Posts Tagged “blueberries”
While 90 percent of Michigan apple shipments for the upcoming season were 
lost to freeze, the state should have more loads of blueberries this summer, plus a near normal volume with vegetables. Blueberries should be up over 10 percent from last year (81 million pounds is forecast). However, cherry shipments are pegged at only 1 million pounds, down over 70 percent from a year ago.
Otherwise, volume with vegetables have been increasing during June and should hit peak shipments in July. Veggies, which avoided the freeze damage to apples, started in early June with radishes and turnips. Since then various types of leafy lettuces, zucchini, and cabbage have become available. There also are greens and cilantro. Warm weather is expected to bring on grape and roma tomatoes in mid-July, followed by sweet corn in early August, two weeks or more earlier than usual.
Produce shipments on the East Coast are a mixed bag this year and some areas 
are shipping more normal volumes, with other areas doing less.
Shipments of New Jersey blueberries, along with vegetables continue to be loaded in normal volumes. Jersey peach loadings are ramping up and should be in peak volume soon, continuing through July.
Further south in the Mid-Altantic area, sometimes referred to as the Eastern Shore, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia are shipping a variety of vegetables, with more coming into play as we enter July. This area, however, has struggled over the years, as it tries to provide shipments during a gap between states to the south of it, and New Jersey to the north, which in theory is supposed to begin shipments when Delaware, Maryland and Virgina are finishing.
However, it’s a gamble every year and if the southern states are late coming in, or Jersey is early, the the Mid-Atlantic states tend to face poor markets, and fewer loading opportunities for produce haulers. As a result this area does not have as many shippers as it used to.
Meanwhile, there are fewer Georgia vegetables, Vidalia onions and peaches this year due to weather factors, although the vegetables were easily hit the hardest of the three.
Vidalia, Georgia onions – grossing about $3200 to New York City.
New Jersey blueberries – about $1800 to Boston.
We are quickly approaching time for shipments of produce for the Fourth of 
July holiday. Since Independence Day falls on a Wednesday, a lot of consumers will only have that one day off work, although many do tie extra days off around the holiday.
But to help you try and plan your schedule so you can be home for the holiday, here’s a look at some shipping areas that will be pretty active a week or so before the Fourth, hopefully increasing your chances for faster loadings, transits and getting to your destination.
In the West, the Watsonville district will be the only California area shipping strawberries, but it good volume. The nearby Salinas Valley should be rockin’ with plenty of vegetable loads. The same goes for the San Joaquin Valley shipping stone fruit and vegetables.
In Washington, the eastern part of the state has moderate volume with blueberries, but better volume will be coming from Yakima and Wenatchee with late season apples from storage, as well as with cherries, with loadings at a peak.
At Nogales, watermelons from Mexico crossing the border have more than doubled over the past decade. Yet, loading opportunities are being limited, depending upon with whom one talks, because of the escalating drug cartel violence south of the border.
In Michigan, decent blueberry shipments are expected for the Fourth of July, plus vegetable volume is increasing.
New Jersey blueberry shipments will be supplying most Eastern markets for Independence Day. The state also is shipping vegetables.
In the Southeast, Georgia continues with Vidalia onions, Ft. Valley area peaches and vegetables from the central and southern part of the state.
Overall Florida produce shipments are down subtantailly by this time of the year, but Belle Glade is shipping a lot of sweet corn.
Produce shipments from New Jerseyhave been occuring in limited volume since 
March, with items ranging from lettuce, leafy greens, herbs, flat parsely, cilantro, spinach, leeks and radishes. As we enter the summer season volume will pick up significantly for other types of vegetables, especially from the southern area of the state.
Green beans are just starting. Other vegetable loadings will get underway in June and July with bell peppers, cucumbers and squash. Sweet corn loadings kick in around the second week of July. Cabbage shipments recently started.
The Garden state also is one of the larger shippers of peaches and blueberries. Blueberries become available the first week of June, while peaches will get underway around the 4th of July.
Most New Jersey produce items are either starting on time, or a week or so early.
