Posts Tagged “feature”
Most of Texas’ few thousand acres of pumpkins are grown in Floyd County around Floydada, a small agricultural town northeast of Lubbock.
Pumpkin shipments are mostly directed to wholesalers and shipped throughout Texas, Oklahoma and as far east as Mississippi.
Pumpkins represent a small amount of acreage when it comes to crop production, but Floydada is famous for its pumpkins. Illinois produces around 90% of the nation’s crop, but a handful of growers around the Texas town continues to produce high-demand heirloom and jack-o’-lantern standard varieties.
Growers in Floyd County are averaging around 30,000 pounds per acre with good quality aside from early planted jack-o’-lantern varieties that matured with soft outer shells.
Last year, yields were down about 30% due to drought. This year, production was average, but demand is strong.
Dollar General has completed its initial rollout of its DG Fresh initiative, so now the company will focus on adding more fresh produce to stores, and possibly self-distribution of fresh produce.
Based in Goodlettsville, TN, the company is now delivering refrigerated and frozen items to 17,500 stores from 12 facilities.
“And while produce was not included in our initial rollout plans, we believe DG Fresh provides a potential path to accelerating our fresh produce offering in up to 10,000 stores over time as we look to further capitalize on our extensive self-distribution capabilities,” Jeff Owen, COO said.
Fresh produce is now in more than 1,500 stores, with plans to expand to a total of more than 2,000 stores by the end of the year.
Dollar General plans to open 1,050 stores this year and remodel 1,750.
While the company’s same-store sales couldn’t keep up with a record 2020, CEO Todd Vasos said basket size is bigger, as is customer base.
“We believe we will ultimately exit the pandemic with a larger, broader, and more engaged customer base than we entered it, resulting in an even stronger foundation from which to grow,” Vasos said, during the call.
Stormy summer weather limited tomato shipments from the East Coast, while California loadings have remained steady.
Markon Cooperative reports the “East Coast has lower volume due to previous tropical storms that impacted plant health and reduced yields” and “Tennessee and North Carolina regions are expected to have a shorter season this year; additional grading is required.”
Florida is still a fews weeks away from commercial production.
Meanwhile, California round and Roma tomato production is steady.
“Round tomatoes from Northern California are of good quality; 6×6 and 6×7 sizes dominate the crop,” Markon said. “Roma quality is good; large to jumbo sizes are more prevalent.”
Mexico sees steady volume as it works through previous weather-related quality issues.
“Vine-ripe and Roma volume in Jalisco and San Luis Potosi is on the lighter side due to prior rain storms. Overall volume had increased by mid-October.
The initial 2021-22 California Navel orange shipping forecast is 70.0 million cartons, down 14% from the previous year, according to a report by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA).
Of the total Navel orange forecast, 67 million cartons are estimated to be in the Central Valley. Cara Cara variety Navel orange production in the Central Valley is forecast at 6 million cartons.
These forecasts are based on the results of the 2021-22 Navel Orange Objective Measurement (O.M.) Survey, which was conducted from June 15 to Sept. 1, 2021.
Estimated fruit set per tree, fruit diameter, trees per acre, bearing acreage, and oranges per box were used in the statistical models estimating production.
This forecast includes production of conventional, organic, and specialty Navel oranges (including Cara Cara and Blood orange varieties).
Survey data indicated a fruit set per tree of 239, down 25% from the previous year and below the five-year average of 344. The average Sept. 1 diameter was 2.145 inches, below the five-year average of 2.208 inches. The Cara Cara orange set was 211 with a diameter of 2.146 inches.
LOCKPORT, N.Y. — Crunch Time Apple Growers, a New York State-based cooperative of 152 member growers, announced its largest anticipated crop volume of SnapDragon™ apples: 400,000 bushels, a 25 percent increase year-over-year. The sweet, crisp apples are being packed and shipped, with the first apples hitting select produce aisles now, and wider distribution expected in Q4 2021 and Q1 2022.
