Spring weather can be a bit of a mixed bag in Michigan and asparagus growers in the state are seeing it all. "We had some snow come through mid to late March, though March is always a moving target with weather," says Tyler Hodges of Superior Sales, Inc.
© Superior Sales, Inc.Michigan has also seen some warmer temperatures compared to historical averages.
At the same time, this week, parts of the state have seen flooding, though that's largely occurring in the northern parts of the state. Michigan is expected to begin asparagus production in early May out of its main producing region, the west central region, at that time. There also may be some production slightly sooner out of the state's southern region. "Good amounts of moisture in the ground leading into our season is a good thing for asparagus–that'll promote higher production out of the gate," adds Hodges.
Warmer weather too
At the same time, Michigan has also seen some warmer temperatures compared to historical averages which has warmed up the soil and in all, it is slightly ahead of average right now as it approaches its start date. "All things considered, it looks great for the start. We don't want to begin too early because that can bring on additional risk of damaging frost after it starts," he says, noting that if frost does happen, it brings on stress to the plants that affects production for this season.
With the state shipping asparagus then until the end of June, this season, it's also continuing to see added acreage come on annually. "Michigan has grown over the years–it's a big focus of ours and we're now the largest shipper of domestic asparagus across the country. Michigan is the leading producing region domestically as well and our outreach is bigger than ever. We're going more places further out than what we have before," Hodges says.
© Superior Sales, Inc.Michigan has seen an incline in outbound asparagus shipments in the May-June timeframe.
He also notes that recently the Michigan Asparagus Advisory Board shared that it has seen a decline in asparagus imports in the May-June timeframe from both Peru and Mexico. Meanwhile, Michigan has seen an incline in outbound shipments during that same window. "There's been a shift in production with domestic as the preferred choice of asparagus, especially with the perishability aspects of it," says Hodges.
Imports to domestic
All of this will likely contribute to the fact that the company expects strong markets for the upcoming season. Recent production in Mexico has experienced some challenges and in turn, that prompted more Peruvian shipments to help fill that void. Strong demand and pricing is expected to continue.
© Superior Sales, Inc.
The company expects strong markets for the upcoming season.
What could also be factoring into the strong pricing are issues with freight. "Not only is there a lack of drivers on the road these days, but there are also higher fuel costs. Asparagus isn't always moved truckloads at a time. We manage a lot of multi- drop loads so it could be a challenging season on the trucking side of things," says Hodges. To manage this, he says the company is going to work to hire trucks earlier than normal and it will work to stay as programmed as possible with regards to delivery schedules, along with incorporating a diversified mix of carriers.
For more information:
Tyler Hodges
Superior Sales, Inc.
Tel: +1 (616) 896-6500 ext 117
www.superior-sales.com
