Posts Tagged “feature”
MONTEREY, CA — Organic fresh produce sales grew by 3 percent in 2022, while volume declined by –3.7 percent, as total sales topped $9.4 billion for the year, according to the 2022 Organic Produce Performance Report released today by Organic Produce Network and Category Partners.
The organic fresh berry category (which includes strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries) was the top organic produce category, holding more than 16 percent of organic fresh produce dollars in 2022. Overall fresh berry sales topped 1.6 billion for the year, with organic packaged salads a close second at $1.55 billion.
Total fresh produce sales gained 7.3 percent in dollars for the year but experienced a –1.3 percent decline in volume. Organic fresh produce made up 12 percent of all fresh produce sales and accounted for 7 percent of all fresh produce volume.
“In an inflationary time like this, we expect to see the growth of sales dollars and volume declines repeated for the majority of organic and conventional fresh produce items,” said Tom Barnes, President of Category Partners. “The average conventional price per pound grew by 9.2 percent compared to 2021 while organic produce price per pound rose by 7 percent. With rising prices, we may see more selective organic shopping from consumers as they substitute higher-priced organic items for conventional ones.”
Organic apples were the largest example of substitution as their price per pound increased by more than double the amount of conventional, resulting in a volume decline of –10.3 percent.
For 2022, 13 of the top 20 organic produce categories (by total sales) posted increases in dollars, with organic onions generating the largest increase (15.4 percent), followed by cucumbers, potatoes, and avocados. Conversely, green beans posted the largest drop in dollars (–5 percent), and lettuce and bell peppers also posted noticeable declines in dollars for the year.
Additionally, 14 of the top 20 organic produce sales categories posted declines in volume, with only 10 of those categories showing positive dollar growth. Organic bananas continued to be the biggest volume mover despite a –1.2 percent volume decline in 2022 and showed a modest 3.9 percent increase in sales from the previous year.
Of note, potatoes and cabbage, typically regarded as inflation busters, showed a 10 percent increase in dollar sales and a nominal 1 percent growth in volume. Organic grapes had a stellar year, with a 6.9 percent increase in volume and an 8.3 percent increase in sales.
Organic performance in 2022 was consistent among all regions of the nation—dollars grew and volume declined. The Northeast saw the lowest dollar growth and highest volume decline, while the South continues to show the most year-over-year improvement.
Organic fresh produce prices in aggregate remained substantially higher than conventional, with 2022 showing the price gap between conventional and organics the largest it has been in the past four years at $1.55 per pound. “In an inflationary time period, it is important for organic producers to understand how their pricing impacts behavior among various consumer segments and to reach those consumers with the health and value benefits associated with organics,” said Barnes.
The fourth quarter of 2022 saw the twelfth consecutive quarter of organic sales growth, with a modest 1.4 percent increase from the same period last year. Organic produce sales for the fourth quarter topped $2.1 billion, with the grape category leading the way in year-over-year dollar and volume growth.
The 2022 Organic Produce Performance Report utilized Nielsen retail scan data covering total food sales and outlets in the US from January through December 2022. A complete version of this report, including information on the top 20 organic fresh produce categories, will be made available on the Organic Produce Network website in mid-February.
OPN is a marketing organization that serves as the go-to resource for the organic fresh produce industry. The company’s mission is to inform and educate through a strong digital presence with an emphasis on original content and complemented by engaging live events that bring together various components of the organic produce community. OPN’s target audience includes organic producers, handlers, distributors, processors, wholesalers, foodservice operators, and retailers. www.organicproducenetwork.com
Peruvian grape exports were off to a good start in October, as shipments abroad totaled $98.1 million, reflecting a growth of 29 percent compared to the same month in 2021 ($76.2 million), according to Gestion, citing statistics from the Association of Exporters (Adex).
For the 2022-23 season, the U.S. ($27.5 million) positioned itself as the largest market, receiving 28 percent of the total, reflecting an increase of 164 percent. In second place was the Netherlands ($17.01 million) with a share of 17 percent, reflecting a decrease of 33 percent.
They were followed by the UK ($10.7 million), Mexico ($5.7 million), and Canada ($5 million). Hong Kong, China, Spain, Colombia, and South Korea completed the top ten.
There is some concern political unrest in Peru could threaten exports. Peru’s agricultural industry is losing some $100 million a day as a result of political unrest, says Luis Fernando Helguero, the nation’s minister of foreign trade and tourism.
