Posts Tagged “Texas grapefruit shipments”
Following the historic February Freeze across Texas, the state’s grapefruit industry is feeling the destruction from the freezing weather.
Yahoo News reports the winter outbreak which hit the subtropical southeastern portion of the state on Valentine’s Day brought icy conditions and extreme cold temperatures damaging two different crops of grapefruit across the region.
This season’s crop of grapefruit, which had only been blooming at the time of the winter outbreak, is expected to provide less than a third of an average harvest.
Texas had been the number one provider of fresh grapefruit in the nation ahead of the outbreak, but the damage done to the groves has since dropped them down to third in the nation, Dale Murden, the president of Texas Citrus Mutual, a trade group that represents the interests of the state’s citrus growers, told AccuWeather’s National Reporter Bill Wadell.
Murden had also spoken with AccuWeather via email back during February. Also a grower, he had mentioned when temperatures dip below 28 degrees and stay below that mark for five hours or longer, the fruit on the branches begins to freeze on the inside, damaging the crop. “Most everyone” saw temperatures drop to at least 21 degrees, he had added.
Texas grapefruit trees encased in ice after a winter storm hammered the state with record cold.
The freeze had hit when the groves still had two crops on the trees — the fruit that was still being harvested and the following season’s crop that was beginning to flower. Murden estimated about 60% of the fruit had remained to be harvested at the time. However, winter’s scythe cut more significantly into the then-flowering groves’ crop that farmers are now waiting to harvest as fruit.
A lot of these groves were in full flower when that freeze hit,” Murden said. “So that legitimately hurt 100% of your next year’s crop — 70 to 80% on the average.”
Murden estimates they’ll have about 30% of a normal crop this harvest due to the freeze. The fruit that did survive was harvested closer to late November rather than when the season typically starts around mid-September into early October. The estimated total financial loss from the freeze hovers around $300 million.
Lower Rio Grande Valley grapefruit shipments overall are predicted to be down nearly 70 percent this season, thanks to a devastating freeze last February. Meanwhile, winter vegetable shipments are expected to be more normal.
Grapefruit and orange loading typically start in south Texas during October, but the Texas International Produce Associations reports the 2021 Valentine freeze resulted in a later-starting crop. That delayed shipments, finally picking up around Thanksgiving and winding down in March.
However, overall grapefruit shipments could be down by two-thirds from a normal season.
Struggling to find good news in the whole debacle, the association notes while the overall volume will be lighter, fruit size and quality should be good. Less fruit on the tree means larger sizes.
Lone Star Citrus Growers of Mission, TX reports much of the fruit is also hanging on the internal branches of the tree due to the outer canopy loss after the freeze. Hopefully, this will result in fewer outer blemishes caused by the wind.
The company increased its acreage for this season and expects to produce 75% of what it had last year. Lone Star Citrus, like other marketers, will operate on a condensed harvesting and packing schedule, allowing the firm to maximize efficiencies.
The operation contends despite the fierce freeze in February, the longer-term outlook for Texas citrus is positive and sees having 80 percent of a crop next season.
Lone Star Citrus markets grapefruit and a variety of orange varieties, including marrs, navel, pineapple and valencia.
Vegetable Shipments
Lone Star vegetable shipments kicked off with herbs in early November, with items ranging from cilantro to parsley, and cabbage, followed soon by kale.
Grow Farms Texas, Donna, TX, continues to grow its program in south Texas on both domestic and Mexico Grown products. Its cabbage survived last year’s February freeze, resulting in a great Saint Patrick’s day harvest. An even better crop is seen this year.
The company is looking at good cucumber and bell pepper production out of Mexico, along with increasing volume of eggplant and squash. It is increasing its hot peppers volume each year, led by jalapeno and serrano.
Citrus shipments for the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas are expected to continue through mid- to late May.
Wonderful Citrus, with offices in California and South Texas should be shipping Texas grapefruit and Texas oranges through May this season.
At Texas Citrus Mutual of Mission, about 40 percent of its grapefruit and 75 percent of its late oranges remained to be shipped as of March 25.
Total Texas grapefruit shipments forecast by the USDA stand at 6.2 million boxes for the 2018-19 season, up from 4.8 million boxes in 2017-18.
South Texas Organics of Mission, said it should finish with it’s organic valencia orange shipments as well as its Rio Star grapefruit the last half of April.
The USDA reports through the middle of March season-to-date domestic shipments of Texas grapefruit totaled 134.7 million pounds, down from 172.3 million pounds a year ago. Total shipments last season were 205.6 million pounds.
Texas export shipments of grapefruit totaled 10.1 million pounds by mid-March, down from 14.6 million pounds a year ago. Total grapefruit export shipments a year ago were 15.2 million pounds.
Texas Orange Shipments
Texas orange shipments through mid-March were 69.6 million pounds, off from 99.2 million pounds at the same time a year ago.
