LOS ANGELES, CA – Gourmet Trading Company has announced an early harvest of its locally-grown, Washington state asparagus.
“Due to ideal weather conditions we have an excellent crop, which is two weeks ahead of previous seasons,” stated Gourmet Trading CEO, Peter Lineen, in a press release. “The quality this year is some of the best we have seen. Favorable weather and young fields make a big difference."
The company said it had good volumes just in time for Mother’s Day and extolled the health benefits of asparagus, calling it “the perfect side dish for celebrations. Its versatility, proven anti-cancer health benefits, and ease of cooking are sure to make any Mother’s Day a success.”
Gourmet Trading also shared that after 11 years of packing asparagus in Pasco with local farmers, this year will bring the first harvest of asparagus from the company’s own all-new 450 acre farm.
Keep reading AndNowUKnow for all the late-breaking developments and market updates in the fresh produce industry.
NEW YORK, NY – Last year, The Washington Post wrote an article on the decline of the American home-cooked meal. The Post reported that in 2015, less than 60 percent of suppers served at home were actually cooked at home.
Four years ago, Blue Apron CEO and Co-Founder, Matt Salzberg, found himself experiencing this increasingly common problem. "The idea for Blue Apron really just came from a personal need that my Co-Founder and I had in our own lives," he explained in a recent interview with Forbes. "We wanted to cook at home more often, we wanted to try new ingredients and new recipes, but we found it really expensive and difficult to go shop for everything at all the different stores."
His solution? To start a new subscription-based food startup that offers meal kits – a big box of precisely premeasured ingredients, with easy cooking instructions – that promise to make cooking “more fun, more enjoyable, and more affordable for most people.”
Blue Apron, named for the color worn by French chefs in training, is now serving 8 million meals a month and delivering them fresh to customers in nearly every state. At a cost of roughly $10 per meal, Fortune estimates Blue Apron to have a market value of $2 billion.
So what ingredients go into a successful startup? Salzberg told Fortune’s Susie Gharib that he attributes Blue Apron’s growth to the company’s “recipe model” that focuses on supply chain efficiencies and eliminating middlemen. Salzberg works directly with farmers, planning menus with them and coordinating what ingredients to plant – all exclusively for Blue Apron customers. Salzberg says this allows Blue Apron “to get people fresher food at better prices.”
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FOWLER, CA - Bee Sweet’s 2016 summer import program is kicking off! And the company’s Citrus Sales Manager Joe Berberian is ready to share all the details.
“Bee Sweet Citrus is a one-stop-shop for all citrus commodities,” explained Berberian in a press release. “Through our import program, we are able to provide our consumers with a variety of products – regardless of the season.”
For more than 15 years, Bee Sweet Citrus has been working to develop relationships with both Chilean and Peruvian citrus growers. In order to ensure that all these imported products are safe to consume, the Bee Sweet Citrus Quality Control team sees that all products are certified and audited in the following three distinctions:
- Food safety
- Social accountability
- Sustainability
“All imported product, once off-loaded at the port, is trucked straight to our facility where it’s re-graded to ensure the highest quality,” added Bee Sweet Citrus Sales Representative, Anders Skooglund. “Additionally, we offer our customers the ability to repack and reconfigure the fruit to any specific pack style that they may want during these months.”
Between the months of May and October, Bee Sweet Citrus receives the following categories of imported citrus:
- Clementines
- Navel Oranges
- Cara Caras
- Minneolas
- Lemons
“The demand for citrus is year-round,” continued Berberian. “Through our summer import program, however, we can provide the public with the citrus they need, every day of the year.”
The Bee Sweet Citrus sales team handles all import clearance, logistics, inventory and conducts weekly market analysis calls with their international partners. To learn more about Bee Sweet’s programs visit www.beesweetcitrus.com, and keep following the citrus season with AndNowUKnow!
YAKIMA, WA – FreshFruits Marketing of Washington announced earlier this week that it has promoted Chuck Zeutenhorst to General Manager. Zeutenhorst moves into his new role after having served as the Export Sales Manager and Domestic Sales Specialist for FirstFruits.
“I’m proud to be a part of a company constantly striving for the best in quality, while remaining focused on an unwavering commitment to giving back,” said Zeutenhorst in a statement. Zeutenhorst has been a leader in the Washington produce industry for 36 years and has worked for FirstFruits since 2001.
As the new General Manager at FirstFruits, Zeutenhorst said he plans to sharpen the focus on making FirstFruits Marketing a customer-centric apple company while promoting what he calls “the best apple variety grown in the United States today” – the Opal apple.
