MARKET REPORT - JULY 1ST 2016

From the top (on what is mostly a fruit report).First picks of BC Dessert Apples start this weekend.  The first few varieties don’t have much volume behind them – those would include Vista Bella, Sumac, Discovery, Tydemann, Transparent and a few more.  These are called dessert apples because they make great pies – lots of flesh with lower juice content.  They also have a very short shelf life – usually just a couple of weeks.  But always nice to have local apples, especially this early in the year.  Early season eating apples (Earligold and Sunrise are still a long way off.)  We should see some California Gala in the next 10 days as well. Avocados.  Mexican Ag Authority has approved sale of new crop avocado starting today – an amazing 3 weeks earlier than last year, as oil levels have risen quickly to meet shipping regulations.  We have just run out of Fair Trade fruit basically as of today, supplementing with some nice California Hass, and the first shipment from Pragor for this new season has wheels under it with an expected arrival mid-week – we won’t know the exact ETA, it all depends on border line-ups on the Mexican side, with the frontier into the US closed to trucks Sunday and Monday.  And yes, expect higher prices with very little older fruit left, and always a skimpy selection of new fruit this early in the season.Apricots.  Volumes are building – expect good supply for a month. Learn more about Apricots and apricot-like things hereBlueberries.  We have another bout of cool damp weather dropping in for a visit.  Not much rain is forecast, but it does slow down harvests and growth, but we don’t see many worries on supply on this super-hot commodity.  Every imaginable packout is available.Cherries.  We’ve moved quickly into late varieties across the S. Okanagan and Similkameen with lots of volume.  The N. Okanagan season will start later this year because rain damage has knocked out quite a bit of the first early varieties.Grapes continue steady as we wind down our Mexican supply and aim into a reasonable looking California crop.Lemons continue to be scarce, with limited supply from Riverside and other areas finished for the season.  We continue to hunt for alternative supply and put up with very high pricing, which has gone up again this week.Peaches.  We’re moving quickly into the early BC crop, which is expected to be a normal year.  With cooler temperatures forecast for the next week, just sneaking into the 30’s, cling free models are maturing normally – expect those in 3 weeks, and cling’s until then.Pineapple.  Delighted to have Capa Coop brand in over the weekend.  We did this deal in the past – one of those “friends whose brother lives there” situations that always worked out well on this.  Enjoy – they have always been spectacular!And of course strawberries – nothing to report – peak of the season, perfect growing weather, awesome product – the stars are in alignment.Garlic – There are now dozens of BC Certified Organic Garlic producers gearing up for harvest next week.  Most growers let their garlic hang for a month before cleaning it up and heading to market.  The outer skin dries out and makes it easy to remove – along with any dirt.  But, we have convinced a few growers to bring us freshly harvested bulbs so we can be selling local garlic for an extra month.  It takes a lot more work to clean garlic when it is freshly pulled – it has to be washed, and the outer skin has to be hand-peeled off – a lot of extra work – so we pay a premium for fresh pulled but it just looks so damn nice – bright white with purple hints.  Look for it from two small producers this week!