According to the ADEX Data Trade Business Intelligence System, grape shipments totaled $690.2 million from January to October 2022, reflecting an increase of 14.5 percent compared to the same period in 2021 ($602.8 million).
Its largest destination was the U.S. (about $310.5 million), followed by Hong Kong ($70.7 million), the Netherlands ($65.2 million), China ($50.9 million) and Mexico ($36.6 million).
Avocados are healthy fruit since the fruit is a great source of fiber, folate, Vitamin K, and nearly 20 vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients that can help support healthy living.
According to the USDA, they’re also a cholesterol-free and natural source of heart-healthy fats, which help the body absorb vitamins like D, A, K, and E. Due to the fruit’s high fiber and healthy fat content, avocados make for a healthy addition to meals and snacks which can help shoppers feel satiated and assist in weight management.
“Avocados are the ultimate heart-healthy option consumers can incorporate into their diets and it’s important for them to know premium quality avocados are available right now,” said Raina Nelson, President/CEO Westfalia Fruit Marketing USA LLC .
“Avocados are extremely versatile and there are endless ways spark visual inspiration for shoppers by cross-merchandising fruit with utensils and ingredients that pair well, such as seasonings and lean proteins, in addition to popular uses in smoothies, toast, sandwiches, salads, homemade spreads, and more, she said.
The Table Grape Committee of ASOEX (Chilean Fruit Exporters Association) has released its fourth export forecast for the 2022/23 season. It shows a 1.2 per cent increase from the previous forecast, with exports estimated at 555,483 tons, equivalent to 67.742 million (8.2kg) boxes.
Although slightly higher than December’s estimate, the new forecast shows a decrease of 8.9% from 2021/22. This is largely the result of varietal replacement within the table grape industry in Chile.
North America will continue to be the main destination for Chilean grapes, taking around 37.2 million boxes, followed by Asia with almost 14 million boxes and Europe with 9 million boxes.
ASOEX president Iván Marambio commented: “Our new estimate shows a slight increase from December, driven by an increase in exports of new varieties, especially white and red, versus a decrease in shipments of traditional varieties. It’s great news that the industry’s commitment to varietal renewal is beginning to be seen in our shipments, because consumers will be able to enjoy better tasting, higher quality Chilean grapes.”
The committee’s coordinator, Ignacio Caballero, stated that new varieties will account for almost 37 million boxes, while traditional varieties, including Red Globe, will make up around 31 million boxes this season.
“More than 50 per cent of grape exports will consist of new varieties, especially in white and red grapes. The new white varieties will exceed 13 million boxes, black varieties 4 million boxes and red varieties 18 million.”
Arra 15, Timpson, Sweet Globe, Autumncrisp, Blanc Seedless and Cotton Candy are among the main new white varieties. The standout black varieties include Sweet Favors, Sable Seedless, Sweet Sapphire, Maylen and Midnight Beauty, while Timco, Allison, Sweet Celebration, Scarlotta Seedless, Arra 29, Jack Salute, Candy Hearts and Ralli Seedless are among the main players for newer red varieties.
Elgin, MN — Even with the challenging apple supply from Washington, this is the best Pazazz crop on record, reports Honeybear Brands. Shipments will continue throughout the winter and spring.
“Growers in the Midwest, New York, Washington and Nova Scotia harvested a beautiful Pazazz crop that will uniquely increase in brix throughout the coming months. Pazazz apples are harvested with high starch content that benefit with some time in storage, so as other apple varieties start to fade in flavor, Pazazz apples get better and better” says Don Roper, VP sales and marketing, Honeybear Brands. “In addition, our customers get the benefit of their fruit coming from closer to home, which is an important attribute.”
Growing Locations
Shoppers are aware their product choices have an impact on the environment and are more regularly seeking foods grown closer to home, when possible. The domestic Pazazz crop fits that bill with orchards and packing facilities that stretch east to west and can provide quick, packed-to-order freshness and shorter travel times.
Unique Flavor
Great flavor drives consumer purchase behavior, and this sets Pazazz apart from other apples in the marketplace. The unique flavor and balance of sweet and tangy is the biggest part of the Pazazz success. This clean and refreshing apple packs a strong crunch with a flavor that is enhanced as the season progresses.
