Market Notes
January 18th , 2024
ORGANIC RED ONIONS
It’s that time of year again. Culinary does not really make a market in onions much less organic ones. That said, it is this time of year, just after the holidays, when this product seems to get short. For the third year in a row many of our customers inquire as to the availability of organic red onions requesting supply from now through May. In the past years we have been able to find these products, whether they be in totes, sacks, or net bags for retail we could usually cover. Not this year. As expected the usual suspects came running and we were eager to help, but to no avail. Not this winter. There are three reasons for this that we could conjure up. One, bad weather in Mexico created higher USA demand. Two, strong retail sales pulled more than growers expected. Third, crops were average to below average for yield. It all ads up to” we ain’t got none. Soonest we might be able to supply is mid-April if Mother Nature is really, really, really nice. If you have a contract deal, protect it! If you don’t, we’ll see you in the Spring.
TDE
From our point of view, it hasn’t been the sweetest citrus season. The timing was right on, but as we got past the sour varieties and into the sweet treats, the sugar just was not as high as in years past. Tart and tangy seemed to prevail this season which isn’t all bad, depending on your taste preferences. That brings us to the finest fruit of the season. The TDE Triple Cross mandarin is a hybrid variety that combines the best of its components into an incredibly sweet, juicy and flavorful mandarin. This cross between the Temple, Dancy, and Encore mandarins is seedless, easy to peel and packed with flavor. A true specialty mandarin. That would be the traditional description, but this year the sugar is a bite lite as is the puff (ease of peel). This is still a wonderfully flavored complex citrus and is one of our favorites. The juice content is high and the fruit is heavy. Even with the sugar down a notch this is a fabulous fruit that will only be available for about a month. We can load these for you direct or at any of the West coast produce markets. mandarin
NEW PRODUCE QUIZ – WHO AM I ???
My family is believed to have originated in India and then spread to Asia sometime between 3,000 to 10,000 years ago, depending on whom you ask. Currently I am grown just about anywhere there is warm weather. I am a member of the cucurbitaceae family, and it is believed that I am closely related to watermelons. The Sanskrit name for my family is soukasa. I have many siblings who are similar to me, but I am one of the old American heirloom varieties. My family members are the ones Leméry of England refers to when he says they “are hard on Digestion, because they continue long in the Stomach” and he only recommends that children who are of “an hot and bilious Constitution” eat them. I am more desirable than my long slender green siblings are because I am younger, sweeter, crisper, and more easily digested. My dimensions are 3 x 2 inches, I have a high sugar content, am shaped like a lemon, and I turn that color when overripe. I will become very chewy if left on the vine too long. But as a youngster I am sweet and crisp with pale brown flecks, and I have white juicy flesh. Considered to be and mostly used as a vegetable I am actually a fruit. Usually eaten raw, sometimes pickled, and rarely cooked, I make an excellent summer salad vegetable and a beautiful garnish. Although I am 96% water, I am a source of vitamin C, thiamin, and riboflavin.
The answer to last weeks quiz is…TURNIP….Congrats to all winners
Call 908-789-4700 –Lisa, Matty, or Richard– Fax 908-789-4702
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