Archive For The “Trucking Reports” Category
The Michigan Apple industry is expecting a high-quality crop of apples in 2026. The majority of apple-producing regions in Michigan report above-average apple crops with exceptional fruit size and color.
Michigan Apple industry representatives have stated that they believe the crop is larger than the USDA estimated 25 million bushels (1.05 billion lbs.) of apples.
“We know the apple crop is above 25 million bushels this year. The quality is amazing and the size is larger, leading to more bushels,” said Diane Smith, executive director of the Michigan Apple Committee BB #:157755. “There were some spring weather issues and problems with return bloom this year, but they are localized. Overall, Michigan’s apple crop is looking great.”
Many factors contribute to the size of an apple crop, including weather, bloom conditions and tree health. Michigan Apples are available year-round, and can be found at about 200 farm markets and cider mills in Michigan as well as more than 12,000 retail groceries across the U.S., according to Smith.
On average, Michigan growers harvest about 27.2 million bushels per year. Michigan is in the top three apple producing states, along with Washington and New York. Harvest is underway, with early varieties like Paula Red, Ginger Gold and Gala being the first on the market.
The Michigan Apple Committee has outlined key release dates and flavor profiles for the season’s most anticipated varieties:
• Mid-August (Early Harvesters): Kick off the season with Paula Red (zesty and tart) and Ginger Gold (sweet with a subtle tang), available starting around August 17.
• Late August (Sweet & Crisp Favorites): The popular Gala hits markets around August 24, followed closely by the juicy crunch of Honeycrisp starting August 31.
• September (Tasty Classics): Golden Delicious and McIntosh will be available around September 7, while Red Delicious, Fuji and Jonagold can be found later in September.
• October & Early November (Flavorful Newcomers): The refreshing and floral Ambrosia will be available around October 5, long-lasting EverCrisp picked around October 26, and closing out the Michigan Apple season, the pink, crisp and juicy Cripps Pink available November 2.
Michigan’s apple industry is powered by 850 multigenerational farm families—many now in their fourth or fifth generation—dedicated to growing world-class fruit. Consumers can support local growers by visiting cider mills, farm markets, and agri-tourism destinations, or by choosing Michigan-grown apples at their local grocery store.
The Michigan Apple Committee works on behalf of Michigan apple growers through marketing, research, education, and outreach to increase consumption, support growers, and ensure a strong and sustainable apple industry.
Hansen Farms in Rupert, ID, launched its annual potato harvest September 14.
The company grows seven potato varieties across approximately 60 fields, including Burbanks, Norkotahs, Clearwaters, Rangers, Reveille, Kings, and Dakotas. Storage facilities on the farm have been readied for the incoming yield, with each storage shed holding up to 10 million pounds of potatoes.
Brian Hansen, fourth-generation farm operations manager at Hansen Farms, says the preparation process runs up to ten months ahead of the first day in the fields. “We actually start preparing for harvest in the wintertime,” Hansen says. “Last December we started going through machinery, planning on any kind of changes that we were going to make from an operation standpoint and how we set up our machinery. That carries all the way through spring and summer, and you can see behind [us] we’ve got equipment starting to get set up. We test run things, we look for just problems that we can fix to help deliver the best quality potato that we can.”
Beyond machinery, the heat Idaho has experienced this summer has added pressure on the operation. Hansen says elevated temperatures over recent years have accelerated crop aging and made moisture management more difficult. “The hot conditions have impacted our crop over the last three to five years, I would say. It makes it age more quickly; it’s harder to keep the moisture that we need in the fields. That heat has definitely played a role in potato quality for this year.”
The dry summer also raises concerns about the following season. Hansen says water conservation is a topic now entering conversations in a way it has not before. “I think this is the first year where we’re actually hearing and seeing people talk about conserving more water and cutting that water back. Hoping that we have a good winter because next year I think is when we’re really going to see an impact on water availability.”
With a late Labor Day (Sept. 7) this year, Butch’s Best of Capac, MI shipped it first loads of pumpkins in late August. Shipments typically begin around Labor Day.
The broker/distributor/fresh cut packer has over 18 pumpkin growers in eight states and Canada growing a variety of pumpkins including regular pumpkins, heirlooms, ornamental, pie pumpkins and a painted pumpkin program, most of which run through the end of October. It also has Delicata squash which goes until December. The company also ships a number of other vegetables.
