Growers in South Carolina began their peach season in the third week of May and will continue to the end of August. Supplies started off strong, yet there may be challenges coming.
“We started out the first part of the season with very, very good supply, but we do see a challenge that will start hitting in the second week of July,” said Daryl Johnston. “It’s pretty much a dormancy issue. There have been challenges because of the weather this past spring and winter that have affected some of the later varieties.” Johnston said all growers went into the season thinking they’d have full crops.
“By mid to late June we started uncovering some of the later varieties and didn’t have the fruit we thought we’d have.” Quality and flavor have been very good to date, in terms of brix and overall flavor profile. Sizing has also been very good. “The challenge that’s been industry wide, going back to the dormancy, has been a little bit of odd shaping. Everybody’s accepted it this year. In a nutshell, it’s been a challenging season simply because of the unknown as we head into July with some of our later varieties.” Prices have been affected and are much lower than last year.
“It’s been a challenge because of the supply that we’ve had early in the season,” said Ross. “So, while there’s been a supply, it’s been a challenge for the growers but a benefit for the retail trade.”
Growers will be managing supplies in order to fulfil commitments.
“We’re trying to manage our supply of peaches so we can provide the optimum level of customer service to all of our partners. We’ve been talking to our partners about the potential challenge with supplies as we get into later July,” stated Ross. A tight supply means there won't be an intense marketing effort. “It’s not that we won’t be without peaches; we’re just not promoting heavily so we can ensure there’s adequate supply for everybody.”
For more information:
Daryl Johnston
Titan Farms