Pazazz Boosts Moods and Brand Awareness
An apple a day keeps the blues away! Pazazz is engaged in a multipronged marketing campaign highlighting the mood boosting benefits of apples as well as the physical benefits. A swath of social media content from influencers and podcasters to giveaway sweepstakes of The Happiness Diet book are targeting consumers in markets where Pazazz is on shelf.
In February, Pazazz and The American Institute for Cancer Research will again team up with Celebrity Chef Elle Simone from America’s Test Kitchen to promote the cancer-fighting benefits of apples with unique content reaching millions of viewers via multiple media platforms and in-store assets.
About Honeybear Brands
Family owned and operated for more than forty years, Honeybear is a dual hemisphere grower, packer, shipper and importer of apples, pears and cherries year-round. A pioneer in the commercialization of Honeycrisp, the company has been an industry leader in responsible, sustainable growing practices and land stewardship for many years. Honeybear Brands is a wholly owned subsidiary of Wescott Agri Products. For more information about Honeybear, visit www.honeybearbrands.com and follow us on Facebook.
New York – The number of U.S. restaurants – including chain franchises and independent stores – has not yet rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, and is still meaningfully lower than what it was before the advent of COVID-19, according to Nick Cole, Head of Restaurant and Hospitality Finance at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (NYSE: MUFG).
With the end of 2022, Cole shares several viewpoints on the restaurant industry.
Restaurant supply remains low
“The number of restaurants per capita is at its lowest point in 25 years against a backdrop of population growth,” Cole notes. “This supply/demand imbalance bodes well for restaurant chains even in the face of potential softening demand as we head into 2023.”
Although restaurant supply is down, Cole does not expect a significant increase in new developments in the near future as construction costs and building supply availability remain prohibitive factors.
Customers have been resilient in the face of economic strain
Cole adds that the decline in restaurant capacity due to the pandemic explains why restaurants have been able to pass on higher operating costs and rising inflation to the customer in the form of price increases, even as customers themselves endure the financial pressures of inflation with greater household expenses.
“Throughout much of the year, we have seen consistently higher sales figures due to rising menu prices and stable foot traffic. However, in the last month or two there are signs that foot traffic might be slowing,” Cole says. “If foot traffic continues to decline significantly, even an offset in prices might not be able to sustain revenue.”
Cole explains that demand starts to slow down when the impact on household budgets makes customers reevaluate their spending patterns, and he expects this trend to continue into 2023 as customers absorb the significant hike in the cost of living.
Margin compression and low M&A
As Cole and his team anticipated in November 2021, M&A has been constrained in 2022 because of margin pressures due to rising commodity prices, workforce shortages, and the need for higher expenditures to attract labor. “The current inflationary environment and resulting margin compression has hurt business results and is therefore driving M&A activity down,” Cole says. He anticipates business performance in the first half of 2023 to be better than in 2022 and potentially spur a pick-up in M&A.
Labor pressures continue to ease
Compared with this time last year, labor pressure has eased significantly within the restaurant sector, Cole says. “Most restaurants report that they are fully staffed now, however it is costing them more to do it. Ultimately, while it is still not easy to staff, pressure has been relieved across the board.”
About MUFG and MUFG Americas
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (MUFG) is one of the world’s leading financial groups. Headquartered in Tokyo and with over 360 years of history, MUFG has a global network with approximately 2,100 locations in more than 50 countries. MUFG has nearly 160,000 employees and offers services including commercial banking, trust banking, securities, credit cards, consumer finance, asset management, and leasing. The Group aims to “be the world’s most trusted financial group” through close collaboration among our operating companies and flexibly respond to all the financial needs of our customers, serving society, and fostering shared and sustainable growth for a better world. MUFG’s shares trade on the Tokyo, Nagoya, and New York stock exchanges.
MUFG’s Americas operations, including its offices in the U.S., Latin America, and Canada, are primarily organized under MUFG Bank, Ltd. and subsidiaries, and are focused on Global Corporate and Investment Banking, Japanese Corporate Banking, and Global Markets. MUFG is one of the largest foreign banking organizations in the Americas. For locations, banking capabilities and services, career opportunities, and more, visit www.mufgamericas.com.
California almond production in the 2022-2023 season is expected to drop 11%, according to the USDA.
California’s driest three-year period on record has spurred unprecedented cuts to usual water supplies, driving up costs. That’s forcing some producers to tear out orchards in favor of other crops, or simply stop watering trees.
