MARKET UPDATE JANUARY 11, 2024

Good afternoon,

ICY conditions in Arizona have slowed down harvests of several West Coast items this week. LETTUCE and LEAFY GREENS, BROCCOLI, CAULIFLOWER, and more have all been impacted by the recent cool down in temperature. Just like dew on the morning grass, ICE remains solidified on crops in the early morning, unfortunately, the best hours for harvest. As crews sit out and wait for frost to melt, valuable harvesting hours are missed and availability is shortened. For now, we are seeing the delays directly impact transportation costs but commodity markets have yet to move up substantially.

These clouds in Florida just won't break! Overcast conditions have held back STRAWBERRY supplies yet again this week. Pricing and availability has been consistent and we still anticipate the STRAWBERRY market to loosen up as soon as we get some consistent sunlight. In California, DRISCOLL'S does not have the quality to put up an export pack, so we are working closely with our Florida growers to get the best quality fruit. If there is a silver lining to all this, it's that while the berries are slow to bloom, the quality is much better without higher levels of heat, so we will take the good with the bad!

APPLES and PEARS continue their run of great supply and availability! While STONE FRUIT and GRAPES are priced out on the higher end, make sure you have affordable displays of other fruits, like PINEAPPLES, CANTALOUPES, HONEYDEWS, APPLES, and PEARS! Supplies are sufficient on these items and we don't anticipate much market movement over the next few weeks. Give us a call to discuss volume deals or weekly ad programs and let's boost these numbers for 2024!

WATERMELONS have been a challenge out of Mexico and Florida for the last several weeks. Ripe fruit has not been very clean and clean fruit has not been very ripe! While the quality of the IMPORT HONDURAN product is much better, the price is also higher. WATERMELON for the next few weeks will truly be a you get what you pay for scenario. So, skip out on the cheap bins and make sure to buy quality if you want a good product! Smaller sizing is limited on import fruit, so 80ct orders will be subbed into 60ct.

As you can see, winter weather is affecting products all over the country! Snow storms around Idaho are making it difficult this week to get trucks loaded in and out of RUSSET POTATO distribution centers. Naturally, trucking prices are way up as we have less capacity out of these lanes and the drivers who know the area well are demanding a higher dollar.

TOMATO markets have been sky high for several weeks due to rain events in Mexico and Florida. The overcast and rainy weather here on the East Coast is not helping supplies come off the vine, so markets are holding firm. This goes for most eastern veg like CORN, CABBAGE, PEPPER, CUCUMBER, EGGPLANT, and more. We expect to see some relief in the coming weeks but for now, if it remains cool and cloudy, expect supplies to remain tight.

More as it happens,

Parker Tannehill