The South Texas watermelon season started on time this year, between late April and early May. For Bagley Produce, the season will move throughout the summer as they have growing locations throughout Texas.
Weather affects volume, but quality remains high
The overall fruit quality and flavor of this season’s crop has been very good, says Jeff Fawcett of Bagley Produce. “We’ve seen a few weather issues, and at the start of the season there were a few struggles because of this, but this isn’t out of the ordinary – we’re always dependent on the weather.”
The weather has also had an effect on the watermelon volumes. “The overall volumes are a bit off for us, they’re not what we are used to seeing. There’s enough for us to work with, but it’s not the volume we had hoped for,” says Fawcett. Despite this, the quality of the watermelons has been good, and the demand has been high. “At the start of the season, the demand was a bit slow because of the pandemic but right now it seems to be getting back to normal,” says Fawcett.
Right now, the US watermelon market is supplied by multiple origins. “There is some product coming out of Mexico, and out of Florida. But everyone looks to be having the right supply to meet the demand so it’s not an issue. We do distribute our watermelons to other states, but the majority is destined for the Texas market,” Fawcett says.
Initial labor challenges are being resolved
One of the challenges that Bagley Produce has met due to the pandemic, outside of the earlier demand concerns, is that of labor. “There were difficulties with bringing across laborers with H2A visas at the earlier stages of the pandemic. We seem to have gotten beyond this now, though. We’re working hard to stay ahead of the curve. It’s been a challenge, but it hasn’t been insurmountable,” Fawcett explains.
Bagley Produce’s South Texas watermelon season will run through mid-July. They grow throughout Texas, and the Central Texas season is ready to kick off around June 25th. “The outlook for the Central season is good, we’ve been able to recognize possible concerns and be proactive to set up for a great season,” Fawcett concludes.
For more information:
Jeff Fawcett
Bagley Produce
Tel: +1 (956) 381-8126
Email: [email protected]
www.bagleyproduce.com