While many Florida veggies, such as pepper and squash shipments are 
seasonally finished, items ranging from potatoes to tomatoes and watermelons are moving in good volume. Heaviest volume out of Florida is now with central area watermelons, which is approaching 2,000 loads per week. There’s moderate volume with tomatoes, followed by potatoes. But in the overall scheme of things, Florida produce volume is in a seasonal decline.
Georgia is entering perhaps its most active time of the year for produce loads. There’s light volume in the Southern part of the state with blueberries, and heavier tonnage coming from mixed vegetables….About 400 truckloads of Vidalia sweet onions are being shipped weekly. In the Ft. Valley area, Georgia peach hauls are limited, resulting in a lot of multi drop loads as the season hasn’t really kicked in yet and shippers are trying to please as many customers as possible.. But come June that will change rapidly and more straight loads of peaches will become available.
South Carolina peach loadings are only a few days behind those in Georgia.
Georgia vegetables – grossing about $2600 to Chicago.
Florida watermelons – about $4200 to New York City.
In Florida while some vegetable shipments, such as peppers are on the 
decline, items such as potatoes, watermelons and tomatoes are providing better loading opportunities.
Florida is shipping about 500 truckloads of potatoes weekly and product is now coming out of the Hastings/Palatka area…..Watermelons are moving in much heavier volume, over 2,200 truckloads a week, from southern and central Florida. There also is good volume with tomatoes from the southern and central parts of the state.
If you are in Florida and need to fill out the truck, southern Georgia continues to ship greens, squash and other vegetables….Vidalia onions are now moving in good volume….In the Ft. Valley area, peach shipments have started…..Peaches in South Carolina are only a few days behind Georgia and both states should provide good loading opportunities – especially through the month of June.
South Carolina also has light to moderate volume with greens, sweet onions, cabbage, parsley and cilantro. Coming in June will be shipments of corn, tomatoes and peppers.
Looking ahead, North Carolina loading opportunities for watermelons and cantaloupe will be coming the last half of June.
Southern New Jersey continues to ship light amounts of lettuce and asparagus. These items will be winding down with the month of May, but will be replaced in June with vegetables ranging from bell peppers, cucumbers, green beans, tomatoes, as well as blueberries and peaches.
Central Florida tomatoes, watermelons – grossing about $4100 to New York City.
Georgia vegetables – about $2700 to Philadlephia.
While Georgia greens, cabbage, squash and Vidalia sweet onions shipments 
have been underway, more items are joining the “party.” Over the last half of May loadings will begin for cucumbers, bell peppers, watermelons and blueberries from southern areas of the state. Volume on “blues” will be lighter than usual at the start due a freeze earlier this year. Most of the vegetable shippers have operations scattered between the Georgia/Florida state line stretching northward up to the Americus and Cordele areas….Vidalia onions, and some other vegetable shipments are in the Southeastern part of Georgia.
Just south of Macon, GA is the Ft. Valley area, famous for its Georgia peaches. Loadings for the stone fruit should get started in a light way within the next week or so, with good volume coming about a week later. About 2.5 million boxes of peaches should be shipped this season, down a little from the bumper loadings of a year ago.
South Georgia vegetables – grossing about $2800 to New York City.
Southeastern Vidalia onions – about $2600 to Chicago.
I’ve recently returned from a produce show in Dallas and although freight rates on 
California produce loads have recently been steady, or in some cases declining a little, most people I’ve talked to (shippers, wholesalers, truck brokers, trucking companies) only see this as the calm before the storm. In coming weeks as volume builds throughout many California shipping districts, they are expecting rates to show significant increases. $9000 produce rates from the West Coast to the East Coast are expected to be common. Some would not be surprised if rates hit $10,000.
Here’s the outlook for loading opportunities on the huge volume of summer fruit that annually is shipped from California.
Strawberries – Mostly available right now out of Southern California and to a lesser degree from Santa Maria. Yet California ships 88 percent of the nation’s strawberries and it really cranks up in a few weeks when Watsonville starts shipping in volume.
Blueberries – These berries are now being loaded out of the Arvin district and as the season progresses will move northward in the San Joaquin Valley to Delano and Kingsburg. California expects to ship 15 to 20 million pounds of “blues” this year.
