Joe's Market Report

Market Report- Week Beginning January 10th, 2022

 

What’s Hot

We are in the heart of winter citrus season! 4 weeks in, and pricing is stable and quality is excellent. Please bear in mind that for some citrus varietals, importers have fewer loads booked this year due to ongoing restrictions, and we recommend pre booking any large amounts you may want e.g. Seville oranges

 

The team at Gomes Farms are continuing to produce a fantastic tomato that eats like a summer field tomato! The majority of our tomato supply continues to be local, which allows you to have a tomato that has stayed on the vine longer and tastes sweeter than other import tomatoes. Stem cherry tomatoes are currently between harvest cycles and are unavailable.

 

Avocado quality is greatly improved, and pricing remains stable.

 

White/Cream/Enoki Mushroom supply is excellent at the moment.

 

Items of Concern

 

Zucchini and Lettuce pricing is starting to rise due to increased transportation challenges.

 

Mushrooms continue to be a major challenge. The supply chain is experiencing severe shortages of ‘fancy’ mushrooms. Oyster/Shitake/King Oyster/Maitake mushrooms have been in extremely short supply and are not consistently available. Hilite procures every case of these mushrooms we can, however the availability of these items changes day by day with little to no notice. We strongly suggest that you switch out of these mushrooms for the time being.

 

We are currently stocking California and Chinese peeled garlic. The California is far superior quality; however, this is reflected in the price. Please note which product you would like to receive when ordering.

 

Overall, there has been a drastic reduction in volume in the market from the same time period in previous years, likely due to the latest indoor dining restrictions. What this means for operators is that there are fewer loads arriving each week, and product availability can be tricky to predict. The more advance notice you have regarding product requirements, the more readily we will be able to service your produce needs.

 

Joe