Archive For The “Trucking Reports” Category
March can be one of the more frustrating months if you haul fresh produce. 
We are getting there, but certainly haven’t arrived. Several major shipping areas are starting to wind down, while others are still trying to ramp up with spring volume. A great example is in the West. Winter shipments of lettuce and other veggies from the deserts of Arizona and California provide loading opportunities during the winter, but are entering a transition period, where shipments will be moving northward to the Huron area of the San Joaquin Valley, following closely by Salinas. There’s now light volume with vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower from Santa Maria and Ventura County. Strawberry volume in Southern California is ramping up, but certainly not there yet.
Florida is similar in that vegetable volume is increasing, but won’t be hitting seasonal numbers until early April.
The steady, more consistent shipments are with hardware items ranging from apples, pears, onions and potatoes from the Northwest, potatoes from Colorado and Wisconsin; sweet potatoes out of Lousiana, Mississippi and the leader — North Carolina.
By this time next month we should be seeing significant increases in loading oppportunities, particularly from California and Florida, with rates rising accordingly.
Yakima Valley apples and pears grossing – about $5500 to Atlanta.
South Florida vegetables – about $2200 to Baltimore.
It’s still too early for decent loading opportunities out of Florida — while we’re still another two to three weeks away from significant volume, particularly with vegetables. Yet, the Sunshine state is better now than it was only a few weeks ago when it comes to finding a load.
From South Florida, about 250 truckloads of red potatoes are being loaded a week. There is even heavier volume with roma, mature green, cherry and grape tomatoes coming out of the Southern areas of Florida….The Plant City and Dover location near Tampa is shipping some of the most beautiful and tasty strawberries you can image (I just bought this shown in photo today).
Central Florida produce shipments – grossing about $2300 to Chicago.
There are four percent more apples remaining in storages around 
the United States to be shipped, compared to this time a year ago. The vast majority of those apples will be shipped out of Washington state, although significant amounts will be loaded between now and late summer from Michigan and upstate New York.
The Yakima and Wenatchee Valleys in Washington are shipping about 2,500 truckload equivalents of apples weekly. By comparison, the Western region of Michigan is moving around 175 truckloads per week. New York state is averaging over 200 truckloads of apple shipments weekly, but keep in mind those numbers include loadings spread out from Eastern New York’s Hudson Valley to areas in the Central and Western portions of the state.
Light shipments are available from New England and the Applachian states.
Michigan apples are grossing – about $1000 to Chicago.
New York Hudson Valley – about $2400 to Atlanta.
Washington state – about $5800 to New York City.
Supplies of trucks from major produce shipping areas around the country appear to be mostly adequate.
One of the most active shipping areas has Mexican produce crossing the border at Nogales, AZ. Heavy volume of vine ripes, roma, plum and grape tomatoes are accounting for about 1,200 truckloads a week, and this doesn’t include many items ranging from melons and various kinds of vegetables.
From the San Luis Valley of Colorado, over 700 truckloads of potatoes are being shipped each week.
South Texas also has significant shipments of produce, whether talking about product moving from the Winter Garden District south of San Antonio (cabbage), or citrus and vegetables from the Lower Rio Grand Valley, not to mention good volume crossing the border from Mexico, ranging from onions and carrots to tropical fruits.
In the Northeast, potatoes loadings from the Presque Isle, ME area are exceeding 100 truckloads per week. Maine potatoes are grossing about $1700 to New York City.
Lower Rio Grande Valley produce – about $1700 to Chicago.
San Luis Valley potatoes – about $2700 to Atlanta.
Nogales produce – about $1200 to Los Angeles.
Despite a freeze on January 3-4, which caused some damage to early spring Florida produce, overall it has been a warmer-than-normal winter and most 
shipments should be one to two weeks earlier. Florida’s peak spring shipments will occur from late March, extending into May until hot weather begins reducing volume.
Florida spring loadings often involve multiple pick ups of items ranging from bell peppers to squash, cabbage, cucumbers and other veggies. Loads with multiple pick ups often mean multiple drops at the other end of the haul, so be sure and negotiate your freight rates with this in mind.
Tomatoes are a big volume item from Florida and expect loads to be available a week earlier than usual from the Immokalee and Palmetto-Ruskin areas — starting in early April.
As for citrus, shipments are expected to wind down up to three weeks earlier on items such as tangerines (late March) and grapefruit (in April). Tangerine loadings normally end in late April.
Florida ships a significant amount of spring red potatoes from the southern part of the state such as from Lake Wales. Heaviest red potato loadings take place during March and April.
Florida watermelon shipments will get underway in early April.
South Florida red potatoes grossing about $2600 to Philadelphia.
Some of the best loading opportunties this time of year are out of the Northwestern United States – namely with Washington state (apples, pears, potatoes and onions) and Idaho and Oregon (onions and potatoes). While the onions and spuds may pay a lower freight rate than fruit, this region at least has good volume in late winter.
Washington’s Yakima and Wentachee valleys continue shipping a lot of apples and lesser amounts of pears. Apple loadings are averaging about 2,500 truckload equivalents per week, with pears loading around 400 truckload equivalents weekly. I use the term “equivalents” in the Northwest since a heavier percentage of produce is shipped by rail than most regions.
