New season cherries and early stonefruit from Mildura and Swan Hill are the best of late spring produce, according to traders at Melbourne Market, Victoria's wholesale fruit, vegetable and cut flower trading centre.
Sweet corn from Western Australia, green mangoes from Queensland, and new-season heirloom tomatoes from South Australia are also among the standout fresh produce available now, with traders reporting good quality and strong supply as warmer weather arrives.
© Melbourne Market
According to Melbourne Market wholesaler Raf Bulzomi from LA Produce, sweet corn from Western Australia is "plentiful and very sweet" and expected to be around for a few more weeks. He also points to the start of South Australia's glasshouse-grown heirloom tomato season. "Keep an eye out for them — they're colourful, full of flavour and just starting to appear in the Market now," he says.
Bulzomi adds that peas are also eating beautifully, with super-sweet sugar snaps, snow peas, and garden peas currently coming out of Queensland. "They won't be around much longer, so snap them up while you can," he says. "In a few weeks, we'll start to see Victorian peas coming through from Gippsland, Bairnsdale, and Leongatha."
© Melbourne Market
Tropical fruits are also shining in the lead-up to summer. Henry Huynh from CK Tropical says green mangoes are particularly good right now. "They're a bit different from a Kensington Pride — they're crunchy, kind of like an apple," he says. "We're approaching the end of the Darwin season, but Queensland supply is starting and will run right through until February or even March."
Huynh says R2E2 mangoes, known for their beautiful blush colour and slightly firmer texture, are also in strong supply, while pineapples from Queensland are a little short at present.
Stonefruit season is officially underway, with Victorian and South Australian peaches and nectarines now arriving at the Market. "The first of Victoria's white and yellow peaches are expected later this week, starting from the Mildura region," says Ian Shrubsole from Mumford Wholesalers. "Our Swan Hill farms are about two weeks away, and the season overall is running about a week later than last year."
© Melbourne Market
Shrubsole adds that the first red grapes from Queensland are also appearing, with the main crop due in mid-November.
And in exciting news for cherry lovers, the very first of the season's crop has begun to arrive from parts of Victoria and New South Wales, offering a glimpse of the festive season to come.
© Melbourne Market
Mick Menzies from The Melbourne Pear Company, a grower and wholesaler at the Melbourne Market, sold the Market's first box of the season earlier this week.
"We've just this week received the first of the Royal Tioga variety from Mildura way. They are lighter in colour with a lovely shine and firmer than some of the more traditional varieties. This firmness means the "Royal Family" varieties tend to begin a bit earlier, because they aren't as susceptible to unfavourable weather."
Hitesh Shetty from Market City Fruits has just started getting cherries from Griffith, and says more Victorian fruit will most likely be in the market by the end of next week, provided we get some warm weather.
"I was at the farms just yesterday, and fortunately, the recent rain did not seem to have affected the fruit."
Bulzomi notes that Continental cucumbers are in good supply and excellent value for shoppers, while pineapples are limited. "We have Gold and Smooth varieties available, and a few of the Roughs starting to come through, too."
For more information:
Dan Stock
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