Blueberries—While the latest week of data highlights shows Blueberries significantly behind last year, we are at least seeing some jump in volume when we compare it to the week prior, most of the incremental volume is coming from FNQ, with a little bit extra coming from Northern NSW vs the week prior, however, Northern NSW volume is still holding back. The additional volume continues to correlate with the good weather conditions we have seen in the past few weeks and the lack of rain. Due to additional volume coming from the industry from FNQ, we are seeing prices in NSW and QLD coming back this week. We thought it might hold a little higher for one more week, but it seems as though there is enough to move it down again this week. Also note that at the higher price points, it does not take a lot of volume to move prices back down. However, as the market starts moving lower in price, we will see significantly more traction and demand at each price point on the way down.
Far North QLD—The weather in FNQ continues to look good for the next week at least; there is some rain forecast next week, but it’s unlikely to have any effect on the harvest. Maximum temperatures will be in the mid-20s, with minimums between 10 and 116,
Coffs Coast—Another week of good weather is forecasted for the Coffs Coast Region. We have seen more volume in the last week, but harvest days are not going past 1-2 days per week for most growers. Quality from the region has not been great to this point, but we expect it to improve with more fruit coming on in the next month.
Strawberries—Whilst we are well ahead on volume vs the same time last year, the market is not picking up with the large jumps in volume that we would expect to see at this point (given that planting went in on time). Some farms will be ready to jump in the coming weeks, but other farms that have had some early fruit are not seeing much flower in behind the first flush and are a couple of weeks behind. In WA, the Southwest is all but finished, with Wanneroo/Perth fruit taking over the bulk of production now in WA.
Raspberries—Northern NSW / Southeast QLD growers are starting to come off the flush of volume they had 10-14 days ago. A lot of the Coffs Coast Growers are in their final couple of weeks. Retailers in NSW may look to push a promo price for one last week. However, it’s unlikely that there is enough volume to support it, so we may see mixed retail pricing in NSW this week. Quality across the board continues to be pretty good.
Blackberries—Production dropped significantly week on week. However, this is off a small base and can see large swings in percentages whilst the volume is minimal.
