Archive For The “Trucking Reports” Category
Here are some loading opportunities ranging from Southeastern Georgia’s Vidalia onions to pear shipments from the Northwest, and cantaloupe and honeydew volume from California.
Fewer Vidalia onions have been shipped thus far this season. About 1.5 million 40-pound packages had been shipped through May, about 40 percent compared to by the same time last year. Shipments of fresh Vidalias finished in early June now loadings are coming from good supplies of onions from storage. Vidalias out of storage should be available through Labor Day.
Pear Shipments
Fewer shipments of Northwest pears are being forecast for the up coming season starting in late July. About 18.7 million boxes are expected to be hauled out of Washington and Oregon in the 2014-15 season, 13 percent less than in 2013-14 and 6 percent less than the five-year. The harvest should wind down in mid-October. Green anjous are expected to make up 53 percent of the Northwest volume, with bartletts at 23 percent and boscs 14 percent.
Yakima Valley apples, pears and cherries – grossing about $4300 to Chicago.
Melon Shipments
Shipments of cantaloupe and honeydew from Central California (Westside District) could get underway anywhere from a few days, to a couple of weeks early, depending on the field. There will be light volume the first two or three weeks of July, with much better movement beginning in late July and continuing into October. There has been a reduction of acreage in some of the earlier growing districts such as Huron and an increase in plantings farther north in such areas as Los Banos and Turlock.
Central San Joaquin Valley fruit – grossing about $8800 to New York City – higher towards the end of the week.
Following a slow start New Mexico onion loadings should be increasing as competition from other areas subside. In Michigan, blueberries will be joining mixed vegetable shipments.
New Mexico onion shipments got underway in light volume in early June. Loadings are expected to improve with seasons ending from onions out of West Texas and California’s Imperial Valley. The state ranks eigth in onion acreage behind Washington, Idaho-Eastern Oregon, California, Georgia, New York, Texas and West-Central Oregon. When considering yields, New Mexico actually comes in sixth nationwide. Most of New Mexico onion loads are available from a handful of shippers in the Las Cruces area.
Michigan Produce Shipments
Early reports in Michigan show an excellent bloom in apple orchards. Two years ago, freezing weather nearly wiped out the state’s apple crop, but last season it came back with record volume. The promising bloom this spring is bring early forecasts of another season for large volume apple shipments, despite the Grand Rapids area having a near record 116 inches of snow last winter.
Similar to mixed vegetable shipments out of Michigan this spring, the upcoming blueberry season is dragging, expecting to be a good week to 10 days later than usual. Michigan blueberry shipments should start in mid July.
New Mexico onions – grossing about $3800 to Chicago.
Here’s a checker board summarizing potential loading opportunities (or lack thereof) from areas ranging from the Southeast to the Northeast — and the Northwest.
Georgia Blueberry Shipments
Georgia blueberries are entering their peak shipping period from the Alma and Baxley areas that will continue through the Fourth of July. The season will end soon after the holiday.
Georgia blueberry and mixed vegetables – grossing about $3100 to New York City. Vidalia onions from storage – about $3900 to New York City.
Florida Produce Shipments
Not much happening for produce haulers in Florida this time of the year. However, avocado shipments get underway in late June, with decent volume coming in July. About 1.1 million bushels are expected to be shipped this season, similar to the volume of a year ago.
Western Berry Shipments
Strawberry shipments out of Watsonville, CA and blueberry volumes the Pacific Northwest should be good leading up to the Fourth of July.
Watsonville strawberries and Salinas mixed vegetables – grosssing about $8300 to New York City; often higher towards the end of the week.
Northwest Apricot, Cherry Shipments
Apricot shipments get underway in light volume this week, with much better volume next week from the Yakima and Wenatchee valleys of Washington. Apricot volume is predicted to be up 9 percent over last season. Cherry shipments have started. Although no record loadings are predicted, it is still one of the biggest crops on record.
New York Produce Shipments
Late start due to weather will probably limit New York state sweet corn loadings.
Watermelon Shipments
Watermelon shipments in many areas, particiularly on the East Coast are late, and loading opportunities will be down from normal prior to Independence Day.
North Florida watermelons – grossing about $3700 to New York City.
New Jersey continues to be one of the leading states for produce shipments, particularly to destinations east of the Mississippi River and into eastern Canada.
A cold wet spring has delayed maturity and harvest of Jersey vegetables up to three weeks this spring. However, items such as baby spinach, arugula and spring mix got started a couple of weeks ago. As June closes out there should be loadings available with peppers, cucumbers, squash, eggplant and tomatoes, among other items.
Some other New Jersey produce shipments are lettuce, cabbage, corn, parlsey, cilantrol, beans, as well as blueberries and peaches.
New Jersey blueberry shipments should get underway in light volume about June 19th. Peaches will be coming on a few weeks later.
Most New Jersey produce originates out of the Southern part of the state from rural areas such as Vineland, Cedarville and Hammonton.
