Featured image: Idaho-E. Oregon crop progress, photo courtesy of Chris Woo
MARKET
Organic Onions
Brad Sumner with Pacific Coast Trading Co. in Portland, OR, gave us a comprehensive report on the company’s organic onion program. Brad said this week they are shipping out of Bakersfield, CA, with “a little bit left in Mexico and Brawley, CA.” He said, “Demand is Steady, with yellows the biggest pull, followed by reds and then whites and sweets.” And Brad said, “The market is right where it is traditionally on yellows and whites. Red market, after months of being above average, is settling back into normal seasonal pricing.” Quality, Brad said, “is nice on the new crop in Central California.” As for transportation, he noted, “We are mostly hauling and delivering locally. You can get trucks right away if you pay a premium, or you can shop a little and get a better rate. Overall rates continue higher than normal.” Brad added, “We are settled into the Central CA organic onion program for the next couple of months.”
Imperial Valley-Five Points, CA/New Mexico
John Vlahandreas with Wada Farms reported in from the Imperial Valley on June 15. “This is our last day in the Imperial Valley,” he said. “We have about six loads we are cleaning up here, and our other shipping areas, Five Points and New Mexico, are in full production this week. It was a great season in the Imperial Valley.” He continued, “We had high yields and the market was good. While I do think the market could have been higher, there are really no complaints. If you were shipping out of the Imperial Valley and you didn’t make any money, you’re stupid.” And John added, “As far as demand, it is good this week. It’s always good when you have product to sell, right? The market is stable too. Prices are sitting at a level where growers and buyers can both be happy.” On transportation, John said it continues to be expensive. “It’s still costly to ship, but honestly, I’m pretty amazed that it hasn’t gotten worse with fuel prices on the rise.”
California/New Mexico
Jason Pearson with Eagle Eye Produce Co. in Nyssa, OR, told us on June 15 that Eagle Eye’s shippers in California and New Mexico are going full steam. “We are shipping mostly yellows and reds out of California and all three colors out of New Mexico,” he said. “Quality out of both areas has been excellent. We haven’t had any issues, knock on wood.” He added, “This week buyers are looking for jumbo yellows and reds, and medium yellows are tight. The market is holding steady, but we need to remind everyone to keep the market up and keep from dumping so we can get the market off to a good start when the Northwest starts shipping.” Jason added that transportation is OK this week. “There is no problem at all finding trucks,” he said. “They are just going to be expensive.”
Idaho/California/Arizona/New Mexico
Rick Greener with Greener Produce in Ketchum, ID, reported in from North Carolina this week. “Honestly, demand is a little slow this week,” he said. “If I remember correctly, this is typical for this week of the year. Usually, sales pick up next week for the July 4 holiday.” Rick went on to say, “We are moving onions out of California, Arizona, and New Mexico, and pearls and Cipollinis out of Idaho. Quality has been summer goodness.” On the market, he said it’s steady. “The market isn’t going up, but it’s definitely not coming down. Sure, there are a few deals out there from people scraping the floor, but it’s random.” Rick noted trucks are plentiful. “There are plenty of trucks out there, but they’re expensive with these ridiculous fuel costs.” He ended his report with, “Don’t forget to come and get your pearls and Cipollinis… We got ‘em!”
South Texas
David DeBerry with Southwest Onion Growers in McAllen told us on June 15 that the S. Texas deal has wrapped up, adding, “I’m very happy to be in this position.” David continued, “The best we can figure, my wife and I together had five days off since Labor Day.” He explained, “You seldom expect realistically to harvest every acre. Several things are working against you. But we started in Delta County, CO, on Aug. 29, and through two growers there, four growers in Mexico and two growers in Texas, we harvested every acre.” Prices, he said, “have never been this high for this sustained a period – nine months. But it was as taxing a deal as anything in my 40-year career. Absolutely brutal but as profitable as every grower experienced in their careers.” And now, he laughed, “We have to hurry up and double our acres.” He continued, “Seriously, these deals just happen. If we could plan for it, it would never happen. And this had a lot of obstacles. We’re glad to have it behind us, and we’re looking forward to chilling a little bit.”
CROP
Walla Walla
Michael Locati with Locati Farms and Pacific Agra Farms said on June 15 he’d start harvesting Walla Walla Sweets the next day. “We got about two inches of rain in the last couple of weeks,” he said, adding, “The crop looks good and is sizing up.” Michael said he expects to start shipping Tuesday, June 21. “That’s a normal start time if you look at yearly averages,” he said. At the onset of spring an earlier start time was anticipated, but then cooler, wetter weather “pushed us back a bit, but we’re not late by any means.” Michael also said he is hoping to start his Walla Walla Rosé Sweet Onions in time for the July 4 “if we get on a warming trend.”
Idaho-E. Oregon and Washington
Jason Pearson with Eagle Eye Produce Co. in Nyssa, OR, told us on June 15 that Eagle Eye’s Eastern Oregon crop is still a few weeks behind. “We need to tell everyone to stop doing the rain dance,” Jason laughed. “Not too long ago, we were praying for rain. Well, we’ve received plenty. Now, we need summer. Bring it on! These onions need some heat, and it looks like warmer weather is coming this week, so that’s good.” On the Washington crop, Jason said Eagle Eye will begin moving overwinters at the end of June or the beginning of July. “We will start Washington with some overwinters, and our regular shipments should start around Aug. 1,” he said. “Everything looks to be coming along nicely there.”
Idaho-E. Oregon
Chris Woo in his “worldly travels” told us on June 15 that warmer and drier weather is in the forecast for that the Treasure Valley, where, he said, “It’s been somewhat of a cooler, sprinkly, windy spring for onion growing.” He added, “We’re pleased we keep getting timely rain showers to supplement our water supply to help finish our crop. Overall the crop is behind presently 10 days to two weeks. Warmer and drier weather is forecast for the next two weeks.” Our thanks to Chris for photos this week showing Oregon transplants as well as spring-seeded onions in the region. Click image to expand and scroll.
