Featured image: photos of Tasmanian red onion seed transplants grown by Minkus Family Farms, courtesy of Robert Bell with Western Onion in Camarillo, CA
MARKET
Central California/New Mexico/Washington:
Jason Pearson with Eagle Eye Produce Co. in Nyssa, OR, told us on July 13 that demand is very good this week. “Currently, we are selling out of Central California and New Mexico, and we are also selling overwinters out of Washington,” Jason said. “The overwinters out of Washington have been shipping for about three weeks now. We’ve been shipping yellows and we’ll start up on reds tomorrow, the 14th. Demand is very good this week. In fact, demand exceeds supplies. We have our program business, and there just isn’t a lot left over for open onions.” He added, “Yellows are the main hot ticket item, but there is plenty of demand for reds, followed by whites. The market is very good too, and it’s trending upward. Quality has been good, so things have been running smoothly for us. Though transportation is expensive and is never going to get any cheaper, you can get trucks, so overall we’re in good shape this week.”
Five Points/Washington:
John Vlahandreas with Wada Farms reported in from his Salem, OR, office on July 13. “We are currently selling out of Five Points, CA, and have been shipping overwinters out of Washington since last week,” he said. “We should see some transplants out of Washington sometime between the 24th and the 27th, and direct seeded will most likely begin around the first week of August.” John went on to say, “We really don’t have anything shipping out of New Mexico right now due to the gaps they’ve had with rains.” And he added, “Demand is very good this week. Yellows are in high demand. Reds aren’t hot, but pricing is still good, and they’re holding their own. Transportation is running smoothly, and it’s gotten a lot better. We are getting what we need when we need it. I think with fewer loads being shipped, it’s not a big surprise there.”
Bakersfield/New Mexico:
Trent Faulkner with L&M Cos. in Raleigh, NC, told us on July 13 that his company is shipping out of Bakersfield, CA, and Billy the Kid’s operation in Deming, NM, this week. “We will be wrapping up our Bakersfield deal mid-week next week, and then we will be shipping exclusively out of Deming for a while,” Trent said. “Demand for yellows is through the roof this week.” He added, “Buyers are looking left and right trying anything they can to get a hold of yellows. There isn’t one specific reason for it, but let’s face it – there are really only two major areas to pull onions out of right now, and that’s central California and New Mexico. And though it hasn’t been substantial, there has been some gapping, so buyers are trying to get their hands on whatever they can.” Trent continued, “Demand for reds has come off, so we are trying to push those a little, and it helps when we can move reds with the yellows we have. Consequently, the market for yellows is hot, and it’s come off a bit on reds. When it comes to whites, there are basically two markets right now – there are good whites out there and not-so-good whites out there. There is no heavy demand for whites, so we are fortunate that the whites we are using for mixers in New Mexico are in really nice shape.” When asked about quality, Trent said it has been good. “Overall, I’d say 95 percent of the onions shipped have had nice quality. With summer onions, we all know that it’s not going to always be 100 percent perfect, but we’ve really been happy with the quality this season.” On transportation, Trent said it’s been going smoothly. “You know, we’ve not had a lot of complaints,” he said. “We seem to be getting a lot of really good drivers coming into the workforce now. Maybe they are getting paid more. I’m not sure, but they are good people, and things are going much smoother than they did last year or the year before.”
Vidalia:
Danny Ray with Ray Farms Inc. reported in on July 13, telling us that demand has been very good this week. “We had great demand for the 4th holiday,” he said. “And normally it slows down right after, but the demand has remained steady, and it’s been that way all season long. In fact, the demand has been so good that it looks like we’re going to finish up next week. Most seasons, we go into August. I can’t speak for our Vidalia grower neighbors, but this season has been one of those that only comes along every so often and we just hit a really good one. The onion quality was good, pricing was good, and it all came together for us this year.”
CROP
Warden, WA/Rock Ford, CO/ Ulysses, KS:
Trent Faulkner with L&M Cos. in Raleigh, NC, told us on July 13 that the crop in Warden is progressing nicely. “We’ve had our people report that the Warden crop is looking great,” he said. “We expect to get going there mid-August with yellows, followed by reds and whites behind those. We also have our crops in Rocky Ford and Kansas moving right along, so we don’t expect a gap when we transition from our Billy the Kid’s program in New Mexico to our other growing regions. We should be in good shape.”
Idaho-E. Oregon:
Jason Pearson with Eagle Eye Produce Co. in Nyssa, OR, told us on July 13 that warmer weather has helped the Eastern Oregon crop progress. “We had some heat lately, and that has really helped the crop here,” he said. “Now, Mother Nature just has to continue to cooperate, and we should be just fine. Yields may be slightly off this season, but we really don’t think it will be as bad as some people had projected.”
SE Colorado:
Zach Mason with Zach Mason Farms in Fowler told us on July 13, “The onion crop down here is looking really, really good at this point. We’ve still got about 40 days of dodging hail left to go.” He added, “The heat has been terrible, but the irrigation is staying ahead of crop demand. It’s looking like this crop is going to be about 10 days later than normal.”
New York:
Robert Bell with Western Onion in Camarillo, CA, sent us some great photos and info on a new hybrid. He said, “This is our Tasmanian seed TAZ27 hybrid that we’ve been developing for the U.S market. These are transplants started by Sunbelt Transplants in Buckeye, AZ, for Rick Minkus of Minkus Family Farms in New Hampton, NY.” He said the onions should be ready to harvest by the end of the month, adding, “We’re also growing this and two other varieties as transplants at the Malheur Agricultural Experiment Station, Oregon State University, in Ontario, OR.” Our thanks to Robert!
