Archive For The “Trucking Reports” Category
By Lisa Towner, ALC Portland
Cherry season is right around the corner. The Pacific Northwest cherry season typically begins in early June and continues until late August.
A typical season will see 20-25 million boxes of cherries harvested in Oregon and Washington. Cherries are generally picked, chilled, and loaded onto a truck within 24-48 hours. Peak season usually coincides with the 4th of July. Many refrigerated carriers across the country plan their loads around cherry season every year.
April 2022 saw record low temperatures in Washington and Oregon. A cold spring brings many obstacles for local cherry growers. Several publications have predicted cherries to start later and the crop to be smaller than usual. Some predict the overall crop will be between 20% and 35% smaller than in the previous five years.
The Seattle Times warned that a cool April will also affect bees, as they struggle to pollinate the cherry blossoms. Less fruit available will also mean each box will have increased value due to basic supply and demand. This is a stark contrast to what growers were facing last year. In April 2021, the Pacific Northwest saw record high temperatures that reduced the cherry crop by 20%, according to Fruit Growers News.
Overall, many growers remain optimistic as the season approaches. Delayed cherry harvest in some growing regions may extend the season, which could be profitable for cherry producers in the Pacific Northwest. Most growers agree that the fruit will be high quality and ready for consumers to enjoy in the first few weeks of June.
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Lisa Towner began her career with the Allen Lund Company as a transportation broker in 2002. She was promoted to assistant manager in the Portland office in 2015. In 2022, Towner was promoted to manager ALC Portland. Her transportation career began back in 2000 when she worked at the corporate headquarters for a national LTL company.
A slower-than-expected start due to the Mexican table grape season is occurring due to weather conditions which have slowed the ripening process.
A local Sonora based grape growers association reports parts of the region have yet to see the warmer days needed to properly harvest the grapes.
Table grapes from Mexico usually begin shipping in early May. However, nights have been cold, days have not been very warm, and this means that the grape ripening is delayed along with their harvest.
A harvest for the region of up to 29 million boxes is higher than the 25 million boxes officially projected by the Mexican table grape growers association.
Mexico’s industry has been expanding its portfolio of varieties planted, and thus extending the season and leveling off traditional peaks of the harvest in June. This season’s harvest comes at a time when freight costs and logistics into the main receiving market of the U.S., have added uncertainty for growers.
Ample shipments of North Carolina vegetable are expected in the months ahead.
L&M Cos. of Raleigh, NC reports fresh produce shipments include cabbage, broccoli, cucumbers, bell peppers, chili peppers, summer squash, hard squash, tomatoes, onions, and red, yellow and sweet potatoes.
The region has had slightly cooler and slightly more wet than usual weather. Overall, growing conditions have been very good for vegetables, potatoes and onions.
Vegetable, supplies look to be steady and uninterrupted through the transition up from Georgia all the way through the North Carolina season. Potato and onion shipments look to be above average this season.
Cabbage loadings will be higher on the front end of the vegetable season for L&M, while chilies and hard squash will be plentiful later in the season.
In addition to conventional volume, the company offers organic options for broccoli, tomatoes, squash, peppers and cabbage.
Salinas, CA – Naturipe’s blackberry growing season in Georgia recently started mid-May and will last through early July with high-quality, delicious berries. Peak volumes are expected through the month of June.
Large volumes of this blackberry peak will come from Patten Berry Farm in South Georgia where Michelle Patten has been farming for 20 years. Michelle is a pioneer of blackberry growing in this region and has expanded her operations 10-fold since starting her business. When Michelle started growing blackberries, she had four children under the age of five and was inspired to instill in them the important lessons of hard work, pride of ownership and perseverance. Patten Berry Farms’ success comes from Michelle’s passion for, and dedication to, growing delicious Georgia blackberries. Michelle is proud to grow for Naturipe and bring high-quality blackberries to market.
“These sweet, firm and jet-black berries are a crowd favorite. With a strong supply expected, production will be steady through early July with our growers anticipating their first pick in mid-May,” says Jim Roberts, President of Sales. “Summer blackberries are a key component of a retailer’s berry patch display and Naturipe is primed and ready to supply promotable volumes.”
