Produce Crops
BelleHarvest will be marketing a full Michigan dry veg program, cider, and apple program through the summer and fall, says Nick Teriaca, director of sales and procurement for the Belding, Mich.-based marketer.
A superior cherry crop is expected for The Dalles, Ore.-based Polehn Farms, says Shelly Sylvester, managing partner for distributor L.A. Karma Produce, Los Angeles.
USDA is reporting the Florida all orange forecast at 17.9 million boxes. See what that latest snapshot means to the state’s citrus industry.
When arrival nears for a new crop of Arkansas tomatoes, consumers can hardly wait. At least that’s the opinion of Gary Margolis, a tomato marketer who owns Hamburg, Ark.-based Gem Tomato & Vegetable Sales.
The assessment describes potential pests associated with the commodity, the agency says.
Younger consumers love to eat watermelons, are highly aware of their health benefits and are open to new ways to eat the fruit, according to the National Watermelon Promotion Board’s latest consumer research study.
The company also won recognition at the International Taste Institute’s Superior Taste Awards in Belgium for its tomatoes and berries.
The company will offer several different sizes of its mandarins, navels and lemons to meet customer demand.
The company was recognized for its peppers at the annual competition in Leamington.
Yakima, Wash.-based Superfresh Growers expects to deliver both a strong season of Northwest blueberries, starting with fruit from Norris Farms in southwestern Oregon.
California’s Westside melon deal should get underway by early July, as usual, and growers expect to provide their customers with ample supplies of tasty melons this summer.
“Crop load is generally very average, which means fruit size will be ideal with promotable volumes,” said Tyler Johnson, sales manager for the Selah, Wash.-based company.
As an anchor tenant at the Detroit Produce Terminal, Riggio Distribution Co. services customers in the foodservice and retail industry.
Washington Fruit Growers expects to pack a larger volume of cherries compared with a year ago, says Dan Davis, director of business development.
This is the first find of egg masses of this invasive pest that is a known threat to grapevines.
Some Florida spring produce items are getting off to a slower start than usual, but grower-shippers expect volume to pick up quickly and say quality should be top notch.
Fresh apple holdings on March 1 totaled 62 million bushel cartons, 7.3% less than the same time last year, according to a U.S. Apple Association survey.
The biggest highlight of the marketing campaign for Durham, N.C.-based Happy Dirt sweet potatoes this spring is education around the product and the growers, said Taylor Meadows, marketing coordinator.
Robin Narron, marketing director and sales support for Nash Produce, says that sweet potato movement can increase up to 20% during the Easter sales period.
After dealing with weather-realted challenges, Glennville, Ga.-based Bland Farms is planning a big promotion for the upcoming season.
North Carolina sweet potatoes check all the boxes for today’s consumers, says Michelle Grainger, executive director of the North Carolina SweetPotato Commission.
Bakersfield, Calif.-based Country Sweet Produce’s Bako Sweet label has redesigned its conventional and organic mesh bags as well as its Single Sweet stickers.
Shuman Farms is wrapping up an extensive renovation of its packing facility in Cobbtown, Ga., says John Shuman, president and CEO of Shuman Farms.
Vidalia onion plants endured a cold snap around Christmas but the crop has looked good the past couple of months, said Vidalia Onion Committee Chairman Cliff Riner, the crop production manager for G&R Farms.
From fresh berries to lettuce, what we now know about potential California crop losses from flooding
California farmers are facing another round of flooding, with fields still bearing scars from January’s floods. An area known for production of fresh berries and lettuce is expected to now have a larger loss.
Cool weather put the brakes on most of western Mexico’s spring crop, delaying the start a bit, but importers say that what the crop may lack in early volume and timeliness will be made up for in quality.
The value of U.S. potato exports was up for all potato types in that six-month period, compared with the same months in 2021, according to data published by Potatoes USA.
Oppy’s California cherry season is expected to end around June 20, just in time to overlap with the start of the Pacific Northwest cherry season.
A quality crop is expected despite earlier weather woes, though sizing could be affected in some cases.
After a down crop year in 2022, Yakima, Wash.-based Sage Fruit Co. is looking forward to rebounding with a large cherry crop volume in 2023.