Market Update for Table Grapes

Week of Oct 5th – Oct 11th 

To project the table grape market over the next 8 weeks, there are a lot of numbers to break down. First, is to try and understand how much fruit is still left to be harvested. California has packed just under 80 million boxes over the past two seasons and this year’s estimate was reduced to 85 million. Currently, there are 15 million boxes reported in the latest cold storage report and just over 55 million boxes shipped to date. That means there could be close to 15 million boxes still left to harvest. At the current weekly average of 4.1 million boxes, there would be enough fruit to carry the industry through the entire month of November and into early December. We know Peruvian exports to the U.S. will jump significantly over the next three to four weeks, so retailers should have been given opportunities to promote through Thanksgiving if marketers want to keep fruit moving and keep inventories under control.

Red Seedless

We already know that consumers are favoring green seedless, so the only way to keep them engaged is to keep promoting. Overall quality of California fruit is very good, so with aggressive pricing, we could see $1.99 per lb. in some regions. With close to 1 million more boxes of red currently in California cold storages compared to last year, marketers need to keep the spot market right where it is. We are about to see shipments of red grape from Peru go on water, so there will be plenty of options for buyers over the next 8 weeks. Currently, the spot market for California Scarlets and Allison range from $20.95 to $24.95 FOB. Look for importers to start quoting $32.00 to $34.00 FOB East Coast for premium red seedless varieties in November, but more aggressive pricing will need to be in place to attract Thanksgiving ads.

Green Seedless