NYSSA, OR - With year-round production and a fully-integrated stem of operations, Owyhee Produce is stepping up its consumer strategies in the onion segment with a few surprises along the way. I recently took some time to speak with Shay Myers, General Manager, about the company’s offerings and recent PMA Foodservice win.
“Right now we’re transitioning our onion harvest from the San Joaquin Valley in California to the Treasure Valley region in Idaho and Oregon,” Shay says of the company’s year-round offerings. “We started harvesting in this region on July 18, and packing on the 25th [of July].”
Out of the eastern Oregon region, Owyhee is currently shipping Spanish Medallion and Ranchero varieties. Shay says that retailers can also take advantage of its domestic sweet onions from the Northwest, which are available now through mid-to-early winter with excellent quality. Owyhee Produce, is a third-generation company with its parent company Froerer Farms. Froerer Farms was first founded in 1954 by Shay’s grandfather.
“We’re a ‘dirt to dock’ operation, which means we do everything from planting, to packaging, to sales and marketing, and logistics,” Shay explains as to what makes this multi-generational operation unique. “This gives us the unique opportunity to really control every aspect of the operation, pay particular attention to the varieties we offer and our harvest dates, and keeps us customer driven.”
These unique outlooks are also represented in a weekly market update which Shay sends out to the company’s buyer partners. The update contains relevant information on the market, such as whether to buy ahead or bide their time, supply chain tips, and also gives information on market trends or changes.
“We also offer the market outlook, which is a 30,000-foot-view of what’s happening the marketplace,” Shay expands. “It gives what we think the outlook on pricing will be over the next two to four weeks, and sometimes even further, to offer our buyers an advantage.”
So what’s next for the company? For those of us who attended PMA Foodservice, we already know the answer; mint oil.
The company recently launched the product at the event in Monterey, which helped them come away the 2016 Best in Show winner at the event. The oil boasts a clean taste with potent packing.
“Our oil is specifically used for flavors, like in your favorite mojito or flavored drink. We’re currently selling it in 0.5 and 1 oz. bottles. In the 1 oz. bottle, you can get 4,000-5,000 servings out of it,” Shay says of the company’s newest endeavor. “We’re currently focusing on expanding the opportunities here as well.”
Shay says that the company currently offers three varieties of the oil, with a fourth on the way. The oil is 100 percent pure, with no carriers or alcohol dilutions.
With the Owyhee team continuing to focus on consumer and retail trends, and offering innovative solutions and products to match, AndNowUKnow will have its eyes on where this event winner is headed next.
MERCED COUNTY, CA - The United States’ largest off-stream reservoir has reached its lowest volume in 27 years, sources are reporting. San Luis Reservoir in California’s Silicon Valley is currently only 10 percent full, due to several contributing factors.
Typically, the San Luis Reservoir is fed from the Sacramento River and the Delta, according to Mercury News. Both of which get water from California’s largest reservoir, Shasta Lake. At 75 percent full, many are surprised at why officials have decided to reduced the rate at which they pump out Shasta’s water.
One new regulation designed to protect the Delta Smelt, a non-native species to California (a fact which many do not know), now requires the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to reduce pumping from Shasta from roughly 13,000 cubic feet per second to 10,500. The idea with the regulation is to preserve the cold water that helps keep young and hatching fish alive. The goal for the state is to keep water for the fish at 52 degrees.
While this was a win for many environmentalists, officials like Jason Peltier, Executive Director of the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority, believe the state is being overly cautious in its efforts, according to Mercury News.
"The unending practice of taking water from human use and giving it to fish in hopes of helping the fish is a failed enterprise," said Peltier, who helps represents San Joaquin Valley farmers. "The fish are not responding at all. At the same time human, social, and economic destruction continues to accelerate.”
While some water from the San Luis reservoir is going to farmers with senior water rights, another culprit for the low water levels is Mother Nature herself. This past year’s rainy winter did see some depletion of drought conditions throughout California, but this was not evenly distributed across the state. Because the southern Sierra saw just a fraction of the wet weather that the northern Sierra did, runoff into the Delta was greatly limited.
There’s not all gloom on the horizon, however. With the recent edition of the Farmer’s Almanac predicting rainier weather for California in spring, summer, and fall of next year, the state’s reservoirs may be in better shape sooner than you might think.
DAVIS, CA - Intelligence and consumer engagement company, Engage3, announced a recent milestone in the form of a collaboration with news and information provider, McClatchy.
Together, the two said they will work towards launching a new artificial intelligence (“AI”) powered personalized promotions solution for retailers and brands.
