ICEBERG LETTUCE
Above-normal temperatures in the Salinas Valley may soon take a toll on lettuce not grown near the cooling effects of the Pacific Ocean. In particular, growers in the southern portion of the Salinas Valley are more exposed to the heat and are most concerned about reduced yields. Overall production may be further reduced because shippers purposely plant fewer acres in August in anticipation of regional produce deals in the East.

A good portion of the Salinas Valley shipper base continues to see unusually light demand from many of regions of the country. A Salinas sales manager recently stated, "It's one thing to have reduced production, but it means very little if there is no demand to help create a market."

Processors are now the single largest buyers and consumers of lettuce. Some shippers confide that the collective processor base consumes 60 percent of all the central coast lettuce grown during the summer season.

The industry really doesn't expect to see a significant market advance unless processors find themselves short of raw product and need to procure extra product on the open market. For the moment, processors have access to more than enough product. Current quality of lettuce grown in the northern portion of the county remains sound. Head sizes remain large, and there are only isolated cases of internal burn.

The high cost of crude oil is acting like a tax on farmers in the form of exorbitant fuel and fertilizer costs. Growing costs have increased $400 per acre in the past year.

LEAF LETTUCE:
Most Salinas Valley shippers expect ample leaf supplies and light demand heading into late July. Quality in general is good. Isolated cases of tip and fringe burn are present. Summer acreage under production is down as central coast shippers anticipate good production from regional deals in Michigan, the Ohio Valley, New Jersey and eastern Canada. Harsh weather and/or poor quality in the East would send unexpected demand to the West Coast and increase the market. Short-term prices in the west are expected to remain very reasonable.

BROCCOLI
Salinas Valley shippers are on schedule with their harvest dates and projections. Central coast plantings will be lighter in August so shippers won't have to compete with eastern Canada and Maine for market share in the Midwest and along the Eastern Seaboard. Harsh weather and/or poor quality in the East would unexpectedly send demand to California and push prices noticeably higher.

CELERY
The size profile in the Salinas Valley is large as shippers have good production of 24s and even a few 18s. Overall quality is excellent. Santa Maria shippers are still trying to lure orders and trucks away from Salinas with discounts. The Oxnard season is over, and its 30-day soil moratorium began July 15.

The West Coast celery market is expected to ease further as Michigan production improves to mid-season form. Michigan shippers are increasing production and should have good volume beginning the week of July 21.

STRAWBERRIES
Salinas and Watsonville growers continue to harvest heavy volume. Driscoll said that it is in the midst of this season's peak volume and is currently shipping 1.7 million flats per week. Fruit quality is very strong in Salinas and Watsonville. Santa Maria also offers strong quality, but the individual berry sizing is smaller. The market will remain reasonably priced heading into late July. Overall production will remain fairly constant heading into the week of July 28, and then begin a steady decline through August.

ONIONS
New Mexico onion shippers received three to five inches of rain July 8-12. The rains were isolated and did not affect all growers equally. Some growers came out in relatively good shape, while others bore the brunt of the weather and are experiencing noticeable delays. New Mexico onions could very well have staining on the outer layer, and the shuck may be attached to the onion. The weather affected the New Mexico shipper base enough to divert demand to California and spike the market higher.

The current New Mexico weather forecast calls for isolated thunderstorms and light rainfall through July 18. Shippers quickly acknowledge that such a timid forecast often results in heavy downpours in relatively small areas while producing arid conditions on neighboring farms. Only time will tell just how much rain will fall over the next few days, who will get hit, and who will dodge the bullet.

In the meantime, demand shifting away from New Mexico is, at least for now, increasing the California onion market. Shippers are getting inundated with extra business and are struggling to meet all the orders. Extra demand in California is applying even more pressure to an already tight truck market. The tightest items are super-colossal yellows and medium yellows.

The longer term forecast calls for clearing skies in New Mexico July 20-24. If this is accurate, new Mexico shippers should be able to rebound fairly quickly and re-enter the market beginning July 21.

The big story this summer remains the exorbitant cost of freight and limited availability of trucks. California and New Mexico shippers are competing with each other on a delivered basis rather than f.o.b. It's a contest of who has access to a truck, what the delivered price is and which district will offer the better value. Buyers are encouraged to stay ahead of inventories and take advantage of trucks as they become available.

RUSSETS
Storage russet prices increased dramatically in the late spring and are now in a holding pattern. Current large carton f.o.b. prices remain near record highs. Carton demand is still very strong, and most Idaho sheds could sell more if they could produce the extra volume. Bale demand is steady, and prices have most likely topped near current levels. Shippers are sold out of large carton one to two days in advance.

