Asparagus, Limes and Broccolini/Sweet Baby Broccoli/Artisan Broccoli

Fri, February 17th, 2023

Dear Ole Tyme Produce Customers:

With recent weather and transition conditions, we wanted to provide an update on the following commodities: Asparagus, Limes and Broccolini/Sweet Baby Broccoli/Artisan Broccoli.

Asparagus
- Asparagus supplies will continue to be limited. Due to freezing temperatures through the weekend. Reducing harvest time and pulling back on production.
- Open-market asparagus will be subject to day-to-day pricing with extremely limited supply.
- Contract escalators will be triggered.
- Loading dates and times will be subject to delays.
Limes
- Prices continue to rise as we fully transition to new crop. Crossing are lighter as old crop is finishing up, however, quality has improved. There is the ability to hold back supplies to achieve desired price points of the growers causing further upward pressure on markets.
- Overall #2 fruit is less available and going to the local market for good returns. This ultimately adds strength to #1 fruit for the US.
- Colombia who has been increasing its shipments to the US is approaching a lower volume production period. They will continue to ship but what they ship and who will receive may vary as they chase the Mexican market. They do not have an unlimited amount of good quality fruit and proper certification also comes into play
- Size distribution is roughly here by size currently. However, supplies are forecasted to be extremely tight through April, especially large fruit 110/150s; flexibility in size may be required to cover orders.
Broccolini
- Broccolini/Sweet Baby Broccoli/Artisan Broccoli supplies continue to be extremely tight. Grown mostly in Salinas, the continuous unseasonably cold weather along with rain forecasted next week will continue to slow the growth process and result in lower yields.
- Expect all suppliers to have limited supplies through the next 2-3 weeks due to the cold and rain. Suppliers will be watching averages to get through this shortage.
- Supplies should start to get better the week of March 6th.
- You may need to make an extra pick or utilize an outside label.
- Expect purple cast going forward. This is a common and natural attribute, especially in the winter months. It is not a defect and does not impact quality.