Posts Tagged “feature”
Over the past decade an estimated 30 percent of stone fruit trees in California’s San Joaquin Valley have been yanked out of the ground. This has resulted in fewer stone fruit shipments for produce truckers.
Growers and shippers in many instances replaced the trees with other crops, primarily because they were flooding the market every year, resulting in lower prices.
California stone fruit shipments are underway and moving into good volume. You should also be aware that shipments will be heavier the first half of the shipping season for peaches, plums and nectarines. While all supplies will be lighter the last half of the season, plums will be in particular short supply. Stone fruit supplies will be best during May and June, but tailing off in July.
Produce growers tend to increase plantings as volume declines from year-to-year and prices for product increase. However, unlike potatoes and most other vegetables items it will take stone fruit growers at least five to 10 years to replace trees and have fruit bearing trees for higher shipments.
With California’s winter weather being one of the warmest on recent record this year, the state’s stone fruit shipments have been fluctuating more than normal.
San Joaquin Valley stone fruit – grossing about $4600 to Chicago.
Salinas Valley vegetables – grossing about $5400 to Atlanta.
Here’s a glimpse nationally at shipping areas such as Florida spring vegetables, potatoes from Arizona and looking ahead a few weeks to peaches from New Jersey, as well as with Mexican grapes.
Florida vegetable shipments are still moving in good volume and nothing is probably providing more loading opportunities than sweet corn. Big volumes are expected through the Memorial Day weekend, May 23-25. In recent weeks Florida sweet corn shipments have exceeded 1 million crates per week!…..After the holiday, Florida corn will be declining, but South Georgia will start shipping corn in late May with much bigger volumes in early June.
South Florida watermelons have been commanding the best trucks – grossing about $4000 to New York City. That’s about 25% more than rates for Florida red potatoes and nearly 20% more than Florida veggies.
Arizona Potato Shipments
Arizona red potato shipments kicked off about a week ago and now the yellow and mini potato varieties will get going any day now. Most of the potatoes are grown and shipped from an area South of Phoenix in the Casa Grande area.
Mexican Grape Shipments
Since there is still a lot of imported Chilean grapes in the distribution pipeline, some Mexican shippers have delayed shipments for a relatively short period of time. Grapes imported from Mexico are expected to be similar in volume to a year ago with a little over 16 million boxes. The 2014 crop finished at 16.2 million boxes.
New Jersey Peach Shipments
Looking ahead several weeks, New Jersey peach shipments will get underway in July and continue into September.
New Jersey is the fourth largest peach shipping state in the country, with approximately 80 orchards on 5,500 acres.
The California drought, which has prompted emergency conservation efforts in its fourth year, has forced California farmers to abandon thousands of acres or pay more to water them, according to a recent article in the Pittsburg Tribune-Review. Anxious grocers and restaurants are watching closely for impact on the supply and price of berries, walnuts, avocados, tomatoes and other pantry staples.
Over a fifth of all American farms growing fruit, tree nuts and vegetables are in California, according to the USDA. The Golden State grows more than 200 crops and is the nation’s dominant supplier of nuts and produce including grapes, olives, peaches, raspberries, strawberries and lemons.
Issues on the farms have not reached the produce aisle. Typically, increases in farm prices for fresh fruit and vegetables show up at the retail level a month later. But a confluence of factors have counterbalanced the price pressures from water scarcity, the Tribune-Review article states.
A complicated array of transportation and labor costs, the contracts that restaurants and supermarkets have with suppliers, market competition and macro economic trends are among the factors that determine the price of food. Only 19 cents of every dollar spent on food is tied to farm costs, said Annemarie Kuhns, a USDA economist.
Price inflation has been tamped down so far because the strength of the dollar against foreign currencies made foreign produce cheaper, Kuhns said. Low fuel prices has eased transportation costs.
That could change as fuel prices rebound and the drought extends further into the growing season. Water-intensive crops such as berries and nuts, where California holds an overwhelming share of the market, stand to be the most affected, said Timothy Richards, a business professor at Arizona State University.
“If we don’t have that supply from California during the season, then prices will run up,” he said.
California accounts for 86 percent of avocado production in the United States, and if unable to replace that supply with avocados from Mexico, it would have to raise menu prices.
Salinas Valley mixed vegetables – grossing about $4200 to Dallas, $7100 to New York City.
Importers of Mexican produce at Nogales are frustrated over the lack of adequate truck supplies, high freight rates and are looking to the railroads to solve some of their problems, according to a recent news story in The Packer, a weekly newspaper for the fresh produce industry.
Struggling to acquire enough refrigerated trucks, complaints were common as the holiday season approached in late 2014. One importer described it as the worst holiday season they ever experienced getting enough trucks. However, some say the equipment shortages extend well beyond the holidays. As a result importers are taking a look at rail service.
Rail is conducive to a number of Mexican vegetables crossing the border at Nogales ranging from had shell squash, cucumbers and other hard grown Mexican items.
