MARKET UPDATE NOV 9-13, 2020

Good Afternoon,

MELON markets managed to keep prices in check with a strong late season supply out of California and some good volume in the desert. We are nearing the import season where, if the condition of arrivals is what we expect, markets should get even more competitive.

WATERMELON markets are somewhat of a different story. Supplies are tight here in the South East due to the cooler temperatures up North. We saw a little too much rain in the past few months that is having an adverse effect on the fruit.

SQUASH has been readily available here in the South East. It looks like GA is still hanging onto supply while FL starts some heavy production. Look for another week or so of affordable ZUCCHINI and YELLOW squash prices with plenty of opportunity for specials.

APPLE markets have become snug from one week to the next with help from the resurgence of the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. SMALL sizes are going to be more sought after, but this rush of demand will affect all apple sizes. Availability on PEARS is also down this week. We are seeing the food box program take up a good chunk of the volume. Production is also leaning towards larger fruit, so we may see some volatility in the SMALL PEAR market for some time.

If green skin avocadoes are your thing, we have some good news! Smooth Skin AVOCADOES are arriving from the Dominican Republic!

We are seeing TOMATO supplies pop up in central Florida. Strong Florida supplies should help bring down tomato prices. There is the chance of some significant weather next week so we will keep our eye on it.

Florida CITRUS is getting going! It is still early, which means there is a lot of gas ripening going on, but we are seeing some positive trends. The past few days have been cool, and the cooler nights will help the fruit ripen naturally. Most of the fruit is scruffy with low BRIX levels, but we should see things turn around soon.

LETTUCE and ROMAINE have FINALLY started in Arizona. Quality reports have been strong, and harvests seem to be a drastic improvement over what we were seeing in California. It took a while, but we should finally be out of the woods of what was one of the worst seasons in recent memory.

BROCCOLI and CAULIFLOWER are the main commodities left out in Northern California and their respective markets have taken off. We are seeing a spike in pricing that should subside as soon supplies pick up in YUMA, AZ.

More as it happens,
Parker Tannehill