Posts Tagged “Yuma”
YUMA, Ariz. — The “Iceberg Drop” placed second on the USA Today’s list of “the five of the most surprising drops scheduled for New Year’s Eve 2019.”
The USA Today mention reads “(the drop) is a natural fit for this agricultural city, – About 90% of the winter lettuce and greens consumed in the U.S. are grown in the Yuma area.” The second annual event takes place in historic downtown Yuma and is hosted by Visit Yuma.
The 8-foot-by-8-foot, lighted, stylized head of lettuce was created by Penn Signs to go along with the theme “Lettuce Celebrate.” The embellished Iceberg head will be lowered from a crane at 10 p.m., to sync up with the ball drop in Times Square in New York City, and again at midnight.
The Iceberg Drop was among a list of unique drops to include a bug, other eats and a pinecone too. The other featured events are the Flea Drop in Eastover, North Carolina, Sartori Big Cheese Drop in Plymouth, Wisconsin, PEEPS Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and The Great Pinecone Drop in nearby Flagstaff, Arizona
The public is encouraged to attend the Iceberg Drop to ring in 2020. The event features DJ Bobby McClendon of BMC Productions and Entertainment starting at 8 p.m. and Radical Rewind leads up to the drop times, making a festive celebration on Main Street in Historic Downtown Yuma. Many restaurants and bars in the downtown area will be open late, and Visit Yuma will have beer and wine available for sale in the street, and complimentary party favors as long as supplies last.
Early California navel orange shipments have gotten off to a good start this season and expect to load around 93 million boxes before the season concludes. This would be up from 83 millon cartons from the previous season. Loadings have been steady and are expected to remain this way in the weeks ahead.
Something to keep an eye on is the restrictions California is putting ictions on citrus fruit and plants in Tulare County after two recent detections of Asian citrus psyllid. It is not a full quarantine, but if another psyllid is found — it would be the fourth detection. This would trigger a two-year quarantine. Current restrictions are in place for six months.
The psyllids, which can carry citrus greening disease, feed on citrus trees, sucking the sap and weakening them, but they can carry citrus greening, a bacterial disease. The disease is no threat to humans or animals, but it can stunt and even kill citrus trees. The problem also has been detected in Florida and Texas.
Desert Shipments
In The California desert, as well as Yuma, AZ, recent warm cauliflower and broccoli shipments well above normal. Loadings are usually brisk this time of year anyway as supplies to buyers for the Christmas holidays are ramping up. A similar situation exist for various types of lettuce in the desert.
Strawberries
California is in between seasons now and strawberry shipments are light. While the Watsonville area has pretty much finished, loadings are now coming out of Ventura and Orange counties. Volume will remain light until after the first of the year.
While head lettuce shipments continue from the Salinas Valley and the Huron District in the San Joaquin Valley, volume is rapidly decreasing as the seasonal shift if well underway and volume increases from the desert areas of the Imperial Valley in Southern California and in the nearby Yuma district of Arizona.
Normal shipments are expected from the desert areas through the end of the year. Loadings for romaine from the Imperial Valley should start the week after Thanksgiving.
Lettuce loads from the Salinas Vallely are expected to overlap the Imperial Valley season by a week or two.
Record shipments of tables grapes continues from the San Joaquin Valley spanning the Kern District to the northern part of the valley is averaging over 1,600 truckloads per week…..Also from the Kern District is shipments of carrots, averaging about 350 truckload equivalents per week.
Strawberry shipments from the Watsonville District are in a seasonal decline, while volume is picking up from Ventura County. Moderate volume continues from the Santa Maria District. As with many vegetables in California, berry volume is much lower than only a few weeks ago.
There’s a number of produce items in California providing light volume, but at this point may be helping to fill out the truck. Those items may range from oranges to lemons, kiwi, various veggies and even holiday product such as pomegrantes.
San Joaquin Valley produce – grossing about $4400 to Chicago.
Very light shipments of California lettuce got underway last week from the 
Huron District of the San Joaquin Valley. Shipments are increasing this week, but full volume isn’t expected until around Easter (April 8). Lettuce, broccoli and cauliflower shipments from the Imperial Valley and Yuma District are finished.
Broccoli and cauliflower shipments have now seasonally transitioned from the California and Arizona deserts to the Salinas Valley. Lettuce loadings should start from Salinas in late April.
Salinas vegetables – grossing about $4200 to Chicago.
Overall, there should be excellent quality vegetables coming out of the Salinas Valley this spring due to excellent growing conditions. This should translate into a huge demand for trucks, especially as we enter May and the big volumes of veggies start coming out of the fields.