Archive For The “Trucking Reports” Category
California strawberry shipments in 2017 have already exceeded its 2016 record setter with a full month to go in the year.
By the middle of November California growers had packed 197.3 million crates statewide, exceeding the 196.8 million crates produced during all 12 months of 2016.
What is ironic about the shipping season is California experienced one of its rainiest winters on record in 2016-17, plus the heavy strawberry production area of the Salinas Valley, among others, had an exceptionally hot summer.
However, the rains helped to rinse away some of the salts that had built up in the top layer of soil during the drought.
Higher yields from newer strawberry varieties also contributed to the record crop. Growers planned to plant 36,141 acres of strawberries in 2017, off from 40,816 acres four years earlier.
California strawberry shipments take place the year around and basically follow the sun. During the peak shipping season, all of the state’s major growing regions — Oxnard, Orange County, Santa Maria and Watsonville are loading berries. Peak shipments are typically in the spring and early summer, but it came later this year due to spring rains.
Strawberry shipments in the early part of 2017 were adversely affected by big storms. The result was amazing with seasonal rainfall totals in many coastal areas being around 150 percent of normal. Luckily, growers for the most part avoided major damage from the storms.
A recent consumer survey revealed strawberries as America’s favorite fresh fruit. 32 percent of respondents identified strawberries as their favorite fruit, in the survey that did not provide a list of fruits from which to choose. Bananas (9 percent) placed second, while watermelons (8 percent) were the third favorite fruit in the U.S.
California is the leading strawberry shipping region in the world. The state also provides nearly 80 percent of the strawberries grown, packed, shipped and consumed in the U.S.
While California strawberries are currently coming mostly out of Santa Maria and Oxnard, this is a light volume time of the year. Mexican strawberry shipments are currently light as well, but is increasing in volume with the new shipping season.
Santa Maria strawberries and vegetables – grossing about $8000 to New York City.
Florida fresh citrus shipments should increase this season, despite the state’s expected 27 percent plummet in volume from a year ago, according to a USDA estimate in November. This would cut the crop to 50 million boxes.
The primary culprit is Hurricane Irma that hit Florida September 10th.
Florida grapefruit shipments are forecast to be 4.65 million boxes, down 40 percent from last year. The November forecast in down from the last one issued in October, but many in the Florida citrus industry believe actual harvest numbers will be even lower.
For long haul truckers of refrigerated products, this may not be all bad news. For example, DLF International Inc. of Vero Beach, FL expects to ship more fruit to the fresh market this season. The company’s October fresh volume doubled over the same period a year ago. At the same time it will be sending less product to processors.
Florida Classic Growers of Dundee, FL is the marketing arm of the Dundee Citrus Growers Association. It actually has more citrus than a year ago. The company has been shipping sunburst tangerines, which should continue into December. The firm’s grapefruit loadings got underway in early November and should continue into January. Florida navels and hamlin oranges began in early November, and may last through December. The valencia harvest for the cooperative should start in January and continue into June.
Seald Sweet LLC of Vero Beach is starting valencia shipments earlier than normal to help make up for early and mid-season varieties that had a shorter than usual season. Seald Sweet, which lost at least 30 percent of its oranges to the hurricane expects to ship a higher percentage of its citrus to the fresh market.
At IMG Citrus Inc. of Vero Beach, 35 percent of its fruit was lost to the storm. IMG had planned a volume increase prior to the hurricane because of maturing groves and the acquisition of additional acreage. Following Irma, IMG, sees its shipments declining 10 to 15 percent from a year ago. The company expects light volumes until the end of the year, but good volume coming with the New Year.
Good supplies of fresh vegetables and citrus is being predicted by observers from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas as they gear up for the holiday season.
Among the dozens of different vegetables are kale, cilantro and cabbage as well as mustard, collard and turnip greens. As far as citrus is concerned, grapefruit shipments got underway in early November, and several varieties of oranges should be ready by early December.
Vegetable shipper Frontera Produce Ltd., of Edinburg, Texas, began loading cabbage, its biggest vegetable item of the winter, last week. The company started its jalapeno pepper shipments in late October and the product should be available through mid-December, depending upon the weather.
Frontera volume should increase slightly on jalapenos, with shipments on other commodities remaining similar to a year ago. The firm began cilantro shipments the first week of November and will continue until mid-April.
Crescent Fruit & Vegetable LLC is a sister company of Frontera, which will load about the same volume of onions and watermelons as last year.
Another South Texas shipper, Grow Farms Texas LLC, located in Donna, will ship green, red and napa cabbage this winter, along with squash, eggplant, cucumbers and jalapenos and Anaheim chili peppers. Grow Farms will be loading green bell peppers until the first frost.