“There is a real need for this type of solution in the market,” said Engage3’s SVP of Personalization, Rob Culin, formerly of dunnhumbyUSA and IBM’s DemandTec. “Globally, $1 trillion is spent annually by brands on promotions with about 2 out of 3 failing to generate a positive return. We are applying patented price optimization technology for personalized offers that will set the standard for the industry. We are thrilled to launch this with McClatchy, a very progressive and innovation-driven company with a strong customer base and deep relationships with retailers.”
With the goal of enabling retailers and brands to provide consumers with personalized offers based on their buying intent and past purchasing history, the company stated that the solution will help retailers and brands optimize trade and promotion, while delivering relevant offers to consumers.
“Millennials now represent a fast growing segment of retail sales and expect offer personalization from businesses,” said Christian Hendricks, VP of Products, Marketing, and Innovation at McClatchy and Chairman of the Local Media Consortium. “We are excited to partner with the team responsible for inventing price optimization. Together, we plan to bring a very innovative solution to market enabling retailers to personalize advertising and promotions, improve trade fund ROI, and pay for ads directly driving sales.”
In a press release, Engage3 noted that its Consumer Engagement and Personalization platform demonstrated a 5X performance improvement in the success of promotions, per a study conducted by Arizona State University. By comparison, promotions driven by segmentation showed a 3.5X improvement.
This will now combine with McClatchy’s vast consumer and retailer reach, with the aim of addressing inefficiencies in trade and promotional spending.
The company is currently publisher of 29 newspapers in 28 U.S. markets, with a rapidly expanding digital presence achieving more than 45 million monthly unique visitors and 250 million monthly page views. Published brands include:
- The Miami Herald
- The Kansas City Star
- The Sacramento Bee
The initial rollout and launch are currently slated for the fourth quarter of this year across select McClatchy media territories.
VANCOUVER, CANADA - In the height of an excellent British Columbia season, SunSelect has been introducing additional packs to its unique Outrageously Fresh line, comprised of colorful mason jar-shaped bags containing snacking veggies. Combined with ideal quality, sustained demand, and upgraded technology it seems the Outrageously Fresh line will continue to be outrageously successful.
“We’ve seen a terrific response to the three, four, and six pack pepper bags, as well as our two-pound BC pepper units making their debut in the Outrageously Fresh brand,” said Len Krahn, SunSelect’s Chief Operating Officer, according to a press release. “The bright colored packaging is eye-catching at retail, and once consumers see SunSelect’s association with Outrageously Fresh, they know they can buy with confidence.”
Aaron Quon, Executive Director of Greenhouse at Oppy, SunSelects exclusive marketer, notes that the British Columbia pepper season has been characterized by excellent quality and consistency across red, yellow and orange volume, and credits technology upgrades at SunSelect for enhancing quality and efficiency.
“We moved our packing operation to our Delta location and invested in a new grading line that involves greater automation and more drop lanes,” Krahn explained in a statement. “This accomplishes a higher output using considerably less labor and delivers a more consistent pack.”
With British Columbia still in full production, Krahn is looking ahead to the fall when the grower’s California pepper season begins in Tehachapi, where light and climate favor high quality production.
“We’ll offer new-crop peppers starting in October,” he said. “This will be the second full-scale pepper season in Tehachapi, where we are producing them on 24 of our 64 acres. As the only large scale U.S. greenhouse grower to offer sweet bell peppers in the winter, we’re excited about the distribution and promotional opportunities ahead.”
Between British Columbia and California, SunSelect offers sweet bell peppers year-round.
SunSelect and Oppy also offer a wide range of tomatoes, including grape, cherry and gourmet medley in mason jar bags and topseal punnets, as well as tomatoes-on-the-vine and cocktail tomatoes throughout the year in the Outrageously Fresh brand.
WATSONVILLE, CA - Berries and breakfast belong together. That’s why this summer, Well•Pict Berries challenged its fans to submit innovative, original breakfast recipes starring strawberries or raspberries as part of a qualifying event for the 2016 World Food Championships. The winner of the challenge has been selected, and will be competing in the breakfast category at the championships in Orange Beach, AL, in November.
“In choosing a winner for the ‘A Very Berry Breakfast’ contest, we were looking for creativity and uniqueness. We wanted to see a breakfast recipe that was original and delicious - something we hadn’t seen before! The winning recipe was Strawberry Basil Breakfast Fritters with Strawberry Syrup. Not only does this recipe sound incredible, it really brings in the element of creative originality that we were looking for,” said Dan Crowley, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Well•Pict, of the winning combination.
The “A Very Berry Breakfast” contest was a Preferred Qualifier for the championship event, ensuring that the selected winner of the contest received a guaranteed spot to compete in the breakfast category, a waived entry fee valued at $300, as well as a travel stipend in the amount of $1,000.
Crowley noted, “We were excited to hold the ‘A Very Berry Breakfast’ contest this summer, and we’re looking forward to having our winner represent Well•Pict Berries at the 2016 World Food Championships this November. We wish her the best of luck!”
