MARKET
Wisconsin:
Doug Bulgrin with Gumz Farms in Endeavor provided his report on January 4. “Demand has been outstanding,” he said. “It’s never slowed down since the holidays; we just keep the loads going. All sizes in reds and yellows are moving well. Of course, medium and jumbo yellows are the hot ticket right now, and pricing is also good and actually on the rise for us. We think there could be the potential for some increases in the weeks ahead.” On transportation, Doug said, “During the holidays, getting trucks was a little tougher, and we hope that will change here with the new year.”
Idaho-E. Oregon
Dwayne Fisher with Champion Produce in Parma, ID, reported in on January 4. “Happy New Year. It is nice to start the year on a really solid footing with nothing but optimism for the last 1/3 of the season.” Dwayne said. “The holidays were extremely busy for us with limited production weeks, causing us to have to run overtime to get our customers covered. That has continued to this week’s four-day production. We saw a couple of dollars increase on the big stuff yesterday. The typical status quo of 1.00 up on colossal and supers is going away. Large sizes are in big demand, and as we go further into our long-term varieties, those sizes get tight; couple that with larger onions shrink at a heavier pace towards the end of the season, and I would suspect you will continue to see more distance in price between the Jumbo and the larger size onions as we finish up the year.” He continued, “Our Utah production will coast for the remainder of the season, running just three days a week, and should be wrapping up at the end of the month. It appears we could finish a month earlier than our normal completion date for our Idaho production. I am starting to get buyers throwing out the “M” word. My Mexico contacts are dealing with an extremely strong and short domestic market that will have to be supplied from growing domestic areas that typically would come across the border. Couple that with weak stands early and lower acreage overall and the “M” word shouldn’t make anyone make poor marketing decisions. I am the first to say they typically negatively impact our market, like last year, but my sources tell me it’s a different animal this year. The sweet onion category is going to need a gap fill as well, so the 40# carton market is going to need to consume production. For me, the market to expect the greatest increases as we march to the end will be the reds. It should be much higher than it is now, so we will see. There is some upside still to experience in the yellow deal as well. Keep in mind a 50# bag of onions, even at escalated markets, is still a bargain in the vegetable category per pound.” Dwayne concluded his report by saying, “ Lastly, many growers in our area only have enough onions left to fill contracts, so keep in mind not everyone on the growing side is benefiting from the positive market, especially when you add in that we sold 1/3 of our onions under production costs. If you are fortunate to have open onions left for the remainder of the season it should be positive.”
Steve Baker with Baker & Murakami Produce in Ontario, OR, told us on January 4, “All sizes of yellows and reds seem to be moving well at this time, Steve said. Noting, “We are finished with whites for the season.” Steve added, “Demand has been fairly good this week. We now have customers playing catch up after keeping inventories low for year-end.” On market and transportation, Steve noted, “The market has been very stable across the board these past few weeks, and truck availability is better this week than the past several weeks.”
Idaho-E. Oregon/Washington:
Jason Pearson with Eagle Eye Produce in Nyssa, OR, told us on January 4, “The holidays were good for us, and we have plenty of business this week, “ Jason said. “Buyers are trying to refill from the holidays. Reds and yellows are moving really well, and of course, whites are extremely tight.” On the market, Jason said, “We are looking at a very good market going into the new year. Mexico is still buying, so we don’t know when the Mexican onions will be coming across, but it looks like there is room for an increase in the market looking ahead. Our quality continues to be very nice, and we are in a good spot for the new year.” On transportation, Jason said, “We can definitely get the trucks, but they are expensive.”
John Vlahandreas with Wada Farms in Salem, OR, told us on January 4, “There has been a big rush this week to replenish stocks,” John said. “So, this week and next, we will see buyers fill up the pipeline to get the supplies they need for a while. We are buying out of Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. You know, quality has been really pretty good, and you would expect it to be at this time of year; we haven’t had any issues at all. Demand has been pretty even across the board for sizes and colors. Everyone knows the whites are tough to find.” On the market, John said, “It seems like the market has stabilized, and the prices are good. Mexico is still buying US onions, but I guess that makes sense. They can buy them here and make more money selling them in Mexico. Also, I received photos of Mexican onions with quotes, but I have no idea what volume we are looking at. The onions weren’t the prettiest onions I’ve seen, but that’s to be expected with new crop onions at this time of year. They aren’t storage onions.” On transportation, John said, “Transportation availability seems to be getting better after the holidays, but we do have to consider the cold weather. Severe weather could delay deliveries. Be prepared.”
Washington
Matt Murphy with L&M Cos. in Raleigh, NC, provided his report on January 4. “The holidays were crazy for us,” Matt said. “This week, we’ve stayed busy. We’re keeping up with the orders due to short weeks. Now, we’re sold out for the week. The demand for every size and color has been good across the board. Everyone wants whites there aren’t any out there. Yellows are always on the top of the list, followed by reds.” On the market, Matt said, “The market is super solid after Christmas, and we expect pricing to be stable going forward.” Matt concluded his report with, “We are excited about the New Year. The quality coming out of Jensen’s in Warden is awesome, and we are doing fine on freight now going into the new year.”
Michigan/Idaho/Washington/Oregon/Utah:
Rick Greener with Greener Produce provided his report on January 4. “We are shipping out of Utah, Washington, Idaho, and Oregon,” Rick said. “Buyers are reupping after the holidays. All sizes and colors seem to be moving well, but we’ve had two short weeks, so shippers are selling out fast or don’t have everything needed. Plus, Mexico is still pulling US onions in some fashion. Of course, whites are scarce and spendy.” Rick commented on the market. “The market is strong and poised for a potential increase.” Rick commented on freight: “It’s been a little tougher. You can get the trucks, but the rates are higher.” Rick concluded his report with, “The important thing to remember this week is, if you aren’t already in line to get the onions, you better wait a week.”
CROP
Calipatria, CA
Matt Murphy with L&M Cos. in Raleigh, NC, provided his report on January 4. “We are all planted in Calapatria, and everything looks great so far,” Matt said. “We are about three and a half months out, but we anticipate a normal season with a normal startup date.”