The Union Pacific Railroad is currently upgrading 20 miles of rail near the U.S.-Mexican border to make it easier for inspectors to check loads. There also is development of a rail switching yard in Tucson, which would help rail service.
If rail service is fast enough, items such as bell peppers also would be considered. One shipper complained of paying up to $6 per box in some cases to ship product from Nogales to the East Coast this past vegetable season.
Nogales is pretty dead this time of the year with the exception of the Mexican grape season which has just got underway.
By Loblaw Companies
BRAMPTON, ON – Smaller misshapen produce that tastes great and is good for you, is now available at Real Canadian Superstore® and select no frills® locations in Ontario and select Maxi® stores in Quebec. Furthering its commitment to offer affordable, quality products to customers, Loblaw Companies is introducing the no name® Naturally Imperfect™ line of fruits and vegetables today. Starting with apples and potatoes, no name Naturally Imperfect produce costs up to 30 per cent less than traditional produce options found in store.
“We often focus too much on the look of produce rather than the taste,” said Ian Gordon, senior vice president, Loblaw Brands, Loblaw Companies Limited. “Once you peel or cut an apple you can’t tell it once had a blemish or was misshapen. no name Naturally Imperfect, is a great example of Loblaw and our vendors coming together to find an innovative way to bring nutritious food options to consumers at a great price.”
Produce involved in the no name Naturally Imperfect program was previously used in juices, sauces or soups, or may not have been harvested due to their small size. With this program, Loblaw Companies is working to ensure farmers have a market for smaller, misshapen fruit ensuring it does not go to waste.
The Tampa (FL) Port Authority plans to construct a refrigerated warehouse, which apparently touched off a battle between another Tampa Bay port over which one would dominate the fruit importing business.
The TPA plans to invest $20.8 million in a cold storage and transload facility at the port of Tampa Bay.
The warehouse would mark the port’s return to the fruit importing business and is viewed as competition by neighboring Port Manatee in Palmetto, FL.
Port Manatee officials expressed concern that the other port would try to dominate fruit handling after the authority voted to authorize construction funding.
The port’s projects to deliver goods directly from ship to market and would include a 50-60 car capacity rail siding that could help the port better serve Midwest customers.
“Port Tampa Bay has the unmatched capacity to build unit trains,” a PTA spokesman said. “Part of the port’s overall growth strategy is to be able to serve shippers in the state of Florida with alternative, cost-efficient transportation solutions, so that they will not have to use out-of-state ports for their shipments.”
The port handles approximately 8 million tons of containerized cargo each year with tropical fruits and vegetables among its biggest items, according to port information.
The port’s 207,000 square feet of refrigerated space is used by Coral Gables, Fla.-based Del Monte Fresh Produce NA Inc., and Fresh Quest Produce Inc., in Plantation, Fla.
Responsible for handing nearly a third of all cargo moving in and out of Florida, the Tampa port port’s yearly 36 million net tons of volume is dominated by dry and liquid bulk items.
At 521,825 million net tons, general and containerized cargo accounts for less than 2% of its business.
Salinas Valley Vegetable Shipments
Supply gaps on leaf lettuce, cauliflower and other items in the Salinas Valley have cut shipments and made it more difficult for produce truckers to figure out when loads will be available. However, as we enter May loadings should improve and be more predictable.
Caution should also be used loading Salinas vegetables due to adverse effects from weather, which has experienced periods of very warm and cold temperatures. There also has been reports of wind burn and tip burn, that hurt quality, as well as yields. Just make sure your receiver is aware of any quality problems. Some product is being shipped three to four weeks earlier than normal due to above average temperatures.
Loadings of green and red leaf are particularly light due to the weather issues. The wild swings in volume have made it difficult for truckers and shippers a like.
California Strawberry Shipments
Watsonville strawberries shipments also have come on earlier this season. Strawberries, which started in February, have posted phenomenal early-season volume shipments in Salinas and Watsonville. Through April 11, the district shipped 4.1 million fresh trays, up from 1 million last year and 890,424 in 2013. Statewide in California the totals were 43.4 million, up about 4 million over 2014.
All spring holidays — Cinco de Mayo (May 5th), Mother’s Day (May 10th), Memorial Day (May 25th) — should have plenty of strawberry shipments leading up these events. Other berry shipments will experience great volume in May ranging from California raspberries, to blackberries and blueberries.
Salinas Valley vegetables and strawberries – grossing about $5000 to Chicago, $7100 to New York City.