The World Food Championship brings together foodies from around the globe, where champions of qualifying events convene for a chance to win a share of the $300,000 prize. The program includes everything from live-event integration to robust multimedia platforms serving culinary stars, home cooks, brands, and destinations. In the past four years, the World Food Championships has awarded more than $1 million in prizes, and launched the careers of several successful contestants.
AndNowUKnow wishes the “berry” best of luck to the Well•Pict winner in its upcoming competition!
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - In coordination with a positive Q2 2016 financial report, retailer SpartanNash has revealed a few new notes on the company’s growing produce offerings. After recently unveiling new produce-centric remodels in several stores, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dennis Eidson, says the company is looking to further expand both organics and produce.
“We will continue to implement our initiatives to enhance our merchandising, pricing and promotional strategies, including expanding our organic and private brand product offerings, improving our produce offering, and driving greater customer engagement through our loyalty program,” Eidson revealed in the newly announced Q2 report. The company head also noted that SpartanNash will be rolling out Open Acres™, a private brand for fresh products.
The hope for the brand is to provide savings for fresh consumers in both company-owned and independent stores, Eidson says.
On the recent remodels, Eidson continued, “Additionally, we recently completed eight remodels and re-banners to Family Fare in Omaha, Nebraska, improving our offering to the customer while highlighting our variety and value, especially as it relates to produce and private brand, and have been encouraged by the initial customer response.”
In addition to recently consolidating its Statesboro, Georgia, warehouse facility and “continuing to look for ways to optimize the supply chain,” Eidson says the company is proactively pursuing financially and strategically attractive acquisition opportunities.
Other highlights SpartanNash notes in its Q2 financial report are as follows:
- Consolidated Q2 net sales increased to $1.83 billion from $1.80 billion in Q2 2015
- Operating earnings were $32.6 million compared to $36.8 million in Q2 2015
- Adjusted operating earnings improved $2.1 million to $39.3 million from $37.2 million in Q2 2015
- Adjusted EBITDA was $58.7 million, or 3.2 percent of net sales, compared to $58.5 million, or 3.3 percent of net sales in Q2 2015
- Q2 reported earnings from continuing operations were $17.6 million, or $0.47 per diluted share, compared to $20.3 million, or $0.54 per diluted share, in Q2 2015
- Q2 adjusted earnings from continuing operations increased to $21.7 million, or $0.58 per diluted share, from $19.8 million, or $0.53 per diluted share, in Q2 2015
How will SpartanNash move to further grow its produce offerings in the quarters to come? Count on AndNowUKnow to follow the story.
CALIFORNIA - Coming off an El Niño season that brought more rain than previous seasons but not as much as anticipated, we all have our eyes to the skies and rain dances ready. Now it looks as though another weather formula, one that’s been around since 1792, has given us another reason to hope for more help in California’s record drought.
The Old Farmer's Almanac, a practiced method of predictive meteorology, states that Northern California can expect more rain for 2016/17 despite whispers of a possible La Niña.
“Long-range predictions show weather trends in temperatures and precipitation. For example, will the winter be colder or warmer than average? Will there be more or less snow than what's typical for your area? Our famous predictions (traditionally 80% accurate) are made 18 months in advance, and meant to help you make more informed decisions for long-term planning,” it says on the Old Farmer's Almanac website.
So what does the pattern foresee? For Northern California:
- Winter temperatures and rainfall will be below normal, with below-normal mountain snows.
- The stormiest periods will be in late November, mid-December, and mid-January.
- The coldest temperatures will be in early and late December and mid-to-late January.
- April and May will be warmer and slightly rainier than normal.
- Summer will be hotter than normal, with above-normal rainfall.
- The hottest periods will be in early and mid-to-late July and mid-August.
- September and October will be cooler and rainier than normal.
Unfortunately, Southern California’s outlook is still a dry one. But how much can we trust the formula?
Devised in 1792 by Founder, Robert B. Thomas, SF Gate reports that his notes are kept locked up secret society-style in a black box at the Almanac headquarters in Dublin, N.H.
The website, while continuing to keep the actual formula under lock-and-key, assures visitors that "state-of-the-art technology and modern scientific calculations" have enhanced the process over the years, predicting weather trends and events by “comparing solar patterns and historical weather conditions with current solar activity."
But Mother Nature, as growers and fresh produce industry members well know, is hard to predict.
"It's difficult enough to do a five-day forecast," Senior Meteorologist at CNN, Dave Hennen, said. "We're really good at the day of and the next day, (and) we're better at temperature a ways out than precipitation. But to forecast out that far in advance... even the science behind our long-range forecasting is sometimes not that solid."
To see the almanac for yourself, click here.
Either way, stick with AndNowUKnow as we continue to keep you up to date on the latest weather and other influencers for fresh produce.
