Italian Parsley will be very limited for the next 2-3 weeks due to rain.
In August, tropical storm Hillary inflicted severe damage on California's central valley grape crops, particularly in the Delano area, where grapes suffered from extensive decay and dehydration, requiring individual grape clipping. Growers were proactively combating mold and mildew, but some fields had to be abandoned. 35% of the August thru November crop is estimated to be lost.
The grape season in California is predicted to conclude in early November, potentially resulting in a supply shortage between domestic and imported grapes. This situation is causing prices to surge and significantly reducing the shelf life of grapes, thus impacting the market substantially.
We have started to see the impact of these events on grape arrivals and have started to reject products due to quality. We will continue to do everything we can to secure quality product to fulfill as many of your orders as possible. However, this will be a challenge, and shortages are possible from now until imported grapes become available. Import arrivals are expected to start slowly in late November or early December, with supplies ramping up towards the end of December to stabilize the market.
- - Estimated 25 million cases lost to storm damage
- - Growers trying to clip out split skins and mildew during harvest.
- - Higher than normal shatter is likely.
- - The domestic season is expected to end before imports begin.