Archive For The “Trucking Reports” Category
Here’s a round up of some of the major Western produce shipping areas including volume and freight rates.
California Produce Shipments
Big volume produce shipments continue out of both the Salinas Valley and the San Joaquin Valley of California. We’re certainly not witnessing any record rates this year. This is believed due to several factors. For example the California drought most certainly has resulted in fewer plantings of fruits and vegetables. Taking up at least some of the lack is Mexico that continues to increase production. Mexico not only has cheaper labor and production costs, but fewer restrictive rules and regulations than California.
However, rates were generally stagnant or in many cases lower this week as there was a surplus in refrigerated equipment. Rates on Salinas veggies plunged by double digits in some cases, as vegetable shipments have been less than spectacular this season – in part due to numerous shipping gaps.
Salinas Valley Produce Shipments
The Watsonville district continues shipping strawberries and other berries in good volume. Strawberries are averaging about 950 truck loads per week. Meanwhile, dozens of vegetables continue out of Salinas ranging from various types to lettuces to broccoli, and cauliflower, among others.
Salinas Valley produce – grossing about $6800 to New York City.
San Joaquin Valley Produce Shipments
From the Westside District, cantaloupe, honeydew and other melons are increasing in volume….Watermelons are averaging about 300 truck loads weekly and increasing in volume….There also is good volume with stone fruit ranging from peaches to plums and nectarines….Another big crop of grapes continues to be shipped…Pear and apple shipments are just starting from Northern California and the San Joaquin Valley. Between 1.5 and 1.7 million boxes of apples are forecast and should continue until mid October.
Central San Joaquin Valley fruits and vegetables – grossing about $6100 to Atlanta.
Southern California Produce Shipments
Avocado loadings continue in good volume, although it is declining as we head into the latter part of the shipping season….Tomatoes are big item. Vine ripe tomato loadings continue from the Oceanside and San Diego areas, including produce crossing the border into San Diego from Baja California.
Southern California citrus, avocados and tomatoes – grossing about $4800 to Houston.
Here are some produce loading opportunities from the Central and Mountain time zones.
Texas Produce Shipments
Most Texas produce loadings are coming out of the Lower Rio Valley, much of which is Mexican product crossing the border at McAllen. Watermelon shipments continue from South Texas, and starting to come out Central areas of the Lone Star State. Caution is advised as there are reports of variable quality….Meanwhile tropical fruit items ranging from mangos to avocados among other are crossing the border from Mexico. There’s also light volume with a number Mexican vegetables ranging from broccoli to various kinds of peppers.
South Texas/Mexican produce – grossing about $2700 to Chicago.
Colorado Produce Shipments
The old crop of russet potatoes continues to be shipped out the San Luis Valley, as growers and shippers gear up for the new season harvest. Colorado is still shipping nearly 600 truck loads of potatoes weekly….Western slope Colorado peach and pear loadings have just started within the past week, continuing through most of September….Sweet corn shipments get underway this week and lasting through September….Cantaloupe shipments start about August 1st.
Colorado potatoes – grossing about $2300 to Chicago.
Wisconsin Produce Shipments
Shipments of russet potatoes from Central Wisconsin remain light to moderate as the season gradually winds down. Diggings of the new crop of red potatoes is just getting underway.
Here we go with a round up a several produce shipping areas in the Eastern time zone.
New Jersey Produce Shipments
There is currently good volume with peach shipments, although peak loadings will occur as we approach late July. New Jersey peach shipments will continue through most of September. Jersey blueberries are still moving, but are in a seasonal decline. Steady shipments of vegetables continue from the southern part of the state.
Georgia Produce Shipments
Perhaps heaviest volumes is with Georgia watermelon shipments, averaging around 350 truck loads per week. Sweet corn volume is rapidly declining, as are Vidalia onions….Fort Valley peach shipments are moderate. There is higher volume with peaches and watermelons coming out of South Carolina.
South Carolina peaches – grossing about $1000 to Atlanta.
North Carolina Produce Shipments
Steady volume (about 250 loads weekly) continues from the Eastern part of the state with sweet potatoes, which are grossing about $2300 to Chicago.
Ohio Produce Shipments
Sweet corn shipments join a host of other mixed vegetables originating out of the Willard, OH area. Volume currently is very light, but should hit stride with the arrival of August.
Michigan Produce Shipments
Blueberry shipments are increasing. Movement started nearly three weeks ago and approximately 90 million pounds of blueberries are forecast to be shipped in 2015 for fresh and frozen markets….Concerning Michigan apples, shipments are expected to be similar to last season’s good volume….Mixed vegetables continue to move in good volume.
