SALINAS, CA - As Church Brothers Farms transitions from Salinas Valley, California, to the Yuma and Imperial Valleys in Arizona, I turned to Ernst van Eeghen, Vice President of Business Development, to learn more.
“We’ve transitioned pretty much all of our items, from leafy greens to brassicas. Only celery is grown in Oxnard; the rest is in the desert,” Ernst noted before addressing the effect of past weather conditions. “The warm summer definitely affected the end-of-season quality in Salinas. Additionally, recent warm weather in the desert has pulled the crop forward, and we’re seeing light weights and some heat-related quality issues on some crops more than others.”
To handle weather issues during the winter, the grower prefers to start its desert season on the eastern side of the Yuma Valley due to its cooler temperatures before moving west to the Imperial Valley as the season progresses.
“Despite quality starting rough at the beginning of the desert season, we’re now looking really good on all our commodities, with supplies also looking good,” Ernst added. “The heat wave in the fall resulted in lower yields and Salinas finishing up a bit earlier than normal. This led to a supply gap, with markets responding accordingly. As weights and quality improve, the markets have started to normalize and are headed toward normal levels.”
For buyers planning out their winter programs, Ernst assured them that Church Brothers is in their corner.
“During the transition, maintaining the cold chain is more important than ever to secure shelf-life quality,” he stated. “Over-communication with our sales team is also key, as we are in multiple coolers and multiple locations. Just give us a heads up so we can make sure to have what you need, where you need it.”
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