Melons – watermelon and honeydew from the Bakersfield area kicks off in mid-June, followed by cantaloupes around July 1st.
Stone Fruit – It was in 2008 around 60-million 25-pound cartons of peaches, plums and nectarines were shipped, but last year loadings were down to an estimated 47 million cartons. Don’t expect anymore this year. California has been shipping too much stone fruit that doesn’t taste very good, and are replacing some orchards with improved varieties….Cherries are a different story. Californians know how to grow good tasting cherries! This year the state should be loading decent volumes of cherries by the third week of May. Shipments should be in the 8 to 10-million box range; 12-million boxes in the unlikely event perfect weather continues.
Table Grapes – The Coachella Valley is currently shipping grapes and will continue through June. Shipments will then transition to the Arvin/Bakersfield district, where the huge volume will begin and gradually moves northward through the San Joaquin Valley. California may have record shipments this year, and top 100-million boxes for the first time.
Apples – California isn’t really known for apple shipments as it is dwarfed by Washington state. However, it does have 16,000 acres of orchards and available loads should be similar to last year. Shipments of the gala variety begins in late July and runs through mid-September. This variety will be followed by granny smiths in August and and fujis in September and cripps pink in October.
Oranges – The 75-million-plus cartons of navels are pretty much history for this year, while smaller loadings of valencias are now being shipped. About 28 million, 40-pound boxes of valencias should be shipped.
Supplies of refrigerated a equipment are tightening some as we get further into 
spring. How big a shortage of trucks for hauling produce will be this year will start to reveal itself in the weeks ahead and should be really interesting by late May and onward through the summer.
In Florida, blueberry loadings from Central and North Florida are now in good volume and hauls are available into June….Meanwhile, Georgia “blues” are right behind Florida. Good Georgia blueberry shipments should be available by next week….Back to Florida, rates for hauling watermelons out of the southern part of the state have jumped 20 percent in recent days. Vegetable volume from Florida continues to be heavy.
In South Texas, vegetables continue to be loaded, combined with a lot of veggies and tropical fruit from Mexico crossing the border into Texas. Cantaloupe shipments have started from the Rio Grande Valley. There’s still no overall damage reports on storm-hit watermelons in South Texas. There will be fewer loads, but who knows how much less? Loadings are light, but will be increasing and continue into mid-June.
In California, the Imperial Valley is quieter with the seasonal end of vegetable shipments. However, cantaloupe shipments will start in mid-May….About 300 truckload equivalents of carrots are being shipped weekly from the Bakersfield area.
Southern California continues to ship good volumes of avocados, strawberries and citrus…..The Santa Maria district, along with the Salinas Valley will become more active with produce shipments in the weeks ahead.
In Washington state, there are steady loadings of apples and pears from the Yakima and Wenatchee valleys.
Washington state apples and pears – grossing about $4200 to Chicago.
Southern California produce – grossing about $5000 to Chicago.
South Texas produce – about $4800 to New York City.
South Florida veggies – about $3600 to New York City.
Georgia spring fruits and vegetables are generally a week or more early giving 
truckers some loading opportunities a little sooner than normal. Greens ranging from kale to mustard, collard, etc. are in a steady mode for harvest, packing and shipping. In the weeks ahead veggies ranging from beans to cucumbers, squash, eggplant, peppers, etc. will be coming on from central and southern areas of Georgia.
Light shipments of sweet Vidalia onions are underway, with good volume about another week away.
Something not widely known about Georgia is its blueberry shipments have significantly increased over the past eight years or so. In 2004 it had 20 million pounds of blues and this year it should ship about 50 million pounds, despite half of the crop being wiped out by a February freeze. In recent years Georgia has ranked anywhere from second to fourth in blueberry shipments, and this is expected to continue increasing.
Georgia peach shipments should be starting around May 10th from the Ft. Valley area. Volume is expected to be normal for the early and middle part of the season, although the late season peaches could yield lighter shipments if projections hold. Georgia typically ships peaches into August.
In South Carolina peach shipments should get underway around the third week of May.
Various greens from Georgia – grossing about $2600 to Philadelphia.