Organic Market Update #339

Week 39, 2023

Pears

Organic Pear peak season production is ramping up in the Pacific Northwest. New crop Organic Green Bartlett and Starkrimson Red Pears will be promotable through early November, with 2/2lb pouch bags of Organic Green Bartlett Pears in great supply. Washington new crop Organic Bosc Pears are available and Organic Comice Pears will come into season in early October. Organic Asian Pears will be back in season from California soon following a varietal gap.

Apples

New crop Washington Organic Gala and Honeycrisp Apples are in peak season with good volume and quality. Organic SweeTango Apples are also in season from Washington. This excellent snacking apple features Honeycrisp parentage and top-notch texture and flavor. New crop Organic Granny Smith Apples are expected to transition from old crop to new crop without a gap. Excellent supplies should be expected, with more blush on the fruit this season. Organic McIntosh Apples are available in sporadic supply, with smaller sizing expected. Organic Ambrosia Apples should begin the first week of October.

Lettuce

Organic Leaf and Romaine Lettuce remains widely available in California and Quebec. While Organic Lettuce production in California has started to decrease. Pennsylvania and New Jersey will resume fall production. Organic Iceberg Lettuce and Romaine Hearts will continue to be sourced mainly from California, as Volumes remain steady.

Peppers

Supplies of Organic Red, Orange, and Yellow Bell Peppers are increasing, and following suit, prices have started to decrease. Production from Holland is readily available, and volumes from Canada have increased. As October approaches, anticipate conditions to continue progressively improve.

Sweet Potatoes

New crop Organic Stokes Purple Sweet Potatoes are now available with higher Pricing expected through the remainder of the year. All other varieties of Organic Sweet Potatoes are expected from California at the beginning of October.

Citrus

Organic Valencia Orange prices are high, and supplies are very limited. Expect sporadic out of stocks on some sizes and packs for the next few weeks until a new crop Organic Navel Oranges are expected to begin in early November. Organic Grapefruit supplies continue to be very limited with high prices for early fall. Organic Lemon supplies are expected to be very erratic for the next month as Argentina winds down and volume starts to improve out of Mexico and California. Organic Limes have been a real challenge with weather and Cartel crimes. Supplies are extremely limited, but seasonal quality is improving.

Grapes

Organic Grape supplies are slowly coming along despite harvests slowed down by labor challenges in the fields and lower output. Organic Green Grapes are more plentiful than Organic Reds. Market pricing is still very high and will remain that way until stronger varieties and fan favorite “Autumn Crisp” become available.

Broccoli

Organic Broccoli remains a challenging commodity. Due to field-related quality problems, the supply volume in California is reduced. Quebec’s volumes are still relatively low, resulting in supply limitations and subpar quality. There remains a limited Organic Broccoli Crown production in California, and none in Quebec. Following suit, constraints and rising pricing have been observed for similar items, such as Organic Broccoli Rabe and Sweet Baby Broccoli.