“The Opal apple has a reputation among consumers of being one of the best they’ve ever tasted,” said Zeutenhorst. “We look forward to larger volumes and strong opportunities to invigorate the category as part of our program for the apple that makes a difference.”
One could speculate that Zeutenhorst has Washington produce in his blood. Born and raised on apple, pear, and cherry orchards in the Yakima Valley, Zeutenhorst said he always knew he would have a career in the industry that shaped him.
We would like to congratulate Chuck Zeutenhorst on his latest achievement in his long and storied career. And as always, we’ll keep you updated on all the latest leadership changes at AndNowUKnow.
SALINAS, CA - Mother Nature is keeping greens growers on their toes, with some warmer-than-anticipated weather setting things in motion a bit ahead of schedule.
John Georgalos, Tanimura & Antle’s Commodity Manager, tells me that the majority of March and the first half of April saw temperatures 12 to 15 degrees higher than California’s Salad Bowl expected.
“The lettuce market was reflective of this as we saw prices fall below break-even cost during this time and, in some instances, growers had to disc lettuce, which they could not harvest in time,” John explains, stating that both Salinas and Huron crops were ready sooner than had been planned.
The net result, John says, is that lettuce estimates for the next few weeks look to be on the lighter side after bunching product during that period.
This should, in effect, set into motion the market righting itself in coming weeks, T&A projects, coming off these latest conditions.
And with higher temperatures comes higher demand, John says, combining with the light supplies to move the market towards the higher end of the spectrum.
“Winter has ended and as the weather becomes warmer across the nation we should see an uptick in demand for lettuce,” John tell me.
AndNowUKnow will continue to follow the market’s movement as Salinas settles in for the lettuce season.
DELTA, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Windset Farms and the Equitable Food Initiative (EFI) recently announced a new partnership that will lend EFI’s “Responsibly Grown. Farmworker Assured.™” labeling to Windset’s fresh fruits and produce. The EFI-labeled Windset produce will be made available at select Costco locations in the northwest United States.
“At Windset Farms, we’re committed to providing consumers with the highest quality produce possible,” said Jeff Madu, Director of Sales at Windset Farms, in a press release. “This includes the value and quality throughout the entire food system made up of workers, growers, retailers, and consumers alike. Our certification with EFI makes sure that our workers are receiving fair wages, benefits, and safe working conditions.”
According to its website, EFI is a nonprofit that “brings together workers, growers, and retailers to produce safer, more responsibly grown fruits and vegetables.” The Windset Farms Canadian facility in Delta, British Columbia, is EFI’s first certified farm in Canada. EFI said it’s working with Windset to certify other farms in the United States. The Delta facility produces peppers, cucumbers, and tomatoes.
“EFI’s workforce development team is committed to providing tailored solutions for any operation,” said Peter O’Driscoll, Executive Director at EFI. “They now approach problem-solving activities together to keep the farm in compliance with EFI Standards. This type of workforce development represents a big win for both Windset and EFI and shows that EFI is not just another certification.”
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CALIFORNIA – California residents, landscapers, and farmers are no stranger to the serious water guidelines which have hung over the state for the past couple of years. However, a warm sprinkle of good news and ease of severe restrictions may be on the cloudline for state inhabitants, according to recent statements made by water officials on California’s drought status.
"It is time to end the State Water Board's mandatory water use restrictions statewide," said David Bolland, Special Projects Manager for the Association of California Water Agencies in a letter to water regulators.
Bolland speculated that asking citizens and growers to retain emergency restrictions in the face of overflowing reservoirs from recent boughts of rain could damage the relationship between officials and state residents the next time such severe measures need to be implemented. Bolland represents hundreds of urban, commercial, and agricultural water districts under his station.
State officials met in Sacramento on Wednesday to discuss the future of the restrictions in a State Water Resources Control Board workshop. Weather.com reported that while officials would ideally like to give control of restrictions to local water authorities, some board members remain skeptical of whether water responsibility and realism would be possible under lifted emergency restrictions.
“While we are hopeful that we are turning the corner on this drought, the truth is that it’s just too soon to tell,” said Felicia Marcus, Chair of the State Water Resources Control Board at the workshop. “Any additional water we can conserve today will serve us well tomorrow if the drought continues.”
Districts around the state, however, remain adamant that there has been enough rainfall to allow state authorities to take over in restriction regulations, which would ease water use for citizens and farmers alike. Several water districts have said that the current emergency restrictions are unnecessary.