About Naturipe:
Naturipe is a farmer-owned producer and marketer of nutritious, best tasting, premium berries and avocados that has been an industry leader for more than 100 years producing healthy, deliciously fresh, frozen, and value-added products.
United Apple of Lyndonville, NY has been in the agriculture business for over four generations with orchards and growing partners in western New York.
The company came out of the winter season in a really strong, healthy position relative to the overall condition of the orchards after last fall’s harvest. The volume of the eastern regional crop was relatively modest last season.
This year there has been plenty of rain, keeping the soil and ground water table in a strong position. There also was not have excessive heat, which took its toll on the size and quality of the Northwest apple crop last season.
New York had relatively moderate conditions this winter and no harsh temperatures or frost in the spring. This resulted in trees full of buds that are ready to go into all out bloom in a few weeks. The company also expresses similar optimism for its growers in the Midwest.
United Apple anticipates traditional eastern varieties of Cortland and MacIntosh as well as mainline varietals of Fuji, Gala, Honeycrisp, Pink Lady and Red Delicious will be in good supply. Club varieties – EverCrisp, RubyFrost, and SnapDragon – will see a larger volume this season as young trees are maturing and producing more fruit.
United Apple Sales is a leading northeast grower, packer, shipper, and marketer of domestic apples, pears and cherries. The company started with its initial farm in 1905. Over the past 11 decades, it has evolved into an integrated produce company that also has import and export capabilities to offer full-year supply and merchandising services to retail, wholesale and canning and juicing companies. United Apple is a member of a select group of orchardists growing new apple varieties: EverCrisp, RubyFrost and SnapDragon.
While the popularity of avocados in 2022 remain, prices have been sky high and volume has been a problem.
RaboResearch released a report on the avocado market estimating shipping-point prices will decline gradually Cinco de Mayo behind us. It is the second largest driver of avocado consumption in the U.S.
“Nevertheless, we estimate that from May to mid-summer, prices will remain higher on average than in 2020 and 2021,” writes lead author David Magana, fresh produce analyst with Rabo AgriFinance, the part of the global Rabobank Group that serves U.S. agricultural producers.
“Starting from late summer, prices are likely to decline below the prices observed in 2021 but remain higher than those of 2020.”
The report says the second half of 2022 should see increased volume from Mexico, both from the main supplying state of Michoacan, but also new exports from Jalisco. Volume from South America should also increase.
This summer, California is expected to harvest higher volume than last year. Shipments from Peru to the U.S. will also likely rise considering the disruptions in Europe with the conflicts.
The report gives historical perspective, showing how availability has risen in the U.S. from 1 billion pounds in 2005-06 to 3 billion in 2020-21, and per capita consumption has grown to more than 9 pounds, more than three times of that in Europe, which has changed the strategies of supplying nations.
Heavy volume strawberry shipments continue from California following the Mother’s Day holiday and the trend is continuing this week as strong demand from retail sales continues.
In fact strawberry loadings are increasing this week from the Salinas/Watsonville are and are expected to continue at a similar pace next week, before showing a decline prior to Memorial Day, May 23 – 27. Quality is reported to be excellent with 90 to 95% color.
Shipments out of Santa Maria, CA, are increasings thanks to warm weather, Good quality is reports, although some “green shoulders” is being reported.
In seasonal decline, Oxnard, CA, strawberry shipments are all but finished as the season concludes. Quality is reported to be only fair, with some bruising.
Plenty of domestic pears remain in storages this season. There are more apples as well, but the percentage of amounts remaining pale compared to pears. The vast majority of the fruit remaining to be hauled is in the Pacific Northwest.
Pear stocks have increased significantly compared to April 2021 in the U.S., while apple stocks have also increased in the U.S., although at a slower rate.
The World Apple and Pear Association (WAPA) released its apple and pear stock figures from April 1, 2022, which showed that pear stocks increased by 45.6 percent, hitting 73,215 tons in April 2022.
