Fresh From The Farm Market information on produce October 3, 2012

1. Fresh From The FarmMarket information on produceOctober 3, 2012 Produce Fact: When strawberries are exposed to high heats or too much sun they turn back to a whitish hue. We refer to the berries as being sun burnt. Potato Burbank potato production has begun in Idaho. Expect supplies to be sporadic as some Idaho packers will bounce back and forth between Burbank’s and Norkotah’s for the next couple of months. Be aware there is a split market between the two varieties, however the difference may not be as pronounced as it normally would be due to excessive supplies of both varieties. Overall Russet potato pricing is holding steady at a very low level, while demand remains on the slow side.  Quality has been good on both varieties. Yellow potato supplies will be very limited over the next two weeks as production is just beginning. Idaho transportation remains difficult with higher freight being reflective of the truck shortage. Red potatoes are available North Dakota, Wisconsin, Washington, Colorado and Idaho. Lettuce Currently supply and quality are in good shape on pretty much everything out of the Salinas Valley. Price have decrease from last week.  We have had very warm temps over the last four days, 90-95 in Salinas which is about 15 degrees above normal.  It is cooling off today and will continue to cool off into next week. We are expecting iceberg to be in good supplies for the next couple of weeks. Harvesting in Huron will began in the next 2 weeks. Romaine is very similar to iceberg, with good supplies for the next few weeks. We are seeing demand on Romaine increase as local product is finishing and that demand is being shifted to the west. With the higher temperature please be aware that there might be some tip burn on the product. Green and red leaf lettuces are both in good supplies and product is weighing in around 24 pounds, which is normal. Tomato The tomato market continues to be weak as a result of slack demand. Several Eastern growing regions are cleaning up as harvesting winds down, with quality issues being reported. We expect Quincy, FL to begin harvesting next week. That growing area has experienced a lot of rain over the past 1 ½ months so quality might be an issue. California continues to drive the market for round tomatoes and will continue to be until the central and southern Florida crops begin to be harvested which will be around the 1st of November. Grape tomatoes continue to be plentiful this week with various supply sources. Roma supply continues to be practically non-existent in the East with most volume coming from Mexico. Onions The yellow onion market is stable on all varieties and sizes and their quality is excellent. Overall, harvest in the Northwest is wrapping up, and most onions being harvested are going directly into storage. There is speculation that after harvest wraps up, there will be less pressure to move onions, leading to price increases. The red onion market is currently steady, but will see price drop in the next few weeks as more supplies enter the market out of Washington. Quality on all three colors has been excellent, and should only get better in the coming weeks. Citrus Limes- Supplies are good on all sizes. Past rains in the growing area is and causing some quality issues. Oranges- Market is the same a last week. Quality is fair as Valencia’s are finishing up and will start navels by the end of this month. Sizes are still limited on 113’s and 138’s with good supplies of 72’s. Lemons- Market all over the board due to fruit coming from various regions. Sizes are peaking on 140’s & 165; quality is good.

2. Vegetables Peppers- Green bell pepper supplies from California continue to be light at this time. The quality is good to excellent. Michigan is still harvesting and now Georgia has entered the market. Broccoli & Cauliflower- Both of these markets are relatively strong and steady. This is similar to what we saw last week, supplies are on the light side and quality, especially on Cauliflower, is fair at best. Celery- Salinas and Santa Maria are the primary shipping locations. The supply is steady out of both areas and quality is good. Prices and demand are anticipated to decrease as the week progresses. Michigan is winding down and any cold weather could hasten the end of their season. Squash-   The squash market is stable with steady supplies and demand. Eastern squash production is now focused around Georgia, but Michigan continues to have product available. No quality issues to report. Cucumbers-This market is flat. A few growers out of Mexico have started in with fruit crossing into Nogales. Georgia product is flooding the market; prices are about as low as they can go. Michigan is slowing down with cooler weather, but it is not enough to impact the market. Quality is good in all areas. Asparagus- This market is firm and Jumbo product continues to be tight. Overall quality is good. California is expecting to wrap up over the next 3-4 weeks. Fruits Apples & Pears- There is not much change in these markets. Schools are still putting lots of demand on this market, especially on the smaller sizes. Growers have started harvesting Braeburn crop a week ago. We haven't started harvesting any new varieties this week. Next in line is Cameo in 7-10 days then Pink Lady at end of month. Avocadoes- Mexico’s Flora Loca crop is begging to wind down. Their new main crop will be ready to come to market as soon as the Flora Loca is done. California volume looks good, but will begin its down turn further into October as we start to see the end of California’s season. Grapes- Market is very strong as we are all fighting color due to our warmer temperatures which do not help bring on the color. There is a chance that the fruit may not color up due to its high sugar content. Melons Honeydews- Prices are increasing as supplies are decreasing. Supplies will not increase until we start out of the desert in a couple weeks. The overall quality is very good with high sugar and excellent interior condition. Cantaloupes- Market is steady as we are starting to get better volume than what we have had over the past few weeks. We will have fruit for the next 2 weeks out of the Westside and then transition to the desert for the fall melon deal. The overall quality is very good and interior color and condition Watermelons- Market is steady. The seedless supply shortage continues. Product will start crossing in small volume through Nogales by the weekend. Additional growers will come online by mid October and this will help prices decrease. Berries Raspberries – These record temperatures in the Raspberry fields have put these plants to sleep. Most of the fruit that was ready to be harvested was burned up and will be thrown away. Supplies are very limited with moderate demand. Quality is fair at best. Market is firm. Blackberries- High temperatures will shut down the plants from producing, so look for supplies to get very limited as this week moves on. The quality of the fruit will also be hurt due to these warm temperatures. Strawberries- We are dealing with an industry wide problem with supplies and quality out of California because of the high temperatures. This heat has hurt the quality of the strawberries being harvested this week. Issues to be aware of will be sunburn (bronzing), over ripe fruit, bruising and decay. Arrivals with 15- 20% defects should be expected. Prices are going to increase but the crop should recover by next week. Blueberries- Good demand with lighter supplies are increasing prices. Quality is fair on the NW fruit. Blueberries out of Argentina have arrived in Miami, expect good quality but light volume and high prices.