California stone fruit shipments have started within the past couple of weeks and volume is building.
These items, primarily peaches, plums and nectarines – and to a lesser extent apricots – play a key role every spring and summer in determing how high produce rates will go out of California.
Early indications point to average volume for stone fruit this season – at the very best. Before it is over, total shipments could be below average.
Peach shipments started the third week of May, followed a week later by plums and nectarines. Most California stone fruit loadings occur during a 90-day period spread out between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
The San Joaquin Valley really gets humping as we enter July when table grape shipments crank up. Grapes seems to be one of the few crops in recent years that have had record setting volume.
Stone fruit – grossing about $5200 to Chicago.
It has been rainy, it has been cold, but Georgia vegetables seem have weathered the storms and are finally getting on track, albeit two weeks later – and in some cases even more – than we’re used to.
The biggest volume items coming out of Georgia are bell peppers, cucumbers and squash, although there are a number of other vegetables such as sweet corn, green beans, carrots, greens, and cabbage, as well as blueberries. There also are Vidalia sweet onions, which have been paying 25 to 40 percent more on the freight rates compared to mixed veggies.
This year is the latest start on record for mixed vegetable shipments out of central and southern Georgia, according to some shippers. Items such as peppers, cukes and squash are typically finished shipping in early July. With such a late start, it is up in the air whether the season will extend beyond early July. As always, weather factors rule.
In Southeastern Georgia, the season for non-storage Vidalia onions, as well as the harvest are complete. Further loadings will be coming out of storage and should continue into September. Sweet onions are not always known for holding up well in storage. However, thus far shippers are reporting good quality and let’s hope it holds up for the duration of the storage season.
South and central Georgia vegetables and blueberries – grossing about $2700 to New York City.
Vidalia onions – grossing about $3600 to New York City.
There’s no less than six regions currently active with California produce shipments. Here’s a look at each of those areas and how loading opportunities look. This is the time of year when produce freight rates are typically peaking and we’ll take a look at those as well.
Salinas Valley produce shipments, comprised primarily of mixed vegetables, strawberries and raspberries are moving into full volume, although there are some shipping gaps occurring with veggies. Lettuce shipments, led by iceberg and romaine are averaging over 1700 truckload equivalents per week. There also broccoli, cauliflower and dozens of other lesser volume vegetables being shipped.
You should gross about $8300 to New York City.
Santa Maria District is shipping many of the same items as the Salinas Valley, but in much smaller volume, with more pick ups, unless a shipper consolidates loads.
San Joaquin Valley produce shipments have every thing from mixed vegetables to stone fruit and blueberries and melons in the central valley.
Produce items grossing about $8200 to New York City.
Kern County has primarily carrots and potatoes available.
Southern California is relatively quiet with the exit of berries to Santa Maria and Watsonville. There are still some avocados and citrus and a few tomatoes — grossing about $7900 to New York City.
Desert Shipments including Coachella Valley table grapes, peppers, sweet corn and eggplant are available, grossing about $8100 to New York City.
Georgia peach shipments got off to a very light start a couple of weeks ago, but should experience a significant volume increase by the middle of June. However, the best loading opportunities from the Fort Valley area will take place during the month of July. Shipments should continue until at least the middle of August. So far, Georgia peach loadings have been only about 30 percent of normal due to a harsh winter and early spring weather conditions.
Meanwhile, South Carolina peach shipments only started about a week ago, which like Georgia, are running a week or two later than normal. The best loading opportunities for South Carolina peaches will be from about mid July until the middle of August, with the season ending by Labor Day.
The long awaited loadings of cherry from the Pacific Northwest get underway this week from the Tri-Cities area in Washington state. Initial volume will be with Chelans, with the more popular Bing variety coming about a week later.
Unlike California cherry shipments, where volume was down this season, the Northwest should experience a significant increase in cherry loadings. Total cherry shipments, mostly out of Washington state, should hit 20 million boxes, up from only 13 million boxes last year.
Washington state typically accounts for about 75 percent of the cherry shipments out of the Northwest, with most of the volume coming out of the Yakima and Wenatchee valleys. However, it is the Tri-City area where initial loadings occur as it spreads to the southern Columbia Basin and the lower Yakima Valley within the next week or so.
It was only a couple of weeks ago when 80 percent of the asparagus fields in west-central Michigan had frost damage, but it has since re-grown. Shipments have recently resumed and while the crop is now late, loss of volume is expected to be relatively small. The harvest already was late due to a cold spring and harvesting in southern Michigan didn’t start until about May 9. Asparagus shipments should continue through June. Volume in 2014 should be about equal to 2013 Michigan asparagus volume of 20 million pounds. Around 8 million pounds will to go to the fresh market this year, with the remainder of the total going to the processing market. The fresh market share has risen in two years to about 40 percent from 20-25 percent. In another two years about half of the state’s asparagus will go to the fresh market.