MARKET UPDATE WEEK # 17 - 2020

Good Afternoon,

Temperatures are rising here in Florida. One month into spring and it is already beginning to feel like summer. With all the warm weather, we are seeing the end of production on several commodities here in south Florida. California and Mexico are seeing similar conditions, seasonably warm with only a small chance of rain.

Just this week, we have seen the last of exportable quality LETTUCE and ROMAINE out of Florida. There may be some supplies still sitting around but with affordable, fresh harvests out west, Florida leaf will be better left locally.

Florida TANGERINE season has finished up this week. We are a few weeks away from bulk pack mandarins, but 10/3 CLEMENTINES work as a great substitute for now.

TOMATOES are wrapping up in south Florida and heading north. There will be a short period of time with softer supplies as we transition. Production in Mexico is down, due to seasonal transition as well, so we may see a temporary price increase. We expect supplies in north Florida and Mexico to get better during the weeks ahead.

IMPORT GRAPES are holding on to the very end as we await new crop out of Mexico. GREEN GRAPES are VERY SCARCE. RED GRAPES are affordable with better volume. There have been some words of Mexican grapes getting started next week, but we are still at least a few weeks away from significant volumes.

Moving further out west, we are only a few weeks away from DOMESTIC STONE FRUIT. APRICOTS, PEACHES, and NECTARINES will be the first available, followed by red and black PLUMS about three to four weeks later. With the favorable weather in California, we should see a nice start to the season!

EGG markets have been a wild ride for the past few months. After prices soared in late March and early April on carton eggs, we have seen a steady decline. All the eggs intended for foodservice were packed up in bulk ready to go. Seemingly overnight, the Foodservice industry was decimated due to COVID-19 restrictions. To make matters worse, retail consumers went into hoarding mode, clearing shelves of any and all eggs they could find. Today, the supply is there, and the market is coming down. The problem being that we have to play the waiting game on packaging materials, receiving minimum orders while shippers repack loose cases into cartons for retail.

Stay healthy friends,
Parker Tannehill