Market Notes
April 16, 2020



                          IT’S A BOX THING

     It has been inspiring to watch the shift in this country. Neighbors supporting neighbors, weddings, graduations, sporting events shut down in order to collectively save lives. Medically sharing our collective inventory has finally gotten its act together and the results are immediate. Food-service rapidly developing carry-out and delivery options, school lunches provided for children in need, pop up kitchens for the needy.  Well, the wholesale produce industry stepped up as well. From support for retailers, unable to get product from their warehouses, to home delivery the wholesaler has instantly adapted to the changed needs of the country. The final result being the mystery produce box.  With prices from $30.00 for families to as much as $250.00  for cases to share with neighbors, cars are lining up at their local wholesaler and based on a pre-paid order, they pop the trunk open, in goes the box, and off the customer goes. This is a wonderful, fresh and affordable option for the strictest of home quarantiners.  Several wholesalers offer an a la carte menu as well some offerings dairy and others offering meat. So, we want you to know that Culinary is now offering many potato varieties in 5#, 3# and 1.5# bags. We offer small packs of herbs, specialty tomatoes, wild mushrooms, as well as some amazing ready to cook products that will make your customers come back for more. As everybody is reporting, along with what we believed in the beginning, the social action that America has enjoyed won’t really return until there is a vaccine. So, as we continue to save ourselves, please support us and our things for the box program which we hope to roll out next week. In the meantime, should you have any specific needs for your box, please reach out. Ramps, Morel mushrooms, Fiddlehead Ferns, Chanterelle mushrooms are all items that can be packed in 1# to 3# individual units to spice up your box. We have to think outside the box to get inside the box.

 

NEW PRODUCE QUIZ – WHO AM I ???

       Simply put, I am the most disgusting smelling fruit in the world!  Originating in Malaysia or Borneo I made it to Southeast Asia in the prehistoric age.  As one of the longest established inhabitants of the Southeast Asia rain forests, I have been stinking for millions of years.  In Hong Kong and Singapore my odor is so bad I am banned from being eaten in public, and banned from carriage on public transport.  If I’m in town, you’ll know!  We become suicidal when ripe, up to 11 pounds of smelly spiked fruit plummeting to earth from our tree that can be anywhere from 65 to 130 feet tall, so step aside when we are overhead.  My spiked hard shell attracts tigers when split, and yes we have been known to kill.  Once opened I reveal 5 to 6 sections of fruit separated by an inedible white membrane.  If you can get past my perfume, I offer rich butter-like custard, flavored with almonds.  In each section of our pulp you will discover 4 to 6 shiny edible seeds that can be roasted or baked and eaten like nuts.  In some cultures I am buried and allowed to ferment before consumption.  I am often mixed with rice and sugar as “lempog”, or made into sugar or salted preserves.  You can sometimes find me in ice-cream  or milkshakes.  We are starchy fruits that contain a limited amount of fat and provide good sources of potassium and vitamin C.  Despite our unspeakable sewage-like smell we are considered an aphrodisiac.

THE ANSWER TO LAST WEEK’S QUIZ WAS … SAPODILLA (NESPARO)…CONGRATS TO ALL WINNERS  

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© Culinary Specialty Produce, Inc., 2020