At Garnand Marketing, we know you’re busy. It’s our job to partner with you, providing you the highest quality produce at the best prices. In an effort to keep you up-to-date with crops, market trends, news, pricing, and logistics, we publish this weekly at-a-glance report. From top-rated programs to promotional planning, let us help you with all your fresh produce needs.
Potatoes
Idaho: Potato demand is moderate to good with an expected pick up in the next week. Quality is good and pricing remains steady. Transportation is an issue with both truck and rail car shortages.
Washington: The latest potato reports show great variation in the size of potatoes in Washington. It’s safe to say we won’t see many cartons larger than 70 count. Acreages and yields are down compared to last year. Processors appear to be fairly active in Washington and Northern Oregon. Considering supplies in other areas, we don’t expect to see much change in the market but we do think it will happen in the future.
Colorado: Colorado potato quality is good. Demand is moderate to good and is expected to increase next week. Prices are firm. Truck shortages will continue to be an issue until after the first of the year.
Wisconsin: Potato demand continues to be moderate to good while shippers remain bullish on prices. Quality is reported as good. Trucks continue to be tight.
Transportation
Freight rates in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington continue to be high and will remain so throughout the holiday season. Demand for trucks is high with heavy shipping from these locations. Transportation issues are hurting movement with truck and rail car shortages which may continue to be a problem.
Christmas tree shipping is underway and has tightened things up even more. The holidays are just around the corner which will create additional pressure.
Onions
Idaho/Oregon: Prices remain firm on onions in Idaho/Eastern Oregon. Expect that to continue through the end of the year. After the new year business finishes, growers and shippers will take inventory and determine how many onions remain in storage. We may see a jump in prices at that time since many shippers have commitments until sometime in March or April. These contractual arrangements and a limited supply may cause the market to increase unless outside supplies can start earlier than normal.
Washington: In Washington, we’ve seen the market slip slightly possibly due to higher transportation costs. Trucks are tight throughout the Western states; however, with Christmas trees and a high volume of fruit moving, trucks in Washington state are tighter than other areas. We expect Washington to react similarly to Idaho.
Utah: Utah’s FOB is expected to be higher than Idaho/Oregon but not on delivered. As tight as trucks are at this point, the freight differential that Utah normally enjoys may not be as large as normal. Quality and movement have been very good and we expect most shippers to wind up sometime in February.
Colorado: Onion size seems to vary greatly in Colorado. Yield also seems to vary. Quality looks good as they move forward. Market price is stable.
Mexico: Planting for early onions in nearly complete and the weather has been perfect. Early projections are for a late January harvest. However, rain at the wrong time may cause that timeline to change.
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