Market Notes
April 28, 2016
GREENS GO BLACK
First we had a frost and some very warm weather. This caused some mildew and particularly affected organic kale and spinach. We are pleased to report that this was a two week gap and it is over. Next week loading will be quicker and there should be no product shortages. On the commodity side thing have taken a turn for the worse. Strong winds ripping through both the Salinas and San Fernando Valley have destroyed several crops. This has had a huge effect on leaf lettuce including romaine, red leaf, green leaf, and butter. Collard and mustard greens have been damaged as well, but there are eastern crops to cover those losses. Radishes have also been damaged. The radish itself is fine but the tops are very torn up. Celery root is also reported to be damaged but there are several growing areas so the impact will not be as bad. Then there is the labor problem. For the crop that remains to be picked the ability to hire harvesters has been diminished. The H2A Agriculture Visa program has been held up due to lack of automation and increased immigration enforcement. Unfortunately the crops will not wait. While some crops suffered weather damage other will bolt or rot because there is no labor to pick and pack. This speaks in many ways to USA employment and immigration inefficiencies but that’s not for discussion in these pages. We’ll leave that to those pundits who act like they know. We know there are going to be shortages and price increases. We will let you know when they ease. Remarkably, on the specialty side of greens, it’s all good. Caesar salad might be tough for Mother’s Day. Let ‘em eat Mesclun!
SPRING THINGS REALLY RING
We know all about how people listen and that most only begin to hear after they have heard it three times. We’ve done that. So, instead of continuing to pound it in for the fourth time we will provide a synopsis or in hip speak and snapshot of the foraged season. Everything is available. Prices for Morels keep dropping. Ramps are rapidly approaching there bottom price. Other mushrooms and truffles change weekly. If you want to promote a foraged section in your weekly produce sheet, or if you want to create a foraged menu, now is the time to do it. Within two weeks some of the more obscure items will taper off. About another 3 weeks before fresh Ramps become Ramp Bulbs. We are at the peak of everything. Now is the time. We will tell you this for the next two weeks.
FINGER LIMES OFFICIALLY BEGIN
We are beyond the drips and drabs. Pickers are going into the fields a few times a week. To start, the yield is not very strong, maybe twenty pounds per day. This will work well for food-service, but we are going to wait for steady supply to begin our retail program so we can ship weekly. As the pickers triple their yield per hour and there are more limes on the tree than there are hours to pick prices will drop. We call that June. Meanwhile, attention wholesalers, game on.
NEW PRODUCE QUIZ – – WHO AM I???
I am famous for playing hard to get, yet the few that are graced with my presence find me on a small tropical tree cultivated in parts of Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines. I am the reigning queen member of the Guttiferaceae family and am actually referred to as “Queen of the Tropical Fruits.” I grow at my own leisure, which is usually in a timely fashion, and I am difficult to propagate, even down right persnickety. My thick vibrant skin is strikingly handsome. I share the same purplish red skin color as a pomegranate, but I am far more beautiful, both inside and out. My insides are segmented into small pulpy white to ivory sections. My pulp is delicate, yet powerfully sweet and juicy. My exotic flavor has been described as a mixture of pineapple, apricot, orange and grape. Taste me and I will practically melt in your mouth. My pulp can be pureed and used as a topping for ice cream, sherbet or tossed in fruit salad. Most take delight in scooping me right out of my chilled skin. In Indonesia, lucky for them, I am actually abundant, and I am often used in recipes for pickles and vinegar. If you are blessed with fashion sense, you may be wearing my eye catching color on your belt, shoes, wallet or gloves because my skin contains tannins, used for dying certain materials. I contain potassium and vitamin C as well as traces of iron and niacin. If my name were broken down you would find the name of another member of the fruit family, but believe me there is no relation. Contrary to popular opinion I never had a Bar-Mitzvah and have no religious affiliations.
Answer To Last Week’s Quiz…CHERRY…Congrats To All Winners
Call 908-789-4700 –Lisa or Richard– Fax 908-789-4702
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Culinary Specialty Produce, Inc., 2015