This harvest season will also mark the first with three new distribution partners: Applewood Fresh Growers LLC, and
Riveridge Produce Marketing, both of Sparta, MI; and Rice Fruit Company, Gardners, PA. These new packers and shippers will allow Crunch Time Apple Growers to expand its geographic reach among existing grocers and new retail partners, particularly in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic.
“While other premium apple varieties grown elsewhere in the U.S. have seen challenges, we’re seeing really good size, color and flavor as harvest begins in upstate New York,” said Jessica Wells, Crunch Time Apple Growers executive director. “After months of nurturing the crop, our growers are excited to get SnapDragon apples, with their Monster Crunch and amazing flavor, into the hands of consumers. We know from our social media channels consumers are ready too.”
“SnapDragon is a variety that changes what people think of eating apples,” said fifth-generation farmer Joel Crist of Crist Bros. Orchards Inc. and Crunch Time Apple Growers board chair. “SnapDragon has always been about elevating the consumer eating experience and driving consumption of fresh apples. It’s easy for us to understand why, in a very short period of time, SnapDragon has risen to the top of the pack.”
To demonstrate the ongoing success of SnapDragon in the premium apple category since its release in 2014, Crunch Time Apple Growers recently partnered with Category Partners, a top market analyst firm for the food and beverage industry, to study the top 10 retailers that carried SnapDragon apples during the 2020 crop year (October 2020 to June 2021), in addition to reported Nielsen data. The findings showed:
- SnapDragon was ranked the sixth most popular premium apple variety nationwide and the top premium apple grown on the East Coast.
- SnapDragon generated year-over-year volume growth in all of the top 10 retailers and was the only apple that showed growth across all retailers in the study.
- SnapDragon posted double-digit sales growth year-over-year in the East Coast market.
- SnapDragon grew seven percent overall in volume year-over-year across all markets.
- In terms of dollar growth, SnapDragon generated the 10th strongest performance among the 26 identified premium apple varieties.
Retail organic produce growth slowed down a bit in the second quarter of 2021, but overall was still well ahead of conventional produce.
The Organic Produce Network published and Category Partners prepared the report using Nielsen data, It revealed total organic dollars during the April through June period increased by 4.1% compared with the same period a year ago.
By way of contrast, conventional produce sales in the second quarter declined by 3.3% compared with year-ago levels.
Organic volume was about even with last year’s levels, registering a gain of 0.2% in the second quarter. That was much better than conventional produce, which experienced a decline of 8.6% compared with the same quarter a year ago.
Generally, consumers in the second quarter of 2021 were not buying as much food in the same way they did during the early months of the pandemic in 2020.
In the second quarter of 2021, organic produce experienced sales somewhat below the historical long-term growth trend, according to the report.
The vegetable category benefited during the pandemic because more consumers were cooking at home, the report said. Times began to change in the second quarter.
“As the foodservice sector reopened, consumers began to shift some meals back to foodservice channels,” the report said. “The net result in Q2, 2021, is many produce categories had relatively tepid growth when matched against Q2, 2020.”
Organic did comparatively well, with organic produce still generating dollar and volume growth in the second quarter while conventional produce declined.
The pandemic isn’t dominating retail trends as it did in 2020.
“It is apparent that consumer supermarket food purchases increasingly reflect the more traditional buying trends versus COVID-inspired purchasing changes,” the report said. “It is also encouraging that even though consumer purchases of conventional produce were lower than Q2, 2020, organic produce continued to generate growth. This shows that the longer-term trend of consumers moving toward organic produce continues to grow.”
Berries were the “star organic category” during the second quarter, increasing dollar performance by over 19% and volume by 16%.
“Berries displaced packaged salads as the No. 1 organic category in dollars for the first time,” the report said.
Citrus (26.7%), lettuce (2.1%) and tomatoes (1.2%) also delivered volume gains for the quarter. However, multiple strong organic categories had volume declines, including important organic contributors like packaged salads, apples, herbs and carrots.
Even so, increasing prices in many organic categories helped mitigate volume declines.
In terms of regional retail organic sales performance, the Northeast region enjoyed a 7.7% dollar growth and 3.6% volume growth in the second quarter.
