California Citrus

• Markon First Crop (MFC) and Markon Essentials Lemons and Oranges are available
• Growers cannot harvest fruit when it is wet
  • Conditions are too difficult for crews and equipment to get in and out of the orchards when there is mud and standing water on the ground
  • Markon has requested that harvesting crews pack next week’s orders early to get ahead of this rain event
• Quality is excellent and supplies are adequate
• Navel orange gas times have fallen to 24-48 hours

Celery

• MFC Premium Celery is available
• Oxnard and Santa Maria, California are the primary growing regions in December
  • Rain totals ranging from 1”-2” limited production yesterday in both regions
  • Most growers are back to harvesting today, although some Oxnard growers sustained significant crop damage due to flooding caused by excessive rain and a canal breach
  • Additionally, some Oxnard lots scheduled for harvest in late December have been impacted by fusarium and insect pressure, reducing expected yields
• Ready-Set-Serve (RSS) Celery
  • Growers have expressed concern about filling RSS Celery demand due to reduced raw product
  • Your Markon representative will continue to communicate through the week, as damage is still being assessed
• The Florida season will begin in late December and run through April
• Yuma, Arizona harvesting will start in late December/early January and ship through mid- to late March
• Markets are expected to remain active through December at minimum

Grapes Transitioning to Offshore Fruit

• Imported grapes will enter the market next week, December 27, 2021
  • Peruvian red seedless grapes will become available next week, December 27
  • Peruvian green seedless grapes are forecast to begin shipping the week of January 3, 2022
• Imported Lunch Bunch Grapes will hit the market January 17, 2022

Green Onions

• RSS Green Onions are available
• Mexicali has experienced highs in the 60s with evening temperatures dipping as low as the mid-30s over the past 10 days
• Approximately 1” of rain is forecast for Friday, December 24 into Saturday, December 25
• This rain is expected to have minimal effect as most growers will not harvest Friday or Saturday; production will resume Sunday, December 26
• Similar cold weather is forecast through the end of the year into January 2022
• Expect elevated markets for the next three to four weeks at minimum, pending warmer weather

Northwest Onion and Potato Holiday Loading Hours

• On Christmas and New Year’s Eve, most sheds will be working abbreviated hours; a few sheds will be closed
• All sheds will be closed on Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Important to note: Monday, December 27 and January 3 will be very slow loading days as suppliers will not produce over the holidays or weekends

Please contact your Markon customer service representative for more information.

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