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With two major holidays – Easter and Mother’s Day – coming up in the weeks ahead, we at California Giant are doing our best to deliver consistent quality berries to our retailers. With that said, Mother Nature has not been cooperative, and more storms are forecasted this weekend and scattered throughout next week. Despite being hurdled with these weather conditions, we look forward to an increase in volume after a few dry days, and a successful peak season ahead. – A message from the VP of Sales
For more information, including crop and weather reports, please scroll below.
Mexico: Blackberries are looking great in our Mexico regions; however, volume is tight due to the hail damage from last week. Our Los Reyes region is experiencing some very hot days until Friday - with highs in the 90s and lows in the 50s. Weather is expected to cool down soon - and crop quality is good with minimal defects, well-sized and firm. In our Ziracuaretiro region we are experiencing weather with highs in the 80s and lows in the 50s. There is still leftover damage in some of the fields from the hail storm but fruit is looking decent.
Oxnard: This region is expected to get the least amount of rainfall from the weekend storms, with a ½ inch prediction forecasted to start this evening into Saturday morning. Harvest is scheduled for today, and expected to resume Sunday after a short break on Saturday. Current quality concerns are overripe and seeing some smaller sizing - 18-26 count due to previous weather conditions, but we are on the road to recovery with peaks in volume starting the last two weeks of April.
Santa Maria: With a cold, heavy storm hitting this weekend, Saturday and Sunday will be relatively wet. With that said, harvesting over the weekend is questionable depending on the severity of the disruption. Current quality challenges include green tips and brown calyx - all expected to improve once fields dry up. Sizing is ranging between 14-22 count depending on variety. Fronteras are looking great and mostly within 14-16 count. Monterey is starting to look good, with a slightly smaller size but a big blossom coming in. Weather dependent, this fruit should get well into the teens in the next few weeks. Labor is currently consistent, but expecting to fall short once we dive into the peak weeks ahead, which are predicted for the first 3 weeks of May.
Watsonville - Salinas: Salinas fields are wet with about a ½ inch of rain from last night through this morning. Watsonville, on the other hand, has received 1-1 ½ inches of rain, with chances of scattered storms next week starting up north in the San Francisco area. Current quality challenges include burnt calyx in our Monterey variety, which is typical of this variety at the beginning of the season. This should clear up by the beginning of May. However, berries overall are looking good and volume is expected to significantly increase come the first week of May at our peak.
Last week marked the beginning of our blueberry harvest in Georgia - here's a look at how our crops are doing:
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.
This sweepstakes has launched to help promote our item level traceback program with consumers. This long term commitment to traceability and food safety is already playing well with shoppers as they visit www.calgiant.com/trace and learn where the California giant strawberries they just purchased were grown. We have received positive feedback via calls, emails and more importantly – they are tracing their berries and learning more about our brand and our company which builds trust and repeat purchases.
Consumers that enter their traceback code can enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win monthly cash prizes throughout the summer and into September.
More and more consumers are beginning to shift their concerns to personal health and wellness, and placing an importance on purchasing fresh, natural and organic products. Why is this emerging consumer trend becoming so popular you ask? Today’s consumer is largely focused on eating healthier, exercising and diet modifications due to rising health concerns stemming from aging population, chronic disease, rising healthcare costs, demand for brand transparency, and greater access to technology.
We just attended the PBH meeting where their data showed that the market share by sales reveals 36% of consumer dollars are spent on the store perimeter, while 63% is spent in the center of the store. However, based on the emerging health and wellness trend, we have an opportunity to shift those center-store dollars to the produce department.
Produce sales specifically showed increases of 3%, versus last year with fruit at 3.8% and vegetables at 2.7%. Among these fruits and vegetables the highest-ranking items within those increases were strawberries, avocados and brussels sprouts.
