Organic Market Update #285

Week 36, 2022

Grapes

September will one of the best months of the year to promote in-season Organic Seedless Grapes while the California crop is peaking on excellent varieties and prices are reasonable! Organic Red Grapes are transitioning into nicer varieties like “Sweet Celebrations,” “Scarlett Royals,” and “Krissy”. Organic Green Grapes are in great supply with excellent quality with “Timpsons,” “Sweet Globes,” and “Great Greens.” Size and crunch are very good. September will also be a good month to add some Organic Specialty Grapes to your sets like Organic Candy Hearts (super-sweet red) and Candy Dreams (super-sweet purple/black). Organic Thomcord Grapes are also continuing in peak season. NEW: Organic Cotton Candy Grapes are harvesting for a very short window in 10/1lb clamshells.

Apples

New crop Washington Organic Gala Apples are in good supply. Sizing is peaking on smaller fruit, so bags and pouches will be fairly promotable this fall. Expect 88 and larger fruit to command higher prices. Storage crop Organic Honeycrisp Apples have come to an end and the 2022 new crop color is very light, causing a dip in premium grade fruit. There will be some promotional opportunities on lower grade fruit that has less red blush. Peak volumes will arrive from Washington by mid-September. Storage crop domestic and import Organic Apples are winding down for the season on several varieties. Some import Organic Fuji and Granny Smith Apples are still lingering but will probably have a small gap before new crop begins sometime near the beginning of October. Domestic Organic Pink Lady Apples are done for the season, and we will transition to imports through October. New crop Washington will arrive in November.

Stone Fruit

Organic Yellow Peaches and Nectarines are hitting the last varieties and harvests of the season. Volumes and availability will wind down by late September. Flavor and quality have remained good out of Washington. We are in the last few weeks of Organic Red and Black Plums from California. Prices are on the high side with supplies a bit sporadic.

Sweet Potatoes

New crop Organic Stokes Purple Sweet Potatoes are back in season with the first arrival hitting the east coast on 9/6. Organic Sweet Potato varieties will transition over to new crop during mid to late September.

Broccoli & Cauliflower

Organic Broccoli and Organic Cauliflower production is down for the beginning of September. Organic Broccoli growers will hold off harvesting until after Labor Day. Pricing is up, since yields were already lower to kick off the month out in California. There will be only limited amounts available from Quebec to supplement. Check your price points. Organic Cauliflower crops are only yielding about half of expected volume for this time of year. Growers are reporting that these issues could persist throughout much of September. There's just not enough out of Quebec to supplement the gap in west coast volume. Organic Broccoli Rabe is in short supply for early September.

Lettuce

Organic Romaine and Romaine Hearts will continue to experience extremely light supplies in early September. For most California suppliers, the crop is currently yielding about half of its expected volume for this time of year due to the “INSV” disease. This issue is expected to persist into mid to late September before improvements. Limited supplies and elevated prices should be expected throughout September. Good news: Organic Iceberg Lettuce is currently not seeing any sign of INSV and expect strong quality and supplies in early September. Organic Leaf Lettuces are currently not suffering from disease or yield issues, but increased demand due to supply shortages on Organic Romaine has kept pricing higher. Organic Romaine and Leaf Lettuce production from Quebec remains in steady supply with great quality to supplement shortages from the West Coast.

Specialty Citrus

The 2022 fall crop of Buck Brand Specialty Citrus from Porterville, CA is up and running. Available for early September in limited volumes will be: Organic Key Limes, Pink Variegated Lemons, and Makrut Limes. More varieties will pop in and out during the fall and winter.

Citrus

Organic Lemons remain limited, but Mexico and California should ramp up new crop growing regions more fully by October. Peruvian Organic Mandarins are done for the season. Some Organic Minneola Tangelos are expected back for mid-September selling. California Organic Valencia Oranges are in better supply than growers expected during September.