The normally strong West saw a 0.2% decline in organic sales and a 3.9% volume decline.
The report said the Western performance “is largely a phantom decline” created by comparing against Q2, 2020, when organic sales soared by 17% in dollars and 18% in volume.
“The good news is that setting aside the performance spike that occurred in Q2, 2020, the overall trendline for organic produce volume remained positive,” the report said.
While strawberries may be seen more as a summer shipping item, good fall volume is seen for the months ahead.
Nearly 25 percent of total California fresh strawberry shipments in 2020 were shipped from September through December, according to USDA figures.
As of August 8, fresh strawberry shipments from California had totaled 137.7 million crates, down from 145.4 million crates the same time last year, but similar to 137.1 million trays two years ago. At the same time in 2020, about 31% of the of 210-million-crate 2020 crop remained to be shipped.
California fresh strawberry volume was running at 5.9 million crates for the week ending August 7.
Well- Pict of Watsonville, CA reports hot weather in the West has not affected strawberry production as much it may have had an effect on other crops. The weather in California strawberry growing regions had not been a hot as in other growing areas with the exception of a short hot period in May. Watsonville fields have been producing a steady crop of good color, size and tasting strawberries that is expected to continue into the later parts of October.
That crop will then be supplemented by Well-Pict’s summer-planted crop in Oxnard.
The California Strawberry Commission of Watsonville projected weekly volume in the fall period of summer-planted strawberries, grown in Santa Maria and Oxnard, is expected to be up about 5% compared with 2020. California’s total fresh shipments for the 2021 season will fall somewhere between the 202-million-crate crop in 2019 and 210 million crates packed in 2020.
Shipping line Maersk has provided a market update on the challenging global logistics situation, saying that port congestion and supply chain bottlenecks are to persist through year-end.
China’s October Golden Week, Christmas and Chinese New Year will bolster strong demand for container shipping for the last quarter of 2021. But port congestion, especially in the U.S. and Europe, and service delays are expected to create headwinds for service schedules, the company said.
Maersk says extra loaders (additional ships) and ad hoc port omissions will be implemented to help improve schedule reliability. Meanwhile, inventory levels in Europe and the US remain at their lowest levels on record, leading to stock outs on some products.
This means even once retail demand declines, we will see cargo volumes continue to remain strong as inventory levels need to be rebuilt, Maersk said.
Global container demand growth is projected at 6%-8% in 2021, reflecting strong first-half as well as ongoing demand strength in the U.S. and partly in Europe. While container demand growth has ran ahead of supply growth since the second half 2020, the true drivers of high freight rates are congestions in ports and supply-chain bottlenecks, Maersk says.
Vessel waiting time at ports has increased requiring more ships per string to lift same cargo volume. At the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, waiting times rose with over 70 vessels anchored in mid-September.
Covid-19 has also led shutdowns that have delayed vessels from Asia. Warehousing capacity has also been reduced due to port and landside congestion, while returning empty containers back to Asia remains challenging.
“Maersk has taken many actions to redirect flows back to Asia to ensure we have equipment supply. Despite this, equipment turn-round times continue to increase driven by landside and seaborne delays,” says Maersk.
To address capacity and equipment shortages, Maersk says it has taken measures to alleviate this by rationalizing its schedules and repositioning empty containers. The company has also tripled the number of dry freight containers in its fleet during the last few months to support customers’ export requirements.
“However, In-fleeting of new containers alone is no longer sufficient to meet overall demand, so it remains critically important that import containers are turned around as quickly as possible,” Maersk said.
In Vietnam, hundreds of factories have remained closed under COVID-19 lockdown rules, with many expected to reopen from early October as local restrictions are lifted.
Major port update
- Ports in Asia Pacific continue to be severely congested. With continued high yard density issue and weather disruption since July (i.e. 3 typhoons and 6 tropical storms), operational challenges remain in port operations and the situation is not expected to improve in the immediate future.
- Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach congestion levels continue to deteriorate as we move further into peak season with 70+ vessels waiting at anchorage recently. Labour restrictions coupled with high throughput volumes remain the primary constraint.
- Port of Savannah has become increasingly challenging recently as congestion across the East Coast picks up. There were around 30+ vessels at anchorage with wait times upwards of 7 days in mid-September.
- Port of Seattle continues to struggle with available yard capacity. Waiting times have increased to 11/12 days and the typical port stay lengthening from 3 days to about a week.
- UK Ports are operating smoothly but with very severe trucking shortages across the country, leading to high yard density in ports. Port of Rotterdam is also seeing trucking shortages although not as severe as UK.
- Ports in Latin America: Port of San Antonio continues to be congested causing further delays. Port of Lazaro Cardenas – railways continue to be blocked by protestors. We suggest customers to move cargo to Manzanillo where possible.
Air freight
Regarding air freight, Maersk says 2021 Q4 is expected to be “one of the strongest peaks the industry has seen with demand surpassing 2019 levels”.
New technical product launches and winter fashion products together with continued ocean freight disruption are expected to push demand higher even as capacity has yet to return to pre-COVID levels.
“Rate levels, already at all-time highs, are set to increase further in Q4. Most of the major trade lanes such as transpacific, Asia-Europe and transatlantic will be impacted,” it said.
“Maersk is securing commercial airlines and ad hoc charters to address capacity issues and secondary airports to help overcome COVID-19 related airport restrictions. We are also offering our multimodal Sea-Air service to customers on the Asia-Europe trade lane to meet demand.”
C&S Wholesale Grocers of Keene, NH, which supplies more than 7,700 stores across the U.S., has agreed to acquire Piggly Wiggly Midwest of Sheboygan, W.
Piggly Wiggly Midwest has three distribution centers and serves 11 corporate stores, 84 franchise locations in Wisconsin and 14 Butera Market stores in the Chicagoland area, according to a news release.
“The purchase of Piggly Wiggly Midwest is a natural expansion of our already successful Piggly Wiggly Carolina business and reinforces our strong commitment to this beloved brand,” C&S CEO Bob Palmer said. “It is a well-established legend in grocery retail that is valued by customers for its competitive pricing and focus on service.”
The acquisition is expected to close this month. Paul Butera Sr., president of Piggly Wiggly Midwest and founder of Butera Market, described the decision to sell as a very difficult one but a natural next step.
“Piggly Wiggly is more than a supermarket,” Butera Sr. “It is a family of franchise operators, employees and loyal Pig Point customers, too. C&S has the experience and knowledge to ensure that this 100-year old icon continues for the next 100 years.”
As part of the sale agreement, the Piggly Wiggly Midwest offices and distribution centers will continue to operate.
The Peruvian table grape industry is forecast to export a record volume of fruit in the upcoming season, with the first estimate pegging shipments above 60 million boxes for the first time.
In its first forecast of the 2021-22 campaign, industry body Provid said exports were on course to rise by 9 percent year-on-year to 62.5 million boxes equivalent to 8.2 kilograms.
“We are strengthened by our varietal reconversion to more attractive varieties and the successful diversification of volume to different markets,” said Provid President Manuel Yzaga.
He added that Provid and phytosanitary watchdog SENASA have done a good job of opening up new markets to the Peruvian table grape industry over recent years, with the Japanese market also likely to soon be available to shippers. In addition, he said the industry was working to be able to export grapes to China via air freight.
“As Peru is the second largest exporter of table grapes in the world ranking, Provid is responsible for providing key information that will enable suppliers, markets and other stakeholders to manage volumes as efficiently as possible,” he added.
Yzaga went on to say that for this season, the challenges for growers and packers is to supply grapes of good quality and condition to achieve the best possible economic returns, “especially considering the complex environment in which we find ourselves due to the global pandemic”.
“Workers, strategic allies of the sector – we have made a call to our associates to maintain and surpass the already good labor standards that characterize us.
“Shipping lines, logistics agents, SENASA, among others – we must be able to absorb growth efficiently and effectively.”