Watermelon out of California is about to be more ample in supply. “After the planting gap with the rains that we had earlier in the year, which was foreseen, we’ve got production starting to come in from fields that were put in later. So we have a flush of melon supply coming from Central California for the most part, up to the Delta region,” says Dennis Peterson of Riverbend Fresh LLC. “I see potentially over-planted supplies that will take us close to October.”
From California, the Coachella region starts its production in May, which overlaps with production still coming out of Yuma, Arizona. Following that it moves to the Bakersfield region by the second week in June and then to the Delta region in early July. “While Coachella gets hot and tends to stop, Bakersfield can go with back-to-back fields all the way into October. However the rest of the country kicks in in the middle of summer too,” he adds.
Steady watermelon demand
At the same time, demand for watermelon is steady even though Peterson noted a small lull in demand last week which could just be attributed to summer and people traveling. However this week it seems to be picking back up again.
“Given all of this, I expect the market to come down somewhat,” he says, adding that the higher pricing at retail has stifled demand somewhat. That said, the potential softening of prices may not happen until the end of this week. “Come August 1st, that’s where we’re really going to see a sharp increase in supply and the market will change,” he adds, noting the ample supplies of good quality melons means it could be a good time for promotions.
For more information:
Dennis Peterson
Riverbend Fresh LLC.
Tel: +1 (559) 846-3320
[email protected]
http://riverbendfresh.com/