Rio Fresh Inc., of San Juan, Texas, was shipping about 20 wet vegetables by late October and early November that included herbs, parsley and beets. In early December the company should be shipping specialty vegetables such as bok choy, napa cabbage, leeks and spinach.
Citrus Shipments
Lower Rio Grande Valley citrus acreage for the 2017-18 shipping season should be similar to a year ago when it totaled 27,000 acres, with about 70 percent of this acreage being rio red grapefruit.
Grapefruit acreage in South Texas is expected to increase by 4,000 acres within 12 to 18 months.
South Texas and imported Mexican produce – grossing about $3100 to Chicago.
Peruvian table grapes at the start season earlier this year was delayed due the effects of El Nino, but a comeback is seen…..From South Africa, fruit imports are expected to be less.
While Peruvian grape exports declined about 10 percent due to the weather, the country is expected to rebound. Table grapes are Peru’s number one agricultural export, and it is estimated the country’s 2017-18 production to be 638,000 metric tons, compared to 605,000 metric tons the past season. Exports are forecast at 380,000 metric tons, a jump from the 300,000 metric tons in 2016-17 season.
Rising demand, better yielding varieties and more acreage are the primary reason for increasing volume.
The U.S. is the largest import market for Peruvian grapes, followed by the Netherlands and China.
South African Imports
Drought and low water levels in reservoirs in the Western Cape region of South Africa are expected to cut exports for the 2017-18 season.
The Western Cape region accounts for the biggest volume of deciduous fruits in South Africa, though the Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, and Limpopo provinces have gained in importance in the last two decades.
Grape Shipments
South African table grape exports for the 2017-18 season will drop 15 percent to 258,000 metric tons, due to a decrease in area harvested and small fruit size in the Western Cape growing areas. However, normal production and growing conditions are expected in the Orange River growing regions.
South African grapes typically are shipped from October to May, with the first grapes coming from the Northern Cape Region and the season ending with the Hex River Valley. The U.S. and Canadian markets have increased imports of South African grapes the past few years, but still accounted for only 3 percent of total exports last season. The European Union takes about 75 percent of South Africa’s fresh grape exports.
Apples and pears
2017-18 apple exports from South Africa are forecast to decline 5 percent to 500,000 metric tons due to reduced harvest area, smaller fruit size and limited irrigation water. Africa takes about 40 percent of South Africa’s apple exports, followed by the European Union with 30 percent and Asia with 19 percent. Only light volumes are shipped to the U.S.
Meanwhile, South Africa pear exports in 2017-18 are projected at 250,000 metric tons, down 3 percent from the previous year. About half of South Africa’s pear exports are shipped to Europe, with typically about 1,000 metric tons or less destined to the U.S. market.
Pumpkin shipments in the U.S. should equal or exceed the volume of a year ago, thanks to a bountiful harvest, favorable growing conditions in the six states that account for 50 percent of the pumpkins in the nation….Also, Honeybear Pazazz apple shipments will increase substantially this season.
Last year 1.6 billion pounds of pumpkins were shipped. Some observers believe this year’s U.S. pumpkin totals by the end of the season could be one of the best on record.
Decorative pumpkins such as jack-o-lanterns or pumpkin pie filling and yogurt remain popular. However, it is the new and different uses of pumpkins such as liquid coffee, cereal and dog food where demand is really soar.
Libby’s supplies nearly 80 percent of U.S canned pumpkins. Libby’s is a unit of Nestle SA, which is also the parent company of Nestle Purina Petcare, the world’s No. 2 pet food manufacturer. Pets apparently love pumpkins, plus there is antioxidant-like benefits and dietary fiber content. Purina uses real pumpkins to accent its cat and dog food recipes year round.
Dog food sales with pumpkin flavors soared to $41.9 million for the 52-week period ending July 29, compared with $925,288 during a similar period in 2013.
The liquor market for pumpkins, including pumpkin-flavored craft beers, has declined in recent years with ever changing millennials switching to other flavors.
Pazazz Apples
The Pazazz premium apple variety, now in its fourth year of commercial introduction by Honeybear Brands, ships early November to many markets and will be available at retail until early April while supplies last.
With its largest volume ever, Pazazz should be available for five to six months this year instead of the usual three.
Pazazz will also be available in 50-75 percent more retail markets than previous years as the crop reaches full maturity.
Retailers include Wegmans in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Maryland; Loblaws in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec; Publix in all stores and all markets; all Hy-Vee in Iowa as well as Kansas City and Minnesota; Meijer in Illinois Michigan and Ohio; Kroger in Kentucky, Central Indiana, Michigan, Eastern Illinois and Texas; Ralphs in California; QFC in Oregon and Washington; and United Supermarkets in Texas and New Mexico. Additional markets and stores may be added in the coming weeks and months.
