Visit Our Other Sites
Watsonville - Salinas:
We have had consistent weather in the low 70s, and saw a slight warming trend over the weekend. This week, weather will remain in the high 60s - low 70s with nighttime lows in the low 50s. Our berries are favoring the warm, temperate weather and numbers should hold for the next few weeks. Overall quality looks good, with conventional counts 22-26, and organic counts 28-32. Bushberries are looking great in quality - blackberries are slowly declining in volume, with raspberries holding relatively steady the next few weeks.
Santa Maria:
Weather has been in the low-mid 70s in Santa Maria, with nighttime lows in the upper 40s - low 50s. Weather looks to stay similar this week, but with amplified Santa Ana winds today. Our conventional fall crop looks nice at 20-22 count, with some bigger fruit in the teens depending on the ranch. Minor defects among fruit includes some albino and mildew, but nothing excessive or concerning to field personnel. Monterey looks good at 18-22 count, and blackberries look good with minor soft fruit here and there in the late afternoon. Our organic fall crop is showing good flower and green fruit. Labor is not an issue in this region, and spring crop ranches are getting bedded up, and ready to plant in the coming weeks.
Mexico:
Blueberries:
We started receiving blueberries from Uruguay and Argentina last week, and we will continue with Peru in the next few weeks. The volumes are slow, the weather is wet as rainfall greets the growing regions this week. We hope to increase volume in the weeks ahead. The quality, however, is excellent and our new Unitec machine is able to select the fruit by size in a clamshell, and eliminates any soft fruit. This has been maintaining consistent, high-quality blues.
Florida:
Weather has been in the low 90s and mid 70s at night. This weather pattern looks to change end of month - with October temperatures to range mostly in the low-mid 80s, with nighttime lows in the 59-70 range. Weather will not be as hot. Rainfall seemed to seize last week and it has been dry enough to begin planting organic Radiance. Conventional plantings starting today for some growers, while others will kick off at the beginning of October. We are starting to plant this week, so stay tuned for more photo updates soon!
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.
Our goal at California Giant is to always be industry leaders in berry quality and customer satisfaction, but also in gathering insights to support our trade partners. That being said, we are constantly searching for new trends and data that are reflective of intel regarding retail category trends, shopper data, insights from the web, and more. For those of you that work with our Foodservice Director, Tom Smith, you may know Tom as being a dedicated student of foodservice - always looking, reading and researching more about the industry and excited to share his findings with others. With that, we're excited to dedicate a section Tidbits from Tom this week to showcase some restaurant research you won't want to miss.
According to a recent article published by Toast all about restaurant trends- there's a few mentioned that we couldn't help but get excited about:
Gut Friendly Menu Items:
Many restaurants are embracing healthy food trends as consumers seek healthier lifestyles. In a recent Nielsen survey 63% of Americans said they were actively trying to eat healthier, while another 49% were consciously eating products with reduced fats, gluten, salt or sugar. As allergen-free foods become more mainstream, restaurants are also starting to incorporate gut-friendly foods involving fermentation and fiber to improve digestion. High fiber foods that aid in digestion include berries, barley, bran, and legumes. Probiotic-rich foods such as yogurt and kimchi also aid in restoring system regularity and boost immune function.
Food Waste Reduction:
We're all about this one. Food waste reduction at restaurants is becoming a hot concept this year. Some restaurants are selling their uneaten entrees to the public for up to 80% off the menu price by using the FoodforAll app. They're also committing to using an entire plant, such as broccoli, in entrees and side dishes. As food waste is most prevalent in the restaurant industry due to overproduction, expiration, spoilage, and trimming, many restaurateurs have stepped up to reduce their impact. A topic that is largely significant at California Giant - we have our very own Food Waste Free Guide where we address tips and tricks to reduce waste even in our very own homes. We love knowing the restaurant industry is making similar strides toward a waste-free world.
Farm-to-Shaker Cocktails:
You've heard of the farm-to-table movement. In fact, restaurant dishes using locally-sourced fresh ingredients is now a mainstay. In 2018, this trend has graduated from dining rooms to cocktail bars. Many bartenders are now creating farm-to-shaker cocktails, including local ingredients in their drinks. California Giant berries add the perfect vibrance and sweetness to all your cocktail needs. Need some cocktail inspiration? We have you covered.
Send us your own "pick of the week" and we will feature it here!