The USDA has published its vegetables yearbook and the document updates per capita statistics for fresh vegetables and give other valuable insights. The spreadsheet for fresh market vegetables updates trade and other supply statistics through projected numbers for 2014:Imports supplied 27.9% of U.S. fresh vegetable use, up from 26.7% in 2013 and 24.4% in 2010;
- Exports account for about 6.6% of U.S. domestic production, down from 6.6% in 2013 and 6.7% in 2010;
- Per capita use of fresh vegetables (all per capita stats are farm weight) 141.6 pounds in 2014, up from 140.7 pounds in 2013 but down from 144.3 pounds in 2010;
Some of the bigger gainers in fresh per capita use:
- Asparagus per capita 1.6 pounds, up 14% from 1.4 pounds in 2013;
- Carrot per capita at 8.5 pounds in 2014, up 6% from 8 pounds in 2013
- Cauliflower per capita at 1.5 pounds in 2014, up 15% from 1.3 pounds in 2013;
- Sweet potatoes per capita at 7.5 pounds in 2014, up 12% from 6.7 pounds inn 2013;
- Bell peppers 10.6 pounds in 2014, up 6% from 10 pounds in 2013;
The USDA states:
- Mexico accounts for 69% U.S. fresh vegetable imports by value, compared with 18% for Canada, 4.5% for Peru and 2% for China.
- Mexico provides 76% of hothouse tomato imports, compared with 22% from Canada, 0.88% from Guatemala and 0.24% from the Dominican Republic;
- For onions, Mexico supplies 71% of U.S. imports, followed by 13% for Peru, 9% for Canada and 2% for Chile.
The emergence of such brands as Kroger’s Simple Truth, Supervalu’s Wild Harvest and Aldi’s Simply Nature highlight how the private label category is evolving. Manufacturers and retailers have tried to address consumer concerns about wellness and nutrition with more affordable healthy food options, and several retailers have built private label brands around a position of affordable healthy eating.
“Store brands have moved far beyond cheap generic knock-offs to become trusted, quality lines that can compete effectively with national brands,” said David Sprinkle, research director for Packaged Facts. “They usually have higher profit margins for retailers than name brands, help differentiate a retailer from competition, and help build consumer loyalty.”
Private label accounted for almost a fifth of the $530 billion total food and beverage market dollar sales in 2013. In its report “Private label foods & beverages in the U.S., 8h edition,” Packaged Facts estimated retail dollar sales of private label food and beverages were $102 billion in 2013, up about 2%. Food products accounted for approximately 80% of the private label segment’s sales.
Looking ahead, the market research firm projects retail dollar sales of private label food and beverages will grow by a compound annual growth rate of 4% and reach $122 billion in 2018. The increase is due in part to the segment’s attractiveness to consumers seeking to eat healthy on a budget. Sales of private label food are expected to reach $98 billion.
Natural and organic private label brands have been around for a number of years led by Safeway’s O Organics, Stop & Shop and Giant’s Nature’s Promise, Food Lion and Hannaford’s Nature’s Place, and Supervalu’s Wild Harvest. The brands continue to expand and update with a focus on healthy product attributes.
Other retailers have evolved natural and organic positions to more modern wellness brands that shift focus from product attributes to lifestyle enhancement. Kroger’s Simple Truth, Target’s Simply Balanced, and Aldi’s Simply Nature all attempt to provide consumers with solutions for taking care of themselves and their families. The brands cross many food and beverage categories with affordable, nutritious products that are natural or organic, and free of artificial ingredients. Kroger has invested heavily to build Simple Truth and the company stated in the first quarter of 2014 it expected the brand to reach $1 billion in sales this year.
S. Katzman Produce Inc. is purchasing the unites of Morris Okun Inc.on the Bronx, N.Y.-based Hunts Point Terminal Market.
It continues a trend of fewer but larger wholesalers on the world’s largest produce wholesale terminal market. In 1967 there were 125 wholesalers. Today, there are 40 wholesalers, but it soon will be 39.
Katzman, which also operates Katzman Berry Corp., contracted to buy Okun’s 16 units on Row B after purchasing five units on Row D in late January, said Steve Katzman, president.
The purchase expands Katzman’s market presence from 21 units to 37 units on the 262 unit terminal,
Okun owner Roni Okun has decide to retire. The Okun name will not be retained.
Katzman Produce owns 100 vans storing produce alongside the terminal and Katzman said the purchase should help easy some of the market’s space headaches.
“This will help us tremendously in the expansion of our business,” he said. “We will have more refrigeration space and have plans to modernize the units. This will help us with not having to double-handle product and helps by not breaking the cold chain.”
Distributing a full line of fruit and vegetables to retailers and foodservice purveyors throughout the Tri-State region, Okun began operations in 1926 as a small family-owned venture on the old Washington Market in south Manhattan.
A fourth-generation family company, Katzman sells conventional, organic and specialty produce to retailers, restaurants, distributors and caterers throughout the Northeast as well as to customers in Canada, Europe and the North Atlantic.
Katzman’s produce lineage traces to 1890 when Samuel Katzman sold bunched greens and other vegetables from a horse and wagon.
The Katzman operation is also a partner with Top Banana LLC in Top Katz Brokers LLC.