The Buzz: Your source for farm fresh berry info

April 24, 2017

Happy Monday! Forecasts show clear weather for the next 7-10 days, which means clean fields, plentiful fruit, and decent preparation time for our Mother's Day pull right around the corner.

For more information, including crop and weather reports, please scroll below.

Crop Updates

Watsonville - Salinas: There has been a lot of cleaning up in the Watsonville and Salinas regions. Fields should be looking good this week and ready for some dry days ahead. Expect to see good, clean fruit starting today, with numbers predicted to double compared to last week. Overall, varieties are looking good despite last week’s rainfall, with fields beginning to look healthy and loaded with fruit and blossoming flowers. A significant increase in volume is expected in Watsonville and Salinas within the next four weeks as we peak, so expect to see a lot of healthy fruit!

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Santa Maria: Weather was relatively hot and muggy over the weekend with stagnant wind. A warming trend is expected in this region, with temperatures expected to be in the mid to high 70s this week, with nighttime lows in the 50s. Fields have experienced 25-30% damage due to previous storms, but dry weather is predicted in the long-term forecast – giving ranches plenty of time to be cleaned and prepared for our Mother's Day next week. Monterey variety is looking better, but still showing signs of weakness from the rain. However, overall damage looks minimal and should improve. Expect to see a lot of fruit coming in the next 3 weeks, with Monterey and San Andreas starting to peak.

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Oxnard: Last week we saw some light rain passing through earlier in the week. However, the drizzles did not amount to much, and we are expected to see a warming trend emerge this week. Over the weekend we saw highs in the 70-80s, with temperatures expected to stay consistent in the 70s the rest of this week. No rain is forecasted for the next 10 days, which gives ample time to finish cleaning up fields and preparing for a busy month of berries in May. Berry quality is looking good - with a 2-3 cycle - volume is expected to increase week by week. Radiance is fighting in size, with a 24-26 count, where Petaluma and Fronteras can be seen at 22-24 count.

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Mexico: Temperatures in both the Tangancicuaro and Los Reyes regions are expected to be in the low 80s, with nighttime lows in the 50s for the next week or two. Ziracuaretiro is expected to be in the high 70s with lows in the 50s, with no chance of rain in the near forecast. Quality of blackberries in Tangancicuaro and Los Reyes is good, with the main defect being overripe and soft fruit. Growers are delivering fruit consistently to avoid temperatue damage. Volume in Ziracuaretiro is increasing, and should continue within the next few weeks.  

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Weather Conditions

For up-to-date weather conditions in all of our growing regions, click on the region below. Wunderground.com is our go-to weather resource for fast and reliable weather updates. 

Santa Maria

Florida

Oxnard

Watsonville - Salinas

Mexico

Central Valley

Reaching Consumers

Consumer Trends

This week we are back with more highlighted insights from the 2017 Packer’s Fresh Trends Report. With an emphasis this year on the popularity of value added produce, consumers are rapidly seeing the appeal in convenience given from value added products, while price remains the most important factor in influencing the final purchase.  77% of consumers said they ‘generally’ choose what is best value for the money, in addition to buying a product that is the healthiest and closest to its natural state.

Speaking of food being in its natural state, we are also seeing an increase in organic products in the produce industry. According to scan data, organics account for 7.5% of total produce sales in 2015 and $4.5 billion.  Fresh Trends shows that 25% - 30% of shoppers says they buy organic fruits and vegetables in any given year.  Why, you ask? 59% say it is due to safety and avoiding chemicals in their food.

Next week we will talk more about the continued increased popularity of the berry category.

Pick of the Week

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Two customers in a row buying California Giant strawberries on Earth Day!

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