An unknown this year is how many pumpkins there are scattered across many regions due to drastic weather differences. Some areas like Indiana got 10-12 inches of rain and parts of it and Ohio got 90 mile per hour winds. It was a very perfect growing season for everyone and then it got really wet in a lot of places. By contrast some regions were dry. For example, parts of Michigan and New York were pretty dry.
Meanwhile Texas had weeks of extreme heat this summer, while those other growing regions were dealing with that excessive rain, flooding, high winds and hail. For this reason Butch’s Best has diversified its suppliers to be from eight states and Canada.
This all comes amidst an already challenging growing year following freezes in Florida and heat in the Midwest, the Northeast and California. That’s pushed numerous crops out too fast.
Storms and flash flooding across central Ohio in late August caused losses for pumpkin growers ahead of the state’s autumn picking season.
Pumpkin patches across Ohio are preparing for the picking season, which generally starts during the first half of September. Some growing areas experienced heavy rainfall, winds, flooding, and crop losses during the storms.
Sam’s Pumpkin Patch in Pickerington lost around 50 per cent of its pumpkin crop to flooding. The farm covers 20 acres (8.1 hectares) and primarily grows pumpkins and gourds. The company has contacted other growers with available supplies to avoid closing for the remainder of the season.
Other pumpkin-growing areas were less affected. Lehner’s Pumpkin Farm in Radnor received heavy rainfall, but its crop avoided wind damage.
Overall, U.S. pumpkin shipments got off to a strong start this season.
The new season Northwest pear harvest was launched July 27, a little earlier than the normal mid-August start.
Since there was no carryover inventory from the previous year, new harvest arrived with fresh momentum. The season began in Medford, Oregon and is moving north through Mid-Columbia, Oregon, and into Yakima and Wenatchee, Washington.
“Following a smaller crop in 2024 and an abundant crop in 2025, this year’s pear crop is expected to be normal in size,” says Barbara Ruhs with USA Pears.
Recently, wildfires in Washington’s Okanogan region have affected some pear-growing communities. Because the situation is still evolving, it is too soon to determine the full impact on this year’s crop.
The fruit sized up well due to a mild winter and limited frost pressure. As a result, Bartlett pears are larger in size and supply of smaller fruit is more limited this season. While sizing is larger, it is too early to know which varieties will deliver the strongest final yields. Pears rely on cold storage to develop their natural sweetness and must continue to perform well through handling, storage, and distribution.
The USApple forecast for Washington state’s 2026-27 season stands at 176 million bushels, valued at around $2 billion. The figure is two percent below the 2025/26 crop and accounts for 62 percent of US apples for the upcoming season.
The decline is volume represents a five to 10 percent drop from the 2025-26 production.
Shipments have been pretty strong since the start of the year, which has helped create a better supply and demand balance in the market. This trend is expected to continue into the new crop year
Commercial acreage in top apple-producing states has been declining. Washington state has led the way by removing 3,000 planted acres since 2022.
The Washington State Apple Commission reports state growers expect a smaller Honeycrisp season since it’s an off-year for the variety. However, the decline might be easily offset by the expansion of Cosmic Crisp, the Washington State-developed cultivar that in May was renewed to be grown exclusively in North America by Washington growers for five more years.
Washington exports about one-third of its apple production.
Eagle Eye Produce of Idaho Falls, ID, a leading grower, packer, and shipper of potatoes and onions, has started its 2026 new crop shipping season from facilities across Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, according to a press release.
Early reports from the field point to strong quality across both crops. With harvest underway across Idaho and the Pacific Northwest and expected to continue through October, Eagle Eye Produce is looking forward to another strong potato and onion season.
Joe Ange, Director of Onion Sales, shared his outlook on this year’s onion crop: “Overall, we’re very pleased with how the onion crop is coming together. Above-average rainfall in Idaho and Eastern Oregon delayed some early planting, and periods of smoke have reduced sunlight at times during the growing season. Even with those conditions, the crop has developed well. We’re seeing very nice quality across our yellow, red, and white onions, with skin setting well and great color. Harvest is underway and will continue through September, and we’re in a good position to support our customers throughout the season.”
Ange added, “This is also our second season shipping out of our new Ontario, Oregon facility, and we’ve continued making improvements to the operation over the past year. The facility features state-of-the-art technology and automation that help us improve efficiency, consistency, and quality throughout the packing process. We learned a lot during our first season and have continued building on that foundation to make the operation even stronger heading into 2026.”