SALINAS, CA – New opportunities are on the horizon for produce industry families in Monterey. The California State University Monterey Bay has finalized an agreement with Mann Packing to establish the Mann Packing Scholarship for the school’s College of Business. Mann's will be committing $10,000 per year for the next five years to students with parents or guardians who work in agricultural or farming sectors.
“At CSUMB, over 50 percent of students are first-generation undergraduates. We are pleased and proud to provide this assistance to local students who have contributed positively to this community and intend to stay here and contribute more in the future,” said Lorri Koster, Mann's Chairman & CEO, according to a press release.
Koster is a member of CSUMB’s College of Business Advisory Council, where she learned about the need for scholarships. She continued, “We are blessed to have a California State University in our backyard, yet financially a college degree can still be out of reach for many. It is our hope this scholarship will make a difference in the lives of many students in the College of Business.”
Students must meet the following criteria to be considered for the scholarship:
- Financial need
- Minimum GPA of 3.0
- One page essay submission
- Major in any College of Business program
- A student from Monterey County
- A student with a parent or guardian who worked or works in the farming or agricultural sectors
- A student who plans to work in Monterey County upon graduating from CSUMB
Shyam Kamath, Dean of the CSUMB College of Business, thanked Lorri Koster and Mann Packing for its support. He commented, “This significant scholarship gift enables our most needy students from the Salinas Valley and other farming sector related communities to get a huge leg-up in pursuing the American Dream and contributing to our community and the larger society we live in.”
The Mann Packing Scholarship promotion and selection will be handled by a CSUMB selection committee, and will start being awarded in Fall of 2017.
MEXICO CITY, MX - Mexico’s largest volcano, Popocatépetl, has erupted several times over the last few days, Mexico's National Center for Disaster Prevention reports. The volcano, which is less-than-affectionately known as El Popo, spewed both ash and burning rocks into the air in an area near Mexico City.
CENAPRED, Mexico’s natural disaster center, stated that since this past Sunday afternoon, Popocatépetl had erupted four times. The center said the explosions were prompted by two small tectonic earthquakes, magnitudes 1.2 and 1.6, respectively. The result was 73 volcanic plumes of ash and rock, according to news source UPI.com.
Espectacular explosión del Volcán @Popocatepetl_MX esta mañana empezando la semana en #HardMode #DeColección pic.twitter.com/oRQUp6GbVO
— Webcams de México (@webcamsdemexico) August 16, 2016
"The CENAPRED urges you not to approach the volcano, especially the crater, due to the danger of falling ballistic fragments," the disaster center warned in its statement.
Popocatépetl resides about 43 miles southeast of Mexico City, and has been fraught with activity over the past year.
This past March, CENAPRED raised the environmental alert level for the volcano to the second degree out of three, meaning residents should be prepared to evacuate at any time. As we reported earlier this year, April saw a huge eruption for El Popo. Ash was shot up three kilometres into the sky at such a volume that the nearby Puebla airport was shut down entirely.
Will we see any effect on the produce industry due to the week’s eruptions? As more information comes to light, AndNowUKnow will bring you updates.
OXNARD, CA - Pickling is a trend and flavor profile continuing to heat up on restaurant menus across North America. While the preparation method has been around for years, Gills Onions is reinvigorating the category in the mainstream, with the launch of its pickled red onions for foodservice operators.
With the tagline “Perk it Up,” with Gills Pickled Onions, Teri Trost, Midwest/West Regional Manager, joins me to dish on the versatile new product and how pickling can enhance dishes and help to diversify the menu spread.
“Pickling is truly finding a place on mainstream restaurant and foodservice menus. The great thing about this item is that it can be in utilized in a host of different ways, whether a chef is looking to create more upscale subs, burgers, or Paninis, or they are looking to give gyros, tacos, or Middle Eastern dishes a new twist,” Teri tells me.
Enhance smoked salmon dishes or make those hot dogs gourmet, this list goes on. I love onions in just about everything from fresh seafood dishes to charcuterie plates, and of course salads. So, you can be sure I’d try this addition in any foodservice lineup.
Teri came to Gills from Fresh Connect in 2013, bringing over 30 years of experience in foodservice sales management, customer service and marketing. With her focus on helping Gills’ customers build their fresh-cut onion category sales and profits, Teri sees this product as a great opportunity for growth.
“We are going to pack the pickled onions in a one gallon bucket, which is approximately 5 lbs.,” she adds. “Pricing is available now for distributors with additional pack size options as well. With a 30-day shelf life, rest assured that the pickled onions will bring the same flavor throughout their lifetime.”
Gills’ pickled onions join the company’s full-line of value-added onion products for foodservice, including slivered, diced, sliced, and whole-peeled product options. The company’s passion for all-things-onion continues to drive Gills growth and its product innovation.