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Watsonville - Salinas:
Weather in this region looks to be mild and temperate this week with highs in the 60s-70s and no rain in the immediate forecast. Quality looks great among fruit – with large size and consistent firmness. Volume will increase weekly as we get into our peak in the middle of June. We look forward to beginning our blackberry harvest in Watsonville the second part of next week.
Santa Maria:
Temperatures will be in the low to mid 70s all week, with nightly lows hitting the 50s. With production peaking over the next few weeks, quality continues to look excellent across all varieties and ranches at mostly 16-18 count, with some really large fruit here and there. There are, however, some wind scars and deformed berries in the fields from the wind events of last week, but we are being vigilant on quality control and what we are packing. Our organic berries are looking great with very large fruit coming out of San Andreas 14-16 count, and Monterey at 18-22 count. Volume continues to rise on both organic ranches, which is expected to peak in late May- early June.
Oxnard:
We are finishing up our fresh harvest season this week, as tomorrow will be our last day of our conventional picking while we transition into the freezer season. We may harvest the organic fresh for another day or so, but that ranch will as well, begin to transition into the freezer sometime this week.
Mexico:
As forecasted, it's been raining during the nights. Some areas in Los Reyes have reported hail storms resulting in minor damage. In Ziracuaretiro and Los Reyes it looks like they will have rain the rest of the month - chances are 80-100% with some wet days ahead.
Zamora has some rain scheduled for today and Wednesday, and clear the rest of the week. There's going to be increased humidity, so if weather allows us to harvest we may begin to see soft fruit, hail damage, and botrytis here and there – but we will be closely monitoring quality when packing. Raspberry quality has not been affected significantly, though we could start seeing some yellow rust on the plant, and potentially on the fruit. No issues have been reported on blueberries, with quality remaining good.
Blueberries:
Oxnard Organics
We foresee steady production for the next 2-3 weeks as we finish the last picks in the fields. We should be picked out by the end of the first week of June. Warm weather is causing slight concern with some soft fruit, but we are being vigilant with packing and quality control.
Georgia
We're peaking in production for the next 10 days for all of our southern high bush varieties. We're predicting weather to be hot this week with a chance of rain toward the weekend. Quality is excellent, and we're keeping an eye on soft fruit with the temperatures increasing.
Central Valley
We have very light production this week. By next weekend our production begins to ramp up, with steady volume to increase by May 21. Hot temperatures will bring on the fruit in a hurry with quality looking great in the fields so far.
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.
Ever wonder exactly what types of recipes your shoppers are looking for? Well you’re in luck, we have that intel right here! According to our quarterly data research, our contacts are looking for more main entrée recipes that include berries. We are constantly adding to our database of delicious, berry-filled recipes and luckily, we have a lot of tasty entrée options under our belts, and look forward to adding more following our Chef Invitational event as we continue to gather more creative, innovative recipes. Being that we have this knowledge and know our consumers want more entrée berries – we recommend positioning berries in the floor space in creative ways to entice more main-course berry meals. Want more insights similar to these? Check out our Trade Page and subscribe for full reports.
The First Annual Chef Invitational is quickly approaching. We have received numerous recipe and chef submissions and we’re ecstatic with the entries so far! Deadline for entries is Friday, May 18. We are looking forward to joining our chosen chefs and their accompanied representatives and companions for this one-of-a-kind chef showdown, as well as our many generous sponsors who are supporting this first annual culinary event! From Hollister, CA we have B&R Farms dried apricots, Schoch Family Farmstead and their rich, delicious Monterey County native premier cheeses, and The True Olive Connection olive oil and balsamic vinegar to pair perfectly with crostini, among many more – we’ll have lots of delicious bites and bubbly for our guests to enjoy as they watch the showdown unfold.
Haven’t submitted your chef(s) recipes yet? Don’t worry – you still have a few more days! Make sure to email Foodservice Director Tom Smith at tsmith@calgiant.com with your recipe submission or event inquiries.
The best part is, you don’t have to! We couldn’t agree more Russell!
Who’s throwing mom a Mother’s Day bash?! This Watsonville Nob Hill is loaded with strawberries for all the weekend festivities.