"It's our responsibility to be sure we have available supplies to meet demands," said Fiona Sanchez of the Irvine Ranch Water District in Southern California at the workshop.
As we recently reported, the U.S. Drought Monitor showed that the percentage of the state which qualified under a D4-Exceptional drought status had shrunk by 25 percent since October. Under these changes, ABC News 10 stated that over 3 million inhabitants have seen drought improvements.
It is important to note that if even emergency restrictions do get lifted throughout the state, California’s drought situation will not be alleviated entirely. As it stands now, the emergency restrictions are to remain in place through October, although Weather.com says a new conservation method will be implemented this May.
Continue to click back on AndNowUKnow as we cover water updates throughout the nation and keep a close eye on the restrictions in California.
SEATTLE, WA - Amazon has reported its most profitable quarter ever, beating expectations for sales, sending its share price up over 12 percent, and bringing its market cap to almost $280 billion. For perspective, Walmart’s current market cap currently resides at around $217 billion, firmly placing Amazon as one of the world’s most valuable retailers.
Net sales increased 28 percent to $29.1 billion in the first quarter, compared with $22.7 billion in first quarter 2015, exceeding both analysts’ expectations and the company’s own forecast. Net income rose to $513 million, making this Amazon’s highest quarterly profit, while North American retail sales and international retail sales both grew more than 30 percent.
Amazon’s core e-commerce business also continues its rapid North American growth, building by 32 percent. A big part of this is its Prime and Amazon Fresh membership programs, which offers unlimited express delivery on millions of products, including fresh groceries. According to the Bernstein analysts, Prime currently has at least 65 million members worldwide, and Prime membership increased 51 percent in 2015 alone.
CEO Jeff Bezos, who owns 82,914,385 shares in the company, according to Yahoo Finance, made a gain of more than $6.2 billion just off the climb in today’s share prices.
As Amazon continues to solidify its position as a force to be reckoned with in the retail world, AndNowUKnow will continue to give you the freshest updates.
SAN ANTONIO, TX - London Fruit has been part of the produce industry for 35 years, and this fun-filled team has some serious plans for providing a fresh look to the company’s supplied commodities. VP and Co-owner of the company, Jerry Garcia, took some time to step away from London Fruit’s bustling booth at Viva Fresh to tell us more.
“We’re doing shows, trying to present our new look,” Jerry tells me as he gestures to the colorful boxes stacked at the London Fruit Booth.
The two-layer “place pack” lime boxes feature a fresh splash of color that extends over the entire box.
Jerry says that this new look for the tri-decade company will soon spread past its current design, “...which is limes. Going into avocados and mangos later this year,” Jerry advises us.
The company doesn’t plan to stop there… find out the London Fruit details in the exclusive video above!
WENATCHEE, WA – Officials at CMI have announced the first solid estimate for the 2016 cherry crop, and all signs point to an early season start with a consistent volume.
Steve Castleman, Vice President of Sales at CMI, shared in a press release that warm spring temperatures, a strong bloom, and no damage from frost have made an encouragingly early cherry crop. “The crop looks very good and timing at this point is nearly identical to last year,” said Castleman. “We’re telling our retailer partners to anticipate good availability for mid-June through mid- July promotions.”
CMI said that the early season start should be good news for retailers, as strong sales early in the season often translate to maximized cherry performance. According to a CMI-led analysis, the most successful retailers maximize cherry sales opportunities in June and run promotions solidly through mid-July.
“We anticipate that the heaviest volume and peak promotional weeks will fall into a narrow window,” said Castleman. “To maximize sales, retailers will want to move retail promotions earlier, starting in mid- June and running through mid-July.”
Steve Lutz, Vice President of Marketing for CMI, shared the results of a company analysis which revealed that the cherry sales for top performing retailers deliver an average of 7.5 percent contribution to total produce for the month of June, compared to an industry average of only 4.9 percent contribution.
“Best in class retailers utilize a more aggressive non-promotional pricing strategy than their competitors,” said Lutz. “In June, when the rest of market has cherries priced at over $3.19 per pound, top retailers have already shifted pricing down to under $2.79. This immediately captures consumer attention by pricing cherries much more competitively with other seasonal fruits.”
Lutz also recommended that retailers both push for full distribution as soon as the season begins, and limit the product and package assortment. Lutz says that with too many duplicate but different packages on display “shelf presence is diluted and shoppers resort to sorting on the display to find the best package.”
Feel free to cherry pick only your favorite produce news headlines at AndNowYouKnow.