Featured image: Idaho onion crop progress, courtesy of Dwayne Fisher with Tamura Farms in Wilder, ID.
MARKET
Walla Walla:
Michael Locati with Locati Farms and Pacific Agra Farms said on July 10 movement of his crop has slowed somewhat as the season progresses. “We are almost through the fall seeded and starting on transplants soon,” he said. “It’s a bumper crop, and movement is slow.” Michael said his beautiful red, the Walla Walla Rosé, “is a bumper crop as well.” Quality of the onions this season is “good to excellent,” he said. Looking at the rest of the week and the weather, he said, “I’m hoping to get the rest of the fall seeded this week before they burn. Go buy an onion!”
California:
Dwayne Fisher with Tamura Farms in Wilder, ID, and Champion Produce in Parma, ID, reported on July 10 saying, “We have a weak yellow market, but steamy temperatures,” Dwayne said. “Immigrant onions have certainly cost American Growers a lot of money this summer on the yellow side of the financial statement. We keep hearing those are going to slow down, and some strength should come, so that would be great news for the entire industry. California sales for us have been slow with the weak prices in the yellow category. Reds and whites have done well without the border pressure.” More from Dwayne on Idaho and Utah can be found in this week’s Treasure Valley feature story.
Bakersfield, CA:
Matt Murphy with L&M Cos. in Raleigh, NC, provided his report on July 10. “Demand has been up and down this week,” Matt said. “We’ll be shipping out of Bakersfield for the next two weeks and looking to wrap it up around the 24th. The heat is getting up there, but we’ve been making good arrivals. We still have good availability on all colors, but we don’t have many Supers.” Matt continued, “The market overall has been a little sluggish. It’s OK, but not great. We’re doing good on whites, and we’ve been selling a lot of mixers and that’s been good business for us.”
Five Points, CA:
John Vlahandreas with Wada Farms in Salem, OR, told us on July 10, saying, “Demand has been up and down this week,” John said, “As a company, we are sourcing out of California and New Mexico, but most of my onions are out of Five Points. There has been a lot of heat recently, and with heat, there comes issues, and you can’t avoid it. Today in Salem, it was 106. It’s just hot. When it’s hot, no one is perfect. Knock on wood, I haven’t had problems.” On the market, John said, “The market looks like it might be starting to trend up right now. Reds were down, but now they’re popping back up. There are still a few overwinters being sold in the Northwest, and here in about two weeks, the Northwest will start to come on with direct-seeded with a trickle, and we’ll see how that goes market-wise.” John added some insight from his trip to the summer National Onion Association meeting in Alaska. “It had been a few years since I had attended a meeting, and it was good to see some old friends and meet some new people,” John said. “It seemed like there was a pretty good turnout for the event and a good agenda. I enjoyed the tour this year. At the Saturday meeting, the storage numbers were shared, and it looks like we are about 2,400 acres over the numbers from last year. When I see those numbers come out in the summer, I have to ask myself what the benefit is to the summer onion growers because those numbers, for the most part, don’t include them. I will say, overall, it was a nice event, and I am happy I attended.”
New Mexico/Mexico:
James Johnson with Carzalia Valley Produce in Columbus, NM, said on July 10 his season is moving along well in New Mexico and winding down in Chihuahua. “We are wrapping up the short day in New Mexico and will be packing intermediate day onions by early next week, putting us right at the halfway mark,” James said. He added, “We have good supplies of yellow and whites. Reds still are a little short, but we have them.” And about Mexico, he said, “Our Chihuahua growers will most likely finish up in 10 days to two weeks with their volume and will slow considerably.”
New Mexico/California:
Joe Ange with Eagle Eye Produce in Nyssa, OR, gave Eagle Eye’s updates on July 10. “We’re seeing strong demand for all sizes,” Joe said, “ We’ve made the shift into direct seeded onions and medium sizing is becoming more available. Temperatures and weather conditions in New Mexico are in the 90s, which is much milder than the triple-digit temps we’re seeing in Central California and the Pacific Northwest. We are seeing good demand across the country and even with exports into Mexico on Yellow, Red, and white onions.” Joe continued, “Markets are strengthening on all colors and sizes, and we’re looking forward to a nice hand-off in 6-8 weeks from the southern growing regions to the northwest.” More from Joe on Eastern Oregon can be found in this week’s Treasure Valley feature story.
CROP
Colorado Western Slope/Corinne, UT:
Chuck Hill with The Onion House in Weslaco, TX, told us on July 10 his Western growers are on track for the season, with Colorado expected to come in later in September and Utah in October. “Everything is on schedule and steady as she goes,” Chuck said.
Washington:
Joe Ange with Eagle Produce Company provided a report on the company’s Washington program on July 10, saying, “Yesterday, we were up in Washington visiting our packing shed and looking at onions in Mattawa. The crop is progressing nicely, and we’re on track to begin harvest around the 3rd week of August.” He added, “Quality looks to be very good, and the bulbs are sizing up nicely; there are even a few 3″ onions already, so we’re looking forward to a great WA crop.”
Washington/Rocky Ford, CO/Ulysses, KS
Matt Murphy with L&M Cos. in Raleigh, NC, provided his company’s crop report on July 10. “Washington looks like we’ll be starting up a little early this season, and we should get going on July 29 with yellows,” Matt said. “We’ve had very good growing weather, and quality is looking great. We have had some heat, but it’s also been a little windy, and at this stage in the game, the wind can help. Plus, the stands look nice, adding extra protection for the onions. We don’t have any concerns going into harvest, and we anticipate a nice crop.” Matt also reported on L&M’s Rocky Ford, CO, and Kansas programs. “We are very pleased with the crop progress in Colorado and Kansas,” Matt said. “The onions look awesome! We should start with Colorado on September 3rd, and Kansas will follow around the 13th.”