California supplies 80% of the world’s almonds and volume is shrinking for the first time in over 25 years. This is the result of the state’s historic drought which is leading farmers to abandon orchards or forgo new plantings altogether.
The state had an estimated 1.64 million acres at the end of August, down slightly from a year earlier, according to the Almond Board of California. Further, the number of new trees planted from 2020 but are not yet bearing almonds fell 17%.
Orlando, FL. — The National Mango Board is celebrating mangos breaking the top ten in whole fruit volume velocity. In 2017, Mango held the number 17 spot. Mango’s movement to mainstream, along with support from the mango industry and retail partners has contributed to this growth throughout the last 5 years.
Adding to mango’s success, mango volume grew +0.7% in volume velocity versus a year ago while the fruit category as a whole decreased in volume by -3.5%. We know mango as the world’s most versatile and flavorful superfruit. We are thrilled to see that more and more people are inclined to agree while embracing the joy of mango.
Many resources, education, and hard work went into achieving this substantial growth. Congratulations to the retailers and entire mango industry that contributed to this achievement.
About the National Mango Board
The National Mango Board is an agriculture promotion group supported by assessments from both domestic and imported fresh mangos. The board’s vision, for mangos to move from being an exotic fruit to a daily necessity in every U.S. household, was designed to drive awareness and consumption of mangos in the U.S. marketplace. One serving or ¾ cup of the superfruit mango contains 70 calories, 50% of daily value of vitamin C, 15% of daily value of folate, 15% of daily value of copper, 8% of daily value o
Wonderful Citrus headquartered in Delano, CA reports its Halo loadings could be down about 2 percent this season, due to torrential California rains. The company accounts for 25% to 30% of the total category volume in North America.
Any decline in the fruit this season is being attributed to unharvested citrus.
Soaked land in a grove can suffer substantial damage from harvest equipment.
This winter the greatest rainfall is flooding the central and northern parts of the San Joaquin Valley. Wonderful grows Halos through much of the valley’s 200-mile length, ending at Madera north of Fresno.
Recent precipitation levels across the state are well above average for this time of year at about 130-160% of average. Still, despite the storms, most major reservoirs – before the January 9 storm – were still anywhere between 40-60% of their historical average fill.
Wonderful Citrus has geographically and climatically diverse plantings to optimize market availability through the season. The strategy also helps dodge widespread damage, as is being proven this month.
Halos are shipped from November until about June. In recent years, new varieties were planted to extend this season from mid-May. Halos’ largest volume peaks in February and March. Last year’s volume was very light. The 2022-23 supply is up at least 20 percent.
Halos shipped from November into early January are Clementines. In the second half of the shipping season, the Halos brand is composed of mandarins, Tango, and Western Murcott.
While Wonderful Halos are shipped across North America, the heaviest distribution is in the central United States, as well as the length of the eastern seaboard. To a lesser extent, the company has a presence west of the Rockies.
Torrential rains and flooding in the Salinas Valley has continued and many growers are looking to other areas for spring plantings.
Church Bros. Farms of Salinas, CA expects shipping gaps this spring for vegetables.
Normally leafy greens harvest in Salinas starts about April 1. That harvest date requires a Jan. 1 planting. Salinas growers – with those in much of California’s Central Valley – received constant waves of torrential rainfall through the first two weeks of January. The Salinas River is overflowing.
Cole crops in the Salinas Valley are planted in November and December. Those plantings are lost. Church reports two of its growers have 2,000 acres underwater. In all, 20,000 acres are flooded in the valley. However, the company is unsure exactly how much of that total is cultivated. Some of that acreage will have to be disked if it was already planted with crops.
The grower/shipper reports loss of acres could create a gap in April and the following months as there are new food safety rules in place which did not exist in 1995. These rules restrict planting fields that were affected by the flood waters for 60 days and the soil must be sufficiently dried out. After 30 days, growers have to test the soil again before it can plant.
The company indicates that the Salinas River level in 1995 reached 30 feet and the flood level was 23 feet. Church notes that in a recent comparison photo, the river was measured at 24.6 feet and the damage was nowhere near what it was in 1995.
Some growers were already shifting to plant in Yuma. That inherent danger is the potential crop-killing heat in April. If those fields can withstand heat through April 10-20 they will still be better off than trying to plant using a pontoon boat in Salinas. Other growers are planting in Mexico to compensate for saturated Salinas fields.