What sparked the spring market rally? The 2007-08 Idaho Burbank crop is rough, and the pack-outs are far below normal. The availability of large cartons has been limited since Idaho Norkotah supplies became exhausted in March. It all came to a head when buyers realized that the remaining storage cartons were in short supply and a panic developed, which pressured all pack styles. Adding to the chaos, remaining Colorado supplies were far below normal, and shippers have since concluded their season. As well, rumors in Idaho suggest that the acreage of the crop currently being planted is noticeably below 2007 levels.

Idaho's storage supplies will continue into early August, and new-crop russets from Parma will start the week of Aug. 4 or Aug. 11. Washington state and Greeley, CO, will start new-crop russets around Aug. 1, and Colorado's San Luis Valley will start Sept. 15. Buyers must be mindful not to get long on current supplies. Russets being shipped today were harvested last autumn, and are anxious to sprout. Current storage supplies are kept near 40 degrees. Receivers holding today's arrivals at 50 degrees or above will only encourage the inevitable sprouting.

LEMONS
Sunkist continues to position itself in anticipation of the small-sized Chilean crop, which will make an impact in late July. Demand exceeds supply on the large sizes, is in balance with the availability of mid sizes, and lags behind the surplus of small sizes. Oxnard lemon growers continue to see higher color hanging on the trees but unfortunately not a lot of additional size. Quality is good, and condition is strong. The Oxnard crop is 72 percent harvested for the season.

ORANGES
A strong juice market and dwindling independent supplies will move orange prices higher over the next two to three weeks. About 70 percent of the Valencia size profile falls between 88s and 138s. Current Valencia quality is excellent, and Brix is 11-12, which is perfect for foodservice and juice operations. High fuel costs, limited truck availability and competition from new-crop melons, stone fruit and grapes will curb demand.

Valencia oranges experience a phenomenon called re-greening during the hot summer months. The heat causes the oranges to reabsorb chlorophyll at the stem end, resulting in a green cast on the outer skin. This natural process is cosmetic only and does not affect the internal sugars or eating quality of the fruit. Re-greened oranges are fully ripe, sweet and delicious.

HASS AVOCADOS
The industry is absorbing 19 million pounds of fresh avocados per week -- 13 million from California and 6 million from Mexico. Mexican summer production remains light and will fall to 3 million to 4 million per week in late July. The market is strong as California shippers are not able to compensate for the pending shortfall. California quality is excellent, and the fruit is firm. Late-season Mexican avocados have a high oil content and taste good, but the shelf life is minimal.

Thirty percent water reductions have forced growers to literally cut down 20- 25 percent of the existing Hass avocado trees in the greater San Diego growing area. Growers completely harvested the targeted trees in April and May, which led to the unusually higher percentages of medium and small fruit on the market. The cutting down of trees is complete, and the crop is once again producing a traditional range of sizes. The large and unusual price gap between 48s and 60s has fully dissipated, and 60s are now priced higher than 48s.

MELONS
The brief Bakersfield season is essentially over, and buyers will now rely on the west side melon district for supplies into October. West side shippers currently have a wide selection of sizes. Cantaloupes are peaking on 12s, with fairly good availability of 9s and 15s. Honeydews are heaviest to 6s, with decent supplies of 5s and 8s. Quality is strong, and the fruit can easily travel to the East Coast with ample shelf life after arrival. Prices are very reasonable and will remain near current levels heading into this weekend (July 19-20).

West side shippers near Mendota, Firebaugh and Los Banos suffered a late and slow start. Initial yields were only 600 to 650 cartons per acre instead of the expected 800 to 850. Unprecedented winds in early June knocked off flowers and reduced crown set production. The heat which followed in mid- June further stressed the plants, and any dollar-sized melons did not mature to produce marketable fruit. West side shippers sense that this damage is short-lived and will only affect the first block. The second fields and higher yields will start mid- to late the week of July 14-18.

GRAPES
The much anticipated Arvin table grape harvest started last week (July 7-11) with Perlettes and Flame seedless. That week's high heat (110 to 112 degrees) slowed the pace of harvest to 50 percent of normal. Temperatures have since normalized, and shippers can now harvest at will. Delano shippers will start Flames over the next few days and Thompsons next week (July 21-25). Initial sugars are outstanding, and the Flame color is full and bright. There is a two- tiered market based on berry sizing. Central Valley grape lugs are 19-pound net weight with 80 lugs per pallet. The overall market is gently easing as the harvest is running full throttle and new-crop supplies climb higher.