Coleman Oswald, Director of Sales at Eagle Eye Produce, commented on this season’s potato crop: “The potato crop is looking good as we get into new crop. We’ve had plenty of heat this summer, which has made consistent irrigation especially important, and our growing teams have done a great job managing the crop through those conditions. We’re seeing strong quality and a little smaller size compared to last year so far. Overall volume is expected to be lower this season with fewer acres planted, but we’re well positioned to support our customers and their programs throughout the year.”
Oswald added, “We also continue to make significant investments in our potato operations. We’re currently completing a multi-million-dollar upgrade to our red and yellow potato packing operation that will improve efficiency, capacity, and consistency. It’s an exciting project for our team, and we look forward to sharing more details very soon. Along with the investments we’ve made in our fields and other packing operations over the last several years, it’s another step toward becoming a smarter, more efficient supplier for our customers.”
Eagle Eye Produce offers a full range of retail and foodservice pack styles for potatoes and onions, with options for private label programs and support from a nationwide sales and marketing team. With a fully integrated approach that covers everything from Roots to Routes, including growing, packing, and shipping, Eagle Eye stands out as a reliable and innovative partner in the produce industry.
About Eagle Eye Produce
Eagle Eye Produce, based in Idaho’s potato country, is a major grower and shipper of potatoes and much more. The company is one of the largest onion grower shippers in the Pacific Northwest and the leading watermelon supplier in the western United States. It also offers a strong program of mixed dry vegetables grown in Mexico. Eagle Eye cultivates thousands of acres of fresh produce each year and operates state of the art warehouses across the western United States and Mexico, supported by a national sales and marketing team. With an asset-based transportation division serving customers coast to coast, Eagle Eye Produce is committed to being the Partner of Choice, driven by exceptional customer service and innovative, efficient farming and warehousing practices.
Generally it’s been a typical North Carolina sweet potato growing season and quality and sizing look to be good, with some fields seeing larger sizing while others are fields will be harvested later once sizing increases.
Triple J Produce of Sims, NC reports mixed reports related to acreage changes this season, though there’s a sense at this point that the crop is large. Harvesting started last month.
The grower, shipper, packer is hoping it is around 70,000 acres in North Carolina, which would mean better prices as well as good supplies.
The company notes growers are running out of supply and many have had to cut back on customers in the past few months.
Pennsylvania’s 2026 apple shipments are underway, although growers are anticipating a lighter crop this season. Yet optimism abounds.
Rice Fruit Company of Gardners, PA expects to ship a full range of varieties this season, though volumes will be lighter in some cases.
Timing is pretty much on schedule although the company notes the apple season tends to start earlier each year because of varieties which have been developed to spread harvest out between August and October. This avoids having to harvest all the fruit in September. Earlier varieties such as Gala and Honeycrisp, which start in the first or second week of August, make this possible.
Rice Fruit is a grower, shipper and packer that also works with 40 other family growing operations.
Northwest pear harvesting for CMI Orchards got underway in mid August and there is plenty of optimism for the season.
The Wenatchee, WA shipper reports overall production is expected to return to more typical levels following last year’s exceptionally large crop. It expects an abundant supply of high-quality pears.
After an extraordinarily large crop in 2025, particularly in organic pears, this season sees a return to more normal production levels. Supplies are good and there will be plenty of fruit available for shipping throughout the season.
The company offers a comprehensive pear portfolio, including Bartlett, Bosc, Comice, Green and Red D’Anjou, Forelle, GEM, Seckel, and Starkrimson pears.
Apple season is starting to take shape, and Washington will be carrying even more
weight than usual this year, according to a website posting by Pro*Act of Monterey, CA.
Cold and wet weather disrupted parts of the Northeast growing season, which means more program demand is expected to lean west as schools and retail fall sets begin to build.
New crop Galas will be the first major variety to watch. Availability started in
early to mid-August depending on the shipper, with Honeycrisp following shortly
behind. From there, the crop will continue to build into September with Granny
Smith, Golden Delicious, Fuji, Red Delicious, and other fall varieties coming online.
Early fruit will help bridge the gap, but overall relief will take time as each variety
starts, colors, packs, and settles into volume.
Markets are expected to remain elevated as customers look to Washington for
coverage and the Northeast works through weather-related challenges. School
demand will add another layer, especially on smaller, pouch-friendly, and
lunchbox-style fruit. As new crop volume builds, we should get a clearer picture
on size, color, pressure, and overall pack-outs.
Galas and Honeycrisp will get the season moving, but Washington will need time
to build into full fall volume. Lead time, variety flexibility, and a willingness to
adjust sizing will be the best way to stay covered as the new crop apple season
gets underway.