Latest News From Salinas Valley Produce

Reinforcing its focus on frozen cut vegetables and fruit, Monterey, Calif.-based Growers Express has opened a 24,000-square-foot frozen storage facility in San Luis, Ariz.

The California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement board has endorsed new pre-harvest testing guidance in an effort to prevent foodborne illness outbreaks associated with leafy greens.

A year ago, the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California established a first-of-its-kind housing program for farmworkers in the Salinas Valley who were exposed to COVID-19.

California’s Salinas Valley vegetable shippers had more than enough supply for the start of the deal this year.

Salinas Valley vegetable commodities that enjoyed more than a double-digit increase in shipments in 2020 included broccoli, cauliflower, celery hearts and iceberg lettuce.

Proposed regulations that would impose testing requirements on Canadian imports of romaine lettuce from California’s Salinas Valley are raising concerns for growers, buyers and industry associations.

Gonzalez, Calif.-based Misionero Vegetables has gone through significant changes since the Harbinger Group LLC acquired the company in 2016, said Nicole Zapata, marketing manager.

Lucky Strike Farms, Burlingame, Calif., is working closely with Fresno, Calif.-based Fowler Packing Co., and the arrangement seems to be working out well.

Hitchcock Farms has completed its transition from the Southern California desert region to its spring/summer/fall home in Salinas, said Dan Holt, vice president of sales and marketing.

Consumers and retailers interested in saving the planet have been quite vocal recently about their desire to do away with single-use plastic.

It’s hard to say what, if any, impact COVID-19 will have on sales of organic vegetables, but growers in California’s Salinas Valley tend to remain optimistic.

Good growing weather this winter should result in some exceptional fruit and vegetable crops out of California’s Salinas Valley this season.

Salad Savoy Corp. in Salinas, Calif., continues to see demand bloom for its various kales and cauliflowers. 

Consumer interest in alternatives to carbohydrates motivated Mann Packing Co., to introduce a fresh vegetable-based noodle and rice line last spring, said Loree Dowse, director of creative marketing. 

Small-scale grower Hall’s Organic Farms in Salinas, Calif., has found niche markets for its organic vegetables, strawberries and more — in food hubs, high-tech companies and farmers markets.

Growers Express, which sells cut vegetables under the Green Giant Fresh brand and has seen demand rise “significantly” over the past year for its Veggie Meal Bowls and its Fresh brand Little Gems lettuce hearts.

Crops of spring vegetables and berries are emerging after the winter’s rainy and chilly conditions, and growers are expecting California’s Salinas Valley to explode with activity in the next weeks.

Read a few quick updates on companies growing and marketing fresh produce from California's Salinas Valley, including new hires, new products and crop updates.

Although weather issues slowed the start of California’s Salinas Valley produce deal somewhat this spring, conditions were improving by mid-April as rain and cold weather dissipated.

Rain and cold weather slowed the start of the 2018 strawberry harvest in California’s Salinas/Watsonville district, but suppliers expect promotable strawberry volume expected for Mother’s Day.