Exports of asparagus, grown in Mexico, by a U.S. exporter and sent to Hong Kong and Australia have seen lower volumes thus far, compared to previous years. According to Dan Miller, Worldwide Production Manager of Jacobs, Malcolm & Burtt (JMB): “Demand has been fair in both countries. It is all based on price, while there is demand in Australia due to higher inflation and the cost of shipping, we have been very selective to send to these markets.”
Showing the JMB produce is Dan and his wife Larelle Miller with colleague Donald Alford at the April 2023 CPMA exhibition in Toronto, Canada.
JMB is currently harvesting in Baja California and in the Central Highlands of Mexico, where they have just started. “We exported a small volume to Hong Kong and Australia. Inflation has definitely affected our business in Australia. The freight and retail costs are extremely high. The consumer does not want to pay more than they have to. We have not shipped as much to Australia this year as in previous years due to the reasons mentioned.”
Miller says Hong Kong has always been a good market for JMB, while they sometimes send asparagus to Japan, but only if the prices are higher than in the U.S. “We have a handful of customers in Hong Kong who buy a specific size. We only send to Japan when domestic prices in the U.S. are lower. About 15% of our overall volume is exported. We sell a total of 4 million units a year of 5 kg boxes.”
He says they will wind down the summer harvest in Baja California and then switch to import from Peru. “We will import from Peru as well into Miami, but that makes up the bulk of our summer program. We will start up again, by late summer or early fall in Baja California. The asparagus volumes out of Mexico are affected by the cool spring we had in 2023. It certainly affected volumes in the first part of the harvest. Generally the first half volumes were lighter but prices were stronger. The industry here was affected by the cool spring,” States Miller.
For more information:
Dan Miller
JMB
Tel: +1 415 285 0400
Email: dan@jmb-produce.com
www.jmb-produce.com