MARKET UPDATE JANUARY 25, 2024

Good afternoon,

Perhaps the most critical market this week has been Florida SQUASH. Typically readily available this time of year, both YELLOW SQUASH and ZUCCHINI have been non-existent for the better part of this week. This winter has been unseasonably overcast and cold, leaving the product with not enough sunlight or warmth to grow. There are fields further south that are expected to get going this week, hopefully providing some last minute relief to close out the week.

CABBAGE harvests have been cooled off by the same weather patterns, pushing market pricing up for the last several weeks. Just like squash, as the sun looks to peak ahead to next week, the welcome warmth should result in improved availability. RED and SAVOY cabbage will come on later than GREEN so we may still see some shortages there.

STRAWBERRIES out of Florida look to impress over the next few weeks as production is ramping up just in time for Valentines Day! Pricing is on its way down while production is on its way up, so push sales on STRAWBERRIES as availability and fruit look to be ripe for the picking!

TOMATOES are nearly non-existent as supplies in FLORIDA and MEXICO are well behind schedule. It comes as no big surprise that rainy, cold weather is the culprit in both growing areas. Just like SQUASH, we are hoping for warmer conditions to help create some availability in the next few weeks.

GRAPE supplies are scarce with the Peruvian season winding down and Chilean fruit just scratching the surface. We don't expect to see CHILEAN fruit pick up any significant volume for at least another week, so expect high pricing and light availability on GRAPES as we move into February.

WATERMELON imports are beginning to come down in price! This is welcomed news as the MX and FL fruit has not been cutting it. The imports remain higher priced than the old crop fruit but the difference in quality is HUGE. Avoid the deals that seem too good to be true, because they are, and make sure you are buying the right quality for export with GPS!

More as it happens,

Parker Tannehill