NEWS FROM THE FARM

The Longshoremen’s Association—the union that oversees many East Coast ports—has gone on strike. This means no products can pass through East Coast ports, resulting in potential future supply gaps on certain food items imported from Europe and South America, among other locations. To maintain access to fresh and dry imported goods, our Merchandising and Supply Chain teams will be working closely with our foreign suppliers and domestic importers to see if some deliveries can be diverted through other ports or delivered by air, and we are also seeking alternate domestic sources where possible.

The first-of-the-season Morro Bay Avocados are arriving, grown by Shanley Farms in San Luis Obispo County—the northernmost avocado growing region in CA. These avocados are supremely rich and creamy, with exceptionally high oil content. The superior eating experience is due to the cooler production climate, which slows the tree’s metabolism and, in turn, the fruit’s maturing process.

Domestic butter prices have been down since early September, and the expectation is that costs will continue to stay low through the end of the year. European butter, on the other hand, is trading nearly a dollar over current US prices, largely due to falling milk production and cream shortages.

Hurricane Helene has taken a significant toll on growers across the Southeast, flooding fields and damaging crops. B+W hasn’t been able to harvest any of their red cress and, as a result, is currently out of stock. They are also running low on watercress bunches—they’re relying on what’s available in their coolers now, but could end up short on bunches if they can’t harvest in the coming days.

California fig season is wrapping up sooner than expected due to heat waves over the summer that pushed the trees and fruit ahead of schedule. It was a larger crop overall but a shorter crop duration this year. We’re also seeing some underripe fruit in the remaining crop.    

Just in time for our menu planning, we’ve put together a Specialty Produce Planning Guide! Based on arrival dates from previous years and ETA’s from our farm partners, these are our best predictions for our arrivals.