The supply of grapefruit from California continues to be steady. "We just finished Marsh Ruby season about a month or so ago and now the market is shifting over to things like MeloGold, which began harvesting in early October," says Tony Marquez from Pearson Ranch, noting that there are programs underway which start shipping MeloGolds early to Japan while the skin is still very green–the preferred grapefruit color there.
At the same time, harvest in California has also started on Pomelos, though Pearson Ranch waited a little longer for both color and flavor to develop for its online retail customers. That supply is also good right now. "I am also seeing bigger yields this year. Certainly with our Pomelos, there's more fruit on the trees," says Marquez.
In terms of growing conditions this season, they were quite favorable in the San Joaquin Valley. This year saw a milder summer heat-wise which allowed trees to produce more fruit and not be affected by heat stress. The season did start earlier this year though with fruit maturing earlier.
© Pearson Ranch
Movement to pick up?
There is also more fruit right now because movement is slower than usual. "We believe some of that had to do with the government shutdown. It has affected the movement of citrus fruit–not sure if it has something to do with food programs or if people are just buying staples such as bread and milk and citrus fruit comes afterwards," says Marquez, noting that generally demand for citrus starts off slower and then builds from there.
There are hopes that heading into the holiday season that movement will pick up, also now with the government shutdown ending. "I think as people start getting their money back, this will shift back into more demand. That's what we're hoping for."
As for pricing, the return to growers are stable but on the softer side though again, there are hopes that will strengthen as well. "With more fruit on the market right now, prices aren't going to be great," Marquez says, noting that import pressure also continues in citrus categories such as Pomelos. "We've had issues in the last few years and this year is no different with the import of Pomelos from Thailand, Vietnam and especially China. That's hurting the return to growers too." He says in the last few years, the domestic Pomelo market has shrunk with the continued growth of imports.
Also in the citrus category as a whole, Marquez says he continues to see a shift away from traditional grapefruit varieties MeloGolds or Oroblancos. "It seems to me that the market can't get enough of "easy peelers" like Tangos. We're seeing that more and more and then grapefruit is kind of being pushed back."
For more information:
Tony Marquez
Pearson Ranch
Tel: 1-888-667-2643
[email protected]
https://www.pearsonranch.com/