New York Produce Shipments
Orange County onion loadings will get underway in August. Meanwhile, Hudson Valley apple volume is light as the shipping season comes to an end. Otherwise, there are a number of vegetable shipments scattered throughout the state, particularly in the central and western areas.
Here’s more proof that some basic, fundamental changes are taking place in California regarding produce trucking. The two most cited reasons are excessive regulations – and the drought. This deals with the drought.
Many folks recalled not too many years ago when it was a rite of spring that truck rates would go crazy in California. In particular, the rates would be lowest the first part of the week, but might increase 30 to 50 percent by the end of the week as truck supplies were depleted. While some of the reasoning can be placed on long term negotiated rates (for a year, or at least a shipping season), it is suspected that less production or volume is coming out of California while Mexico and Canada are increasing. (Also, see the interview with Kenny Lund of the Allen Lund Company, from June 4th).
More California crop acreage is being removed from production in 2015, according to the California Department of Agriculture.
At 564,000 acres, fallowing will be up 33% over last year as growers cope with the state’s fourth year of drought, according to the preliminary estimate by University of California, Davis researchers.
They compared this year’s drought effects to years of average water supply. Surface water is even scarcer in 2015 than last year.
Growers are forecast to pump 6.2 million acre-feet of groundwater to partially make up for an 8.7 million shortage. The added pumping is projected to cost $595 million. When pumping costs, job losses, livestock, dairy and other factors are added in, the state’s agricultural industry anticipates drought losses of $2.7 billion.
The estimate pegs direct job losses at 8,560 full- and part-time jobs. But when spillover effects and increased pumping costs are factored in, total losses are closer to 18,600. The loss in irrigated crop revenues statewide for vegetables is estimated at $107.7 million, and for orchard and vines at $82.8 million.
If the California drought continues, the consequences for produce trucking, consumers and agriculture will become even more severe.
Salinas Valley vegetables – grossing about $5100 to Chicago.
San Joaquin Valley fruit and vegetables – grossing about $7800 to New York City.
While old crop potatoes are still being shipped, particularly from Western and Mid-western states, it already is looking like there will plenty of loading opportunities for the 2015-16 potato crop.
The USDA is reporting the following estimates from major potato shipping states. Idaho, which easily leads the pack in acreage, volume and shipments, has 4,000 more acres planted this season, which many considered to be too many acres a year ago.
Other states look like this: Colorado down 1,000 acres; Maine up 500 acres; Oregon no change; Washington up 5,000 acres and Wisconsin up 2,000 acres. The entire U.S. potato plantings for the upcoming season has increased by 18,400 acres, or two percent over last year’s big crop.
A major jump in plantings is with Minnesota that includes a whopping 7,000 acre increase (plus 16.3%) compared to 2014, and a 1,000 acres increase in North Dakota (1.3%).
Currently, Idaho potato shipments are amounting to about 1500 truck load equivalents per week. Colorado potato shipments from the San Luis Valley are average around 500 truck loads each week.
San Luis Valley potato shipments – grossing about 1750 to Dallas.
Idaho potatoes – grossing about $4600 to New York City.
Washington/Oregon Potato Shipments
It’s too early to tell for sure, but excessive heat and drought could reduce shipments out of Washington state and Oregon this coming season. While some diggings will begin any day now, most active doesn’t occur until after Labor Day. We’ll know a lot more in a month or so.
Peach shipments are past their peak in Georgia, while increasing in volume from South Carolina. New Jersey peach loadings will get underway soon.
Georgia peach shipments from the Fort Valley are now in the last half of the season. Weather factors earlier in the year are going to result in only about a 60 percent crop over all. For example, Lane Southern Orchards, the state’s largest peach shipper, expects to ship about 475,000 25-pound half bushel cartons this season, compared to 750,000 bushels a year ago. Lane should be shipping into the last half August.
Georgia is moving about 100 truck loads of peaches per week.
Georgia peach shipments – grossing about $3400 to Boston.
South Carolina Peach Shipments
Titan Farms in Ridge Spring, SC expects to ship its highest volume of fruit from mid July through August, while winding down the season in early September. Titan is believed to be South Carolina’s largest peach shipper.
South Carolina is loading about 200 truck loads of peaches weekly, with volume still increasing.
South Carolina peaches – grossing about $3100 to New York City.
New Jersey Peach Shipments
New Jersey peach shipments are expected to be good this season when it kicks off in late July. We’ll have more details soon.
