Washington:
Trish Lovell at Agri-Pack in Pasco said this week has been “a little quiet as everyone is trying to harvest.” She added, “There’s a big push to get everything into storage.” Agri-Pack is now shipping yellows and will start whites next week and reds the week of Sept. 12. “The onions look good, with nice size,” Trish said. “We’ve had wonderful weather with no rain and no extreme heat. The highs are in the high 80s and low 90s.”
Idaho-E. Oregon:
Central Produce in Payette, ID, is in its third week of shipments, and Dan Phillips told OnionBusiness.com, “So far, so good for our season start up. Business has been very strong and our quality is very good as well.” Central is currently shipping all sizes and colors, and Dan said availability is a little tight on smaller sizes. The lots are running at about 90 percent jumbos, and he said, “We have a great jumbo pack, which is a nice place to be.”
Haun Packing in Weiser, ID, started shipping Aug. 8, and Herb Haun told us this week has been very busy. Availability of yellows is very good, leaning toward mostly larger sizes from jumbos to supers. Currently Haun Packing is a little tight on mediums, he said. The operation has good availability of whites for mixers, and Herb said they also have a good supply of reds with increasing red volumes next week. “Quality is excellent, and pricing has been steady this week,” he said.
California:
Steve Gill at Gills Onions in Oxnard reported harvest for his processing is approximately one-third complete, and harvesters will finish around the end of October. Currently the company is harvesting reds and yellows, and Steve said the quality has been excellent with large size profiles. He also mentioned that Gills pickled red onions first introduced at the PMA Foodservice show in July has been very well received, and Gills started taking orders for the product this week.
Robert Bell with Western Onions in Camarillo said onions are being harvested, packed and shipped out of King City southeast of Monterey. “We generally ship four to six months from there,” Robert said, noting that two loads a day are the norm now. “If markets were better, we’d be doing more,” he said. Organics now being harvested and put into storage in Cuyama will be shipped as needed during the California deal, he said. Robert also said that exports to Asia and Australia are being looked at with the start of packing out of Lancaster next week.
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