Have you ever noticed when you buy a bag of cherries at the store they are typically all a uniform size? Learn how cherries are sized.

Onions are available year-round, but they are a seasonal item! The new California crop is barely cured. This means they will not have the hard exterior skin seen in peak season products from up north. The skin will likely be shaggy and flaky. There are benefits to fresh crop product! They are sweeter, far less pungent and there are no issues with sprouting. Learn when to expect new crop onions.

California Stone Fruit season kicks off with sublime Royal Lynn Cherries from Fruit World and Tiogas from Frog Hollow Farm.

Storage onions are almost done and we are looking to imports to finish out the season. Onions will be very tight for April, and we will see gaps on red and white onions. It is uncertain to when onions from Mexico will be available. Storage yellow and sweet onions continue out of the Pacific Northwest a little longer. California will start up with new crop onions in May.

A new crop of California Hass avocados is starting. As we eagerly await the California season to get going, we must be patient. Buyers should be aware of the avocado growing cycles and know that they can be disappointed with an early crop. Each year the timing is different, and the weather can have a major impact on how it ripens and availability. 

It's that time of year.... Equal Exchange Banana Month. You will find the freshest 🍌 materials here to support your retail displays. POS cards, Posters, Hanging Mobiles and more! Earl’s is a Banana House! Check out Earl’s Banana Ripening Guide and Banana Handling and Receiving Guide and ask your Earl’s Sales Rep how we can help build your banana program.

During the winter months many growers move their operations from the Salinas and San Joaquin Valley down to Yuma, Arizona and the California desert. As the weather warms up historically in March, the growing areas move north from Mexico and the California desert to the Salinas Valley.

The Peruvian Mango season is finished, and Mexico isn’t producing enough fruit to keep up with demand.  It can't be understated how much the conventional market effects the organic market, as the organic market share of mangos is incredibly minimal. Once we get into peak season we will see supply, quality, and price issues disappear.

High temperatures and humidity for an extended period of time create the perfect conditions for aphids and mildew quality issues. This week temperatures in the California desert regions moved into the low 80’s and all desert vendors are seeing increasing mildew and aphid pressure on warm veg items.