Market Notes
  February 4, 2016

WINTER CITRUS

The beginning of the peak season is here. We know how people are waiting for the Pixie but the Paige Mandarin are super yummy this year. But the real kick off, and a well-kept secret, is the beginning of the TDE season. TDE’s are triple cross tangerines that are easy to peel, seedless, “betcha can’t eat just one” flavor and a great acid/sugar balance. For us, it’s the best of the season. The Tahoe variety of TDE has just shown up on the farmers markets. They will be available for the next month. Late March/early April bring the sublime Shasta and a third variety called Yosemite that we have not had the pleasure to devour. We can bring the Tahoe TDE into the LA Market per request. If You are at all adventurous, we highly recommend giving these a try. Unfortunately there is a 25 case minimum. Please check in for details. In other prime citrus news, blood oranges are peaking in color, both inside and out, Honey Tangerines, (Cuties, Halo’s) are at peak of sweetness for the next month. Sweet limes are at peak of perfection. There are a few Buddha Hands available and wonderful pomello’s as well. We can consolidate from the best of several outstanding citrus growers to meet your exact needs all consolidated at an LA dock of your choice.

THE GREEN SCENE

Yuma weather has finally decided to cooperate. In fact this is a weekend of transition. Next week temperatures are expected to be in the mid-eighties. The slowly warming weather creates some new complications. The good news is that all greens are abundant. Combined with the dog days of January and February growers are looking for homes and new avenues of distribution. This will last about a month and countered with a planned permanent price increase due to increased minimum wage and health care costs, so we are told. The temporary bad news is that throughout this weather transition there will be a good amount of mildew that will affect our organic crop. But that is short lived and will just tighten things up for a bit. We still have the best baby lettuce deal on the planet. Check it out.

SO WHAT’S IN A NAME

A rose by any other name would smell the same”, penned the bard. If that is true for roses might the same be true for potatoes? We are betting the farm they do. The great tasting, super cool Midnight Moon Potatoes are changing their name to Harvest Moon. Turns out that what’s in a name is a trademark and unbeknownst to the potato gods Midnight Moon is a trademarked name for a Plum. So our proper noun was not so proper, hence the change. Still the same smooth skin, still that brilliant golden flesh. It melts in your mouth, not in your hand. Don’t miss out on the greatest potato for mashing known to us. Go harvest some for yourself.

QUIZ – – WHO AM I???

The 18th century French dramatist and critic, Mercier said of my ancestors and me that we were an “inestimable gift to the numerous class of the needy” and that we were “to have the greatest influence on Man, his liberty and his happiness.” Even though many other European countries were cultivating us, many people of Mercier’s time thought we caused leprosy. But later that century, as a result of the French Revolution, it became a sign of patriotism to uproot your roses and replace them with us. By this time, and despite the initial rejection of my species, there were over 40 varieties of me. Now there are hundreds of variations of me. My ancestors originated in the Peruvian Andes and in the 16th century the Spaniards brought us to Europe. Although it is a mystery how we came to North America, the earliest recorded date of my cultivation was in New Hampshire in 1719. Suffice it to say that I’m as American as apple pie because Americans consume approximately 138 pounds of my relatives and me a year. I, in contrast to my relatives, am always getting left behind. Dug up along with my elders, yes, but then I pop out, get run over, or fall through the harvester. I just don’t make the grade. But I get the last laugh, I’m much more premium than my counterparts. I am harvested by human hands and get wonderfully delicate treatment. I can’t do anything to help your coffee, though my name might imply it. You could probably tee off with me, as my size is appropriate, but most likely I would explode before landing. Rarely skinned like my older relatives, I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy as I grow in red, white, or blue. I’m excellent roasted, grilled or cooked in the microwave. I can be halved, and scooped then filled with caviar, sour cream, cheese, bacon etc. I can be sliced thin and served under a cheese sauce. I am high in potassium and vitamin C, and contain eleven other vitamins and minerals. With me, as with your answer, size does matter!

Answer To Last Week’s Quiz…GRAPES…Congrats To All Winners
Call 908-789-4700 –Lisa, Mark or Richard– Fax 908-789-4702
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Culinary Specialty Produce, Inc., 2015