Honeybear, based in Brewster, WA, is a leading grower and developer of premium apple varieties. The company started as Wescott Agri Products, a family run apple orchard in the early 1970s. From that early start several generations ago, Honeybear still employs the same hands-on, personal attention to apple varieties produced through the Honeybear Apple Varietal Development Program. Honeybear is the leading grower of Honeycrisp in the Northwest and offers complete domestic and global apply supply integration from varietal development to growing, packing, shipping and retailer support.
By Ted Kreis
Northern Plains Potato Growers Association Communications
Fresh shippers from the Red River Valley are off to a strong start having already shipped over 700,000 hundredweight of potatoes prior to November 1st. That is a 32 percent increase over last year, a year that growers battled through wet harvest conditions.
Shippers believe they could have shipped even more potatoes this fall had trucks been more readily available. Packers with the ability to load railcars are doing so in a big way to help move the crop. And don’t look for more trucks anytime soo. Thanksgiving turkey truck demand and hunting season are expected to make 18 wheelers even tougher to get the rest of November.
The 2017 fresh crop is the largest in many years but not by much. It barely edged out the 2015 crop for total tonnage. Though similar in size, there are two glaring differences.
First, yellow potatoes make up nearly 21 percent of the 2017 Red River Valley fresh crop; that compares to just 13 percent in 2015. This has left packing sheds with considerably fewer reds to move compared to 2015, but of course more yellows The increase in yellow production both here and in other parts of the U.S. is in response to a continued increase in consumer demand. Nobody knows when or if the trend will subside.
Secondly, the quality is much better this year. In 2015 there was an unusually high number of growth cracks and other cosmetic issues. This year the color and appearance of the potatoes is excellent which has buyers excited and has created high demand for Red River Valley Red Potatoes.
The Red River Valley has long been the nation’s largest producer of red potatoes, and now ranks in the top five for yellow potato production as well.
The Northern Plains Potato Growers Association is located in East Grand Forks, MN
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RRV potatoes from Grand Forks, ND – grossing about $3200 to Dallas.
Fresh fruits and vegetables play a big role in the record setting containerized cargo arrivals at Port Everglades… Meanwhile, Washington apple loadings are down compared to September of last year.
By Port Everglades
Fresh produce imports played a major role in Port Everglades (Fla.), setting a record for containerized cargo volumes with 1.077 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in fiscal year 2017.
That’s a 4 percent increase compared to the previous fiscal year totals and 1.5 percent over the previous record, set in fiscal year 2015. The port’s fiscal year ended September 30th, according to a news release.
“The volumes of refrigerated produce coming into Florida through Port Everglades from Central America is significant,” Port Everglades Chief Executive and Port Director Steve Cernak said. “It represents more than half of all perishable cargo that arrives in Florida by ocean.”
Apparel, tile, beverages, machinery and automobile parts are also significant categories imported through the port.
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Apple Shipments
Apple shipments, as well as volumes and sales were off this season at retail compared to a year ago in September due to a harvest gap, according to data compiled from Nielsen Fresh Facts.
Washington state apples had a record early harvest start last year, and started about 10 days later than normal this year, causing the lag at retail. according to a news release from Stemilt Growes, based in Wenatchee WA.
Volume, sales and shipments should pick up soon as harvests conclude and retailers have big enough supplies to offer ad specials on apples.
Apples were 5.9 percent of total produce department sales in September, compared with 6.5 percent last year.
Gala, red delicious, fuji, Honeycrisp and granny smith were the top five varieties, and club variety Sweetango cracked the top 10.
The average September retail price for all varieties was $1.66, and nearly 66 percent of sales were in bulk. Two-thirds of bagged apple sales in September were 3-pound bags.
Sizing is smaller on apples than in 2016.
Washington apple shipments – grossing about $5000 to Chicago.
Adequate supplies of sweet potatoes shipments to U.S. markets are seen in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, the first ever avocados from Columbia have arrived in the U.S.
North Carolina, the nation’s leading producer and shipper of sweet potatoes should have good supplies the remainder the year, including the important Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.
The Tar Heel State has only 83,000 acres, which is 15,000 fewer acres than last season, which is significant considering the state produces over half of the sweet potatoes in the U.S. The loss of acreage is expected to be partially offset by a five percent increase in yields. The harvest continues, but should be mostly completed by Thanksgiving.
Some of the major NC sweet potato shippers are:
Tull Hill Farms Inc., Kinston, N.C.,
Southern Produce Distributors Inc., Faison, N.C.,
Burch Farms, Faison, N.C
Nash Produce LLC, Nashville, N.C.,
Imported Columbian Avocados
The first containers of Colombian avocados destined for the United States were loaded onto vessels at the Port of Cartagena on Thursday, November 2, during a ceremony that included Colombian avocado growers and packers, and Colombian Secretary of Agriculture Juan Guillermo Zuluaga, Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario (ICA) officials.
