suggestions for what varieties are best for certain uses, or you can look this info up on line.
California citrus has dodged a winter weather “bullet” over the holidays as frost hit the San Joaquin Valley. While oranges and lemons loads should not be affected, it could be mid January or so before clementines and mandrins are evalulated for possible frost damage. Those latter items have a thinner skin and are more susceptable to freezes. The good news is that citrus escaping freeze damage tends to toughen up and be more freeze resist, plus have better color. California expects to ship around 88 million cartons of navel oranges during the 2011-2012 shipping season. That’s a respectable volume, although it falls short of the 96 million boxes shipped last year, which was a record. Only about 15% of the crop has been harvested so there will loading opportunties for months and months to come.
California citrus – grossing about $4000 to Chicago.
Sadly, the California table grape season is all but over. The red grapes,
particularly the last half of the season have been fantastic — so firm and sweet! We’re fortunate, because some seasons the fruit has been history before the end of the year….We’ll now starting getting imported grapes. As it typical with early season grapes from just about anywhere, you’ll be disappointed in the first arrivals in your stores. They normally lack the sugar content. Perhaps Chile will prove me wrong this season. Let’s hope. But get prepared for sour grapes at the get go.
If these Texas produce firms remain in business, produce haulers should be extra cautious.
Two produce companies in San Antonio, TX are making news with multiple sources regarding possible bankruptcy fillings. The operations in question are Delta Produce LP and Superior Tomato and Avocado. The firms, which are believed to be related, are facing compliants from the Perishable Agriculture Commodities (PACA). As of December 29th around $600,000 in PACA claims have been filed by other produce firms, which are owed monies.
The PACA comes under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and requires U.S. produce companies buying or selling fresh produce in commercial quanities to be licensed by USDA. This helps to provide protection to the produce industry when dealings between produce companies cannot be resolved between themselves.
Trucking is not afforded these same protections and often have no recourse when monies are owed, except through the courts. This can be costly, not to mention the inconvenience of fighting a company for money who may be located in a different state thousands of miles away. Also, PACA protected produce companies get their monies first, if any is left in a bankruptcy.
Bill Martin of haulproduce.com for decades has been calling for trucker protections under the PACA.