There also are onions being shipped from Washington’s Columbia Basin, as well as the nearby Umatilla Basin in Oregon. The two areas combined are averaging around 670 truckload equivalents per week being shipped….The Western area of Idaho and adjacent Malheur County of eastern Oregon is loading about 750 truckload equivalents of onions weekly.
Idaho easily remains the largest shipper of russet potatoes, but has been increasing shipments of red potatoes in recent years. Most produce is originating out of the Upper Valley and the Twin Falls-Burley District. The state is shipping over 1,550 truckload equivalents per week.
Washington apples/pears are grossing about – $6000 to Miami.
Washington’s Columbia Basin potatoes/onions – $3800 to Chicago.
Idaho/Oregon onions – $1600 to Los Angeles.
Idaho potatoes – $5300 to New York City.
Easter is Sunday, April 8th and is always big for such items as strawberries and asparagus. California will be just about the only place shipping such items for Easter as Mexican strawberries will be pretty much finished for the season, while California “grass” from the desert may not have the greatest volume with its season just getting underway. California strawberries will have the market to itself with Florida and Mexico shipments finished. California berries will be heaviest out of the Oxnard district, with lighter volume coming out of Santa Maria.
In Michigan, apple shipments continue from the Western Part of the state, primarily from the Grand Rapids area. The state should ship about 23 million cartons, down some from its record setting season that had 28 million cartons of apples.
In the Appalachian district of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia about 50 truckloads of apples are being shipped each week. New York state is loading about 200 truckloads of apples weekly from the Hudson Valley, as well as Central and Western areas of the state.
Southern California berries, citrus grossing – about $5600 to New York City.
Western Michigan apples – $3200 to Dallas.
Central New York apples – $3150 to Boston.
I have just returned from Florida and over the weekend had the opportunity 
to attend the Florida Strawberry Festival at Plant City, FL, just east of Tampa. Before talking about the event, here’s the bottom line on Florida strawberry shipments. Volume is good from the area, with over 400 truckloads being shipped weekly. However, if the warm, humid weather continues shipments will start rapidly declining, which is pretty normal for the last half of March.
Strawberries grossing about $1,000 to Atlanta.
The Florida Strawberry Festival has been held since 1930 and is quite similar to a state fair with everything from midway rides to a queen contest and awards for cake decorating, plus plenty of entertainment, among countless other activities.
I caught the show by the pop group Air Supply on Saturday night (March 3). I’m told they had several big hits during the 1980s, but I guess I missed them somehow. Anyway, wasn’t my flavor of music, but they did have a great band!
If you’re looking for something to do and in the area, it can be a fun event, which lasts through March 11th. By the way, lots of huge, beautiful flats of strawberries are being sold at the festival for $7 and $8.
The seasonal change in California shipping areas for vegetables will be here sooner than you think. In March shipments will start winding down from the desert areas such as the Coachella Valley and Imperial Valley, as well as the Yuma district in Arizona. This can be a tricky time of the year, which can either result in shipping gaps as one area may finish before the other start. However, unless adverse weather changes things it should be a fairly smooth transition this spring.
As produce shipments move from the desert up north, there is actually a limited amount of broccoli being loaded from Salinas, CA. Broccoli volume is expected to be limited until the third or fourth week of March…..Head lettuce and leaf lettuce should start loadings in late March from Huron District in the San Joaquin Valley. These shipments will last a month or so before transitioning to the Salinas Valley around the third week of April.
The Santa Maria District typically starts lettuce shipments ahead of Salinas and Huron. Look for loadings of leaf, romaine and butter lettuce from Santa Maria to get underway in Mid March.
An exception to all this are carrots. This veggie is typically shipped from the Bakersfield area from Thanksgiving to mid-March. Then shipments will transistion southward to the desert areas of the Coachella and Imperial valleys.
As the seasonal light to moderate winter produce loadings continue, California 
remains your best bet. There’s items ranging from strawberries to avocados in Southern California. In the desert, mixed vegetables ranging from lettuce to cauliflower, broccoli and celery are being shipped. One cautionary note: Excessive supplies of vegetables have led to a glut in the market due in part because of a mild West Coast winter. If any weather event on the East Coast that ma occur, compounds the problem as receivers don’t want trucks stuck in snow, ice etc. with a load of perishable produce.
In the Gulf Coast area, there is Texas cabbage coming out of the Winter Garden District just south of San Antonio. Further south in the Lower Rio Grande Valley there is citrus and mixed veggies, plus crossings of numerous items from Mexico….In nearby Louisiana and Mississippi, sweet potatoes continue to be shipped….In the east, there are sweet potatoes loading from North Carolina. On some days there’s been a shortage of trucks in NC, but this may be in part due to sweet potatoes not being known to get a very good freight rate.
Light to moderate apple shipments are coming from the Applachian District of Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia. Apples are being shipped from New York’s Hudson Valley, as well as central and western parts of the state….The new crop of red potatoes from South Florida are now being shipped.
California desert vegetables – grossing about $5400 to New York City.
Mississippi sweet potatos – $1700 to Detroit.
South Texas and Mexico produce – $2100 to Atlanta.
Central New York apples – $1600 to Baltimore.