A look at the early cherries in California indicates a lighter crop this coming season. "It's a below-average crop set so far in the early varieties," says Joe Cataldo of J&M Farms and Delta Packing Co. "We've had back-to-back pretty heavy production years. This year, we've also had some inconsistent weather during bloom, and between rains, windy conditions, and heat, it's put a damper on our early variety crop set."
Right now, the crop, which is anticipated to be a strong quality one this year with larger fruit, is just coming out of full bloom on the later varieties.
© Cataldo Packing
The crop looks like it will also get a later start to the season by about a week, though heavier production from May 5- June 10th will provide promotable volumes. "Some areas are closer to normal than not, but we're experiencing a delay," he says, adding that it may catch up on the later part of the crop.
He also expects minimal overlap with cherry production from the Pacific Northwest. "I think it will be a seamless transition, and as long as the price is fair and the retailers can work with the marketers and the packing companies, growers won't suffer as they have in the last couple of years."
Pricing needs to increase
In those years, there have been extremely low market prices on cherries. "In a year like this where we'll be on the lighter side and it'll cost more to pick and we'll be dealing with different market conditions, it'll be problematic if the pricing doesn't increase on the back end for California," Cataldo says, adding that any lower California pricing could impact Pacific Northwest pricing.
© Cataldo Packing
As for demand, it's expected to be strong from the start, though demand often softens further into the California season and summer when there's more competition in the produce department. "As long as retailers run the right promotions at the right time, there should be plenty of demand as long as it's fair for everyone."
He notes that one challenge is California varieties. The state has a lot of new early varieties of cherries that consumers aren't clear about. "So if a customer buys cherries and they're not tuned into what the variety is, and it's different from what they're looking for, they may not buy another bag the following week. We need return purchases. I feel our best cherry is our last cherry, Bing, which has been the predominant variety for years. If they don't like the early varieties, they may not come back when we need them the most--post-Memorial Day with Bings. They're the best cherry but get the worst price," he says.
For more information:
Joe Cataldo
J&M Farms/Delta Packing
Tel: +1 (209) 334-1023
info@deltapacking.com
https://www.deltapacking.com/