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ORLANDO, Fla. - Plentiful high-quality California grape supplies are expected into December, says Justin Parnagian, CEO for Fowler Packing, Fresno, Calif.

The 2018-19 California avocado crop is expected to fall short of 2017-18 output by nearly half.

While above-average rainfall in California this winter put a damper on early supplies of strawberries, grower-shippers expected heavy volume of high-quality fruit once the rain stopped and temperatures started to rise.

The Watsonville-based California Strawberry Commission has a wealth of programs on tap this season to encourage consumers to buy California strawberries.

Plant City, Fla.-based Harvest CROO Robotics has developed a new version of its Harvest CROO — Computerized Robotic Optimized Obtainer — harvester and expects to begin commercial harvesting late this year.

While some grower-shippers may see the Mexican state of Jalisco as a gateway to a head start for that country’s table grape deal, others want no part of it, or at least are taking a wait-and-see attitude.

Dinuba, Calif.-based King Fresh Produce LLC is building on its packing efficiencies, said Francisco Ilic, export manager.

The Mexican table grape deal may be getting off to a slightly later start than usual this season, but grower-shippers expect volume to be significantly higher than last year.

The California Strawberry Commission will use Instagram for its summer marketing campaign, the Get Snacking Challenge, which has a $1,000 grand prize.

This could be a year like no other for California’s table grape industry.