By Northwest Cherries Growers
Through June 22nd, the Northwest cherry industry has shipped just over 9 million 20-pound boxes. Despite many growers picking out light on all varieties up to this point, current shipments put the total crop on a path to finish June close to the pre-season industry estimate. The first Skeenas and Lapins have shipped.
We look forward to getting into more varieties coming into production, as we climb out of the projected dip in variety availability. We expect solid picking to continue in earnest for at least the next 2 weeks, with many later growers continuing even after that point.
The Rainier crop has shipped about 1 million boxes shipped to date. At 8 percent of the total shipped crop to date, that puts the 2015 yellow cherry crop in line with historical percentages despite the fact that we’ve shipped 450,000 more boxes to date than last year’s previous record. That’s an 89% increase year over year in this window. For the yellow cherries increased to 2,480 stores this week, from comparatively none the week prior and even fewer (100) the past year.
The Yakima and Wenatchee Valleys combined have been averaging about 1250 truck loads of cherries per week, although volume is expected to decline a little this week.
Washington cherries, apples and pears – grossing about $3150 to Atlanta.
Northwest produce haulers are already looking to fall shipments of several varieties of apples, pears and even apricots as well as some summer tree fruit.
Wenatchee Valley peaches and nectarines will begin in mid-July and run through early September. New crop pear and apple shipments get underway in early August.
Apple loadings will kick off with ginger golds the last week in July, followed by galas. Weather factors have crops coming on about 10 earlier than normal. Remanents of the huge Red Delicious crop from last season continue to be shipped from storage. Improved storage technology has resulted in varieties like granny smith, golden delicious, galas and red delicious to be shipped out of Washington year-round.
Honeycrisp apples will start shipping in late August and continue until the end of May. That variety has really taken off in popularity with consumers and eventually, with added production, it should be available the year-round for hauling.
Apples continue to lead Northwest produce shipments, averaging about 2000 truck load equivalents weekly from the Yakima and Wenatchee Valleys, followed by cherries with about 1500 loads a week. There is moderate volume with onions coming out of Washington’s Columbia Basin and Oregon’s Umatilla Basin.
Yakima Valley fruit – grossing about $5400 to Dallas.
The number of loads for the new season Michigan apple shipments will be down from original estimates, but still good…Meanwhile, here’s an update on shipping opportunities for California avocados.
Depending you who you ask, Michigan apple shipments will be somewhere between 22.5 and 25 million bushels. Last season, crop finished at 27 million bushels.
The Michigan apple industry is still collecting data for the final 2014-15 estimate.
Heading into the 2015 harvest, Michigan growers are expecting similar volumes from the Ridge area, higher volumes from the Southwest, similar volumes from the East and lighter volumes from the Northwest part of Michigan.
Michigan blueberry shipments have just started. We hope to have more info on loading opportunities soon.
Avocado Shipments
Over 70 percent of the California avocado shipments have been completed, with much of the volume now coming out of the Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo areas. California could ship up to 10 million pounds a week through mid-July before volumes begin a gradual decline.
Mexico’s 2014-15 crop is finishing up. However new crop loadings for Mexican avocado shipments are just starting.
Imports of Peruvian avocados began arriving at US ports within the last week or so.
Southern California avocados, tomatoes, vegetables – grossing about $5400 to Cleveland.
Texas appears to be gaining ground on California when it comes to fresh produce shipments…..In Georgia, Vidalia onion shipments apparently will be down overall as product is now coming out of storage.
Texas produce shipments are becoming ever more important when it comes to spot rates for refrigerated loads. This appears to be due to increased fruit and vegetable production in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, plus more imports than ever from Mexico, as well as shift in demand from California in part because of the prolonged drought.
Although California had regained the top spot in late June, Texas volumes in the spot refrigerated freight market has surpassed California for the first time in early June, according to Mark Montague, manger of industry pricing for DAT Solutions.
Lower Rio Grande Valley watermelons and Mexican produce crossing the border – grossing about $2700 to Chicago.
Vidalia Onion Shipments
Vidalia onion shipments will be down as much as 40 percent this season for some shippers. Whether the reduction is due to excessive rains, or spring weather having too hot of temperatures, opinions vary. But shipments will be down, it’s just a matter of how much, since some shippers appear to have been hit harder than others. Vidalia onions are now being shipped out of storage, which can be “ify” some years when adverse weather or disease creates quality issues.
Southeastern Georgia Vidalia onions, as well as Southern Georgia bell peppers, sweet corn, eggplant, watermelons and squash – grossing about $3000 to New York City.