Market Notes
March 30th, 2023

 

POTATO TRANSITION UPDATE

    Things change quickly when product winds down. If this were Let’s Make A Deal, we would now be begging to open door number 17. When open sometimes you get a cooler of sprouted, ugly potatoes.  Good for seed, one would suppose, but these were not even going to make it to the belt, most will go right to the Buffalo. That created a quick end to our yellows in Colorado that were supposed to take us through April. Here is what we know and where to go. Still some good fingerlings in Colorado but we are looking north now, out of the valley.  Some good organic red A’s here too.  Fingerlings forward distribution on both coasts remains steady.  New crop yellow out of Brawley next week, loading in LA.  New crop red from the same area one week later.  Bakersfield should begin new crop by mid-April with yellows around the 19th and reds around the 24th.  New crop fingerlings from central California  mid-May.  Steady supply out of Oregon will remain strong through May unless we open door # 18 with the same surprise.  To sum up, there will be some gapping in organic rounds and first up pricing will be very high.  Conventional round will gap as well.  Fingerlings will remain steady while mixed marble remain elusive with limited supply.  Consider using pee-wee instead. They are almost the same size and taste significantly better.  

HOLY WEEK, TRANSITIONS AND RAMPS – OH MY!

   Yes, that was a great headline, but this is really about ramps. With the transition info both above and below you, we at Culinary Specialty Produce would like to wish you and yours a wonderful Holy weekend.  Be it a Passover Seder, an Easter Brunch, or a hunt for matzoh or eggs, we wish you a peaceful and joyous time of celebration and consideration to you and yours.  Now back to ramps. Yes, there will be harvest next week. That means we will harvest more than one ramp. No, seriously, we hope to have the first sizable ramp harvest begin this weekend and have the ability to ship reasonable volumes (20#’s plus) early next week.  If it hales or freezes, game over for early picking. The best news is that we are at the gate, waiting eagerly with tools and bins, field cleaning stations, packing boxes and shipping labels the moment they are ready. Small and expensive to start, that’s nothing new, but there will be ramps next week.  

BABY GREENS TRANSITION UPDATE

    As the seasonal celebrations continue, baby greens growers are loading up to the truck to move to the valley. Salinas Valley, that is, perfect temps, new loading docks. Who cares if the majority of the valley is underwater and 30% is lacking electricity. There’s Oxnard, Brawley, Huron and even some remains from Yuma herself. This is going to be a rough transition, but its no surprise.  It will be at a month (Mother Nature willing) before the valley catches up.  Some areas are being seeded as we speak and there are other, higher, areas in the valet that are ready for harvest.  But there are still several acres that need to be cultivated that need to dry before equipment can prepare the fields.  Strawberries and row crops will see a larger window of gap as those growing areas were hit the hardest. Things will get weird late next week.  Advance ordering required by Tuesday for loading the following Monday up north.

NEW PRODUCE QUIZ – WHO AM I ???

   I am a sweet, nutlike tuber of the genus Trapa. I am three or four sided and most popular in the cuisines of Japan, China and Thailand.  My roots are anchored to the bottom of lakes or ponds, hence my name.  While my leaves float on the surface, I am formed at the bottom or sometimes in the middle.  Although indigenous to Southeast Asia, I also grow prolifically in southern Europe and in the eastern United States, particularly in the Potomac River, where my thick growth often hinders navigation. Rich in starch and mineral salts, I am most frequently used in stir-fry. I am also available canned ( whole or sliced) or as a powder for flour.  Because my seeds are often used for making rosaries, I am sometimes referred to as a “Jesuits’ nut”)    

The answer to last weeks quiz was….SWISS CHARD… Congrats to all winners.

Call 908-789-4700 –Lisa or Richard– Fax 908-789-4702 Visit us at www.culinaryproduce.com “like” us @ Culinary Specialty Produce on Facebook© Culinary Specialty Produce, Inc., 2020