Crop Reports
Getting Close to Last Call
Prices are rising fast, supply dropping fast; a reflection that the inevitable end is near. We are in the last weeks of the Mexican mango season, and an ending as we know coming much earlier than normal. On the organic side, everything is currently hailing from the Los Mochis non-hot-water-treated zone. It’s all Keitts—and it…
Continue ReadingDoors Closing & Opening
We’re nearing the point where all good things eventually come to an end, so let’s get right to it. As the Mexican mango season prepares to close its doors, one last opportunity is opening. At a time when food costs continue to climb and value is becoming harder to find, the Mexican mango program is…
Continue ReadingLingering Kents
We thought we would be firmly into Keitt mango season by now, and while Keitts have generally started, Rosario Kent mangoes—much like the Oaxaca Tommy Atkins—are lingering much longer than anticipated. This is providing both wonderful economics at retail and an exceptional eating piece of fruit. Win-win for those that understand #MangoJoy. We think there…
Continue ReadingBlink & It’s Gone
This season has been one of the most challenging in modern Mexican mango history—fresh, dried, IQF, domestic, export, all of it—and as we move into the tail end of the season, a quick ending is all that’s left. I just received word today that some rain has fallen in the growing regions, which should help…
Continue ReadingFast Moving Crop
Ataulfos: Perhaps the most important part of this Ataulfo crop report is a reminder of just how sensitive this variety is to cold and what happens when it is transported from the border to distribution points on excessively cold trucks. We are watching that play out in real time this season, especially now as…
Continue ReadingAtaulfo + Cold Trucks = Bad.
Period. Ataulfos need a temperature between 50–55°F for optimal success. Below that, Brix drops, acidity rises, and a cascade of physiological problems begins—many of which we’re seeing play out en masse this particularly challenging season. A mixed-load mentality and 45°F trucks will never build robust Ataulfo programs capable of consistently delivering exceptional flavor, clean skin,…
Continue ReadingDried: Damaging Orchard Prices
This is a brief update on the organic dried mango sector in Mexico’s norther regions. I will produce the latest fresh update by Monday. We are all aware by now that organic dried mango is no longer a niche product. Over the past several years, it has become one of the fastest-growing segments in…
Continue ReadingReality Bites
Reality Bites is a 1994 film about a generation that came of age believing the world worked a certain way, then had to live through the moment it became undeniable that it didn’t — not in a single crash, but in an accumulation of signals they kept explaining away until they couldn’t anymore. This is…
Continue ReadingSummer Crop Report
I would like to apologize to everyone who has come to rely on my weekly reports for insight and planning. I understand how valuable this information is, and sharing it is something I believe benefits all of us in the industry. That being said, I experienced a terrible situation in the home I have been…
Continue ReadingAnd Then There Was Consensus
Disclaimer: This crop report, like many I write, is told through the lens of Crespo Organic Mangoes, a program I am intricately embedded with. By now it’s clear — everyone in the industry has landed in the same place. The consensus on the upcoming transition out of the southern regions and into the north is…
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