This shipment, on a Hapag Lloyd service, sailed on Friday, November 3, and was delivered on Monday, November 6 to Port Everglades, Florida. Once the shipment clears inspections it will be moved directly to Mission’s Atlanta forward distribution center for further inspection before being delivered to the final customer.
Brent Scattini, Mission’s Vice President of Sales & Marketing, indicated that there is strong interest in Colombian fruit from a retailer perspective. “Since the announcement about Colombia being allowed into the U.S., we’ve had customers asking about it, and several wanting to be the first to receive the fruit. We expect volume to build throughout the season, as well as in years to come. Having an additional source, another option, is good for our customer base.”
Cartama is the leading producer and distributor of Hass avocados in Colombia. The company produces avocados on nearly 1,000 hectares in Colombia, with a packing plant in Pereira.
Mission Produce of Oxnard, CA operates state-of-the-art avocado packing facilities in California, Mexico, Peru and Chile.
Although there are lettuce shipments towards the end of the seasons from the Salinas Valley and the Huron area of the San Joaquin Valley, light loadings of the product started late last week from the Yuma district of Arizona as the annual fall transition is underway.
Lettuce volume from the desert is very light and will be increasing right up to Thanksgiving (November 23rd).
Doubling previous informal estimates, a new study says Arizona’s leafy greens industry delivers $2 billion in annual sales. The study, by researchers at the University of Arizona’s Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, estimated a sales contribution of $2 billion for the Arizona leafy greens industry.
“We examined the whole value chain, including on-farm and post-harvest activities to understand the broad scope of the industry’s contribution to the Arizona economy,”Ashley Kerna Bickel, key researcher and contributor to the report, said in a news release.
Called “Arizona Leafy Greens: Economic Contributions of the Industry Cluster,” the study examined 2015 agricultural cash receipts for on-farm production and post-harvest activities.
The release said the report was funded by the Arizona Leafy Greens Food Safety Committee. Authors included Kerna Bickel, Dari Duval and George Frisvold.
For purposes of the study, the leafy greens industry was defined to include on-farm activities and also cooling, cutting, washing, packing, processing, storing and shipping.
In addition to the $2 billion sales figure, the study found:
- Arizona is the No. 2 producer of lettuce (iceberg, leaf and romaine) nationally;
- The state’s Yuma County ranks second among U.S. counties in harvested lettuce and spinach acreage;
- From late November to mid-March, Arizona supplies 80 percent of the nation’s lettuce, with an average of 1 billion pounds of lettuce shipped per month;
- Leafy greens have accounted for an average of 17 percent of the state’s total agricultural receipts each year since 2010;
- Nearly 27,000 individuals were employed either directly or indirectly by the Arizona leafy greens industry in 2015, with 16.9 million hired labor hours needed for on-farm operations alone; and
- The leafy greens industry’s total contribution to Arizona’s gross state product was nearly $1.2 billion in 2015.
While Yuma vegetable shipments are too few to count right now, Arizona melon shipments (cantaloupe and honeydew) are totalling over 250 loads per week.
Thanksgiving is early this year (November 23rd) and there should be heavy produce shipments the weeks of November 6th and November 13th as retailers across American stock their shelves for this popular holiday. Among the most popular items are potatoes, onions, celery, and sweet potatoes.
Idaho rail loadings for delivery to the East Coast will have to be made in early November to arrive in time for Thanksgiving distribution. Truck shipments should be particularly heavy the next two weeks. Idaho truck supplies, as well as many other areas around the country appear to be particularly tight, if not in short supply.
Potato shipments are strong with Idaho shipping around 1750 truck load equivalents weekly. You will probably be hauling more cartons of potatoes and fewer consumer bags because Idaho has more larger sized spuds this year than normal.
While overall Idaho potato shipments could be down a little this season, potato haulers need to exercise some caution. As much as 20 percent of the Idaho crop was harvested recently following several nights of freezes. This very well could result in a higher cull rate for potatoes, which hopefully will remove poor quality product before it is loaded on your truck.
Onion Shipments
Overall, fewer onion shipments are seen, particular out of the west this season. For example, in the Treasure Valley of Idaho-eastern Oregon volume could be off 20 to 30 percent. It has been loading about 700 truck loads of onions per week.
Celery, and sweet potatoes
The Salinas Valley, while approaching the end of the season, is still shipping about over 600 loads of celery a week, as well as items ranging from broccoli, cauliflower and lettuce….North Carolina sweet potato shipments are seasonally strong, particularly by volume leader North Carolina, with much fewer shipments originating from California, Mississippi and Louisiana.
Idaho potato shipments – grossing about $5400 to New York City.
Malheur County Oregon onions – grossing about $5000 to Atlanta.
Salinas Valley vegetables – grossing bout $7400 to New York City.