In particular, Anjou and Red Anjou pears increased their stocks by 45.2 percent and 93.3 percent respectively, while Bosc pears also saw inventories grow by 15.1 percent compared to figures recorded in the same month last year.
In the U.S., apple stocks were up 4 percent on the previous year too, standing at 1,014,826 tons. Increases in supplies of varieties such as Cosmic Crisp (+290 percent), Granny Smith (+48.8 percent), and Pink Lady (+24.1 percent) balanced out the decreases detailed in other important varieties, namely Fuji (-22.7 percent) and Red Delicious (-11.3 percent).
LOS ANGELES, CA – Pacific Trellis Fruit, the year-round importer, grower, marketer, and owner of the Dulcinea® Brand, is gearing up for a successful Mexican table grape season. Since the company’s inception in the grape industry in 1999, they have experienced year-over-year volume growth for its conventional and organic varieties.
“The crop out of Mexico this year is up nearly 20%, which relates to around 25.5 million boxes,” says Earl McMenamin, Senior Sales Executive. “Pacific Trellis’ 2 million boxes of volume this year will account for around 20 high-flavor varieties which will begin packing the second week of May.”
The company’s robust line-up for the Mexican season consists of conventional and organic red, green, black, and specialty varieties. Pacific Trellis’ specialty grapes kick off the last week of May with Tawny Red, a red seedless variety cross between a Red Globe and Flame. Tawny Red is a large, round berry with great crunch and skin color that varies between dark red and crimson. The Tawny variety is followed closely by Sweet Celebration and Sweet Globe, two high-flavor berries, which begin the first week of June. Pacific Trellis’ grape program is rounded out with organic red and green varieties, which will start in May, with all colors ready for shelves the first week of July.
“Our Mexican grape season has a tremendous advantage as it provides non-interrupted service and a bridge from the import season right into California production,” comments McMenamin. “Our team prides itself on smooth varietal transitions for our customers.”
Pacific Trellis’ entire Mexican table grape production filters through their primary warehouse in Nogales, Arizona. From Nogales, inventory is shipped to secondary warehouses in southern New Jersey and the Central Valley of California. All three centers have customer fulfillment abilities, giving Pacific Trellis reliable national distribution. This season’s grapes will be packed under the renowned Dulcinea® brand, with various bag and clamshell options for retail partners.
Learn more about Pacific Trellis Fruit by visiting their website https://www.pacifictrellisfruit.com/.
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About Pacific Trellis Fruit
Pacific Trellis Fruit is one of North America’s top year-round growers and importers of premium fresh fruit, including melons, grapes, peaches, plums, nectarines, citrus, and cherries. It partners with growers in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Spain, and Uruguay, as well as domestic farmers across the United States.
Its corporate headquarters is in Los Angeles, CA, with sales offices in Fresno, CA, Gloucester, NJ, and Tucson, AZ. Pacific Trellis owns and manages the renowned Dulcinea® brand. Dulcinea® is the pioneer of the Pureheart personal seedless melons as well as the Tuscan Style Cantaloupe, and Pacific Trellis has recently expanded the brand to pack grapes, citrus, and cherries. In 2020, Pacific Trellis fruit became the exclusive marketer and distributor of the KISS line of melons./
Salinas, CA – Naturipe’s California strawberries are in peak production with the high-quality and flavorful berries consumers expect from Naturipe. Peak volumes are starting now and expected to last through June.
This season, Naturipe Farms is set to have its highest volumes of strawberries, as all California regions are in full production. Oxnard, Santa Maria, and Watsonville-Salinas are producing at peak volumes with great quality and supplies. We have a mix of proprietary and U.C. varieties to bring our customers the best of both worlds!
“This year’s California strawberry crop is peaking just in time for National Strawberry Month. We are seeing great quality and delicious flavor on these sweet and juicy berries. We are thrilled to be offering strong promotable volumes heading into May,” said Jerry Moran, Vice President of Sales for Naturipe.
About Naturipe:
Naturipe is a farmer-owned producer and marketer of nutritious, best tasting, premium berries and avocados that has been an industry leader for more than 100 years