Total Texas orange shipments last season totaled 121.9 million pounds, the USDA reports.
In December, the USDA predicted Texas all-orange output for 2018-19 at 2.4 million boxes, up from 1.88 million boxes in the 2017-18 season.
Texas grapefruit shipments will increase significantly this season; Chilean grape imports are coming soon; while domestic apple loadings will be down in double digits.Texas grapefruit shipments account for about 75 percent of Texas’ citrus production, with oranges comprising most of the rest. Last season, Texas shipped 452,000 cartons, which is expected to increase to 580,000 in 2015-16. Unlike recent years, when the drought in the Lower Rio Grande Valley adversely affected production, this year there has been an abundance of rain.
Lower Rio Grande Valley citrus and imported Mexican mixed veggies, fruit and tomatoes – grossing about $2600 to Chicago.
Chilean Fruit Imports
As the Chilean summer fruit season gets underway, table grapes once again will be the leading commodity imported by the U.S. Last year, Chile shipped 356,691 tons of grapes to the U.S.
Last year, Chilean growers shipped 356,691 tons of grapes to the U.S. First arrivals to the U.S. will come in mid December, but significant volume will not happen until the New Year.
Apple Shipments
Washington’s apple shipments are declining in volume and the amount of apples in storage nationwide are also down. Washington’s fresh crop is now estimated at 116.2 million, 40-pound boxes, down about 1.5 percent from a month ago and about 18 percent from the final 2014 record season of 141.8 million boxes.
Yakima and Wenatchee Valley apple shippers have sold 19.6 million boxes of apples compared with 23.6 million a year ago and that leaves 96.6 million boxes to sell throughout the year. This compares to 118.2 million a year ago.
Nationally, there are 117.3 million, 42-pound boxes in storage, a 19 percent decrease from record inventories a year ago.
Michigan apple shipments – $3200 to Dallas.
Washington apple shipments – grossing about $4550 to Chicago.
Here’s a national produce shipping round up ranging from both domestic and imported onions, to South Texas and imported Mexican items, to Western U.S. vegetable shipments.
Caution is recommended for hauling onions out of the Northwest, including Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Weather problems earlier in the year are being blamed.
Meanwhile, quality apparently is much better for onion shipments out of Utah and Colorado. Loadings involve red, white and yellow storage onions. Northeast Colorado onion shipments will continue through the end of the year and Utah onion shipments will be available into February.
Imported Peruvian sweet onions continues, with the heaviest volume being available through Thanksgiving. Lighter volume imports of onions from Peru will continue into February.
Western Idaho and Malheur County, Oregon onions – grossing about $3400 to Dallas.
Columbia Basin, Washington, potatoes and onions – grossing about $4200 to Chicago.
South Texas Produce Shipments
Texas grapefruit shipments and Texas orange shipments from the Lower Rio Grande Valley got underway a couple of weeks ago and are moving into steady volume. Total volume this season is expected to be about normal. There also are numerous items from Mexico crossing the border into Pharr, TX. There’s over 600 truck loads of avocados and nearly 400 truck loads of limes crossing the border weekly. There ‘s also lesser amounts of lemons and other items.
South Texas citrus and imported Mexican tropical fruit – grossing about $2500 to Chicago, $3900 to New York City.
KALE SHIPMENTS
The trendy vegetable item kale will continue to be shipped from the Salinas Valley, while loadings out of Yuma, AZ will start in mid November, along with several other desert vegetable shipments such as lettuce.
Here’s a glimpse of produce shipments from Mexico crossing the border at McAllen, Tx, plus some domestic items coming out of the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
Sweet onion shipments from Mexico and Texas are expected to start later than normal this year. By contrast, in the Northwest storage onion shipments could last longer than normal simply because there is such a big volume.
Mexican sweet onions shipments are expected to start crossing the border into South Texas in good volume by the middle of March, which would be three to four weeks later than normal. South Texas sweet onions also are behind schedule and should get underway around mid to late March…..Meanwhile, imports of sweet onions from Peru are expected to wrap up by the end of February.
Meanwhile, there’s dozens of other items crossing the border from Mexico into the Lower Rio Grand Valley. Mexican avocado shipments are averaging over 500 truck loads per week. There also are lesser amounts of produce shipments ranging from Mexican strawberries and limes to tropical fruits and vegetables.
While much of the Texas produce growing over the past couple of decades has shifted to south of the border, South Texas growing operations are still in business.
Texas grapefruit shipments are averaging around 200 trucks loads weekly, with Texas oranges amounting to roughly one-half this amount…..The Lower Rio Grande Valley, as well as the Winter Garden District, which is closer to San Antonio, are shipping cabbage in light, but increasing volume.
South Texas produce shipments – grossing about $2800 to Chicago and $4700 to New York City.