"We convened on a conference call with our members across the state on July 25," Julia Stewart, spokesperson for the New York Apple Association headquartered in Fishers, NY, told The Produce News. They forecasted then that crop would be 30 million bushels, just slightly above our average of 29.5 million but not as high as our 2013 crop which was estimated at 32 million."

Stewart added that this season's crop could get even larger as the apples tend to get bigger when the weather is as great as New York's has been throughout this growing season.

Potato sales for U.S. growers pose interesting questions. Eighteen percent of the crop is exported, but statistics on domestic potato consumption create a mystery, according to Mike Carter, co-chair of the domestic marketing committee for the U.S. Potato Board and a member of the board's executive committee.

Carter, who is also the chief executive officer of Bushmans' Inc., located in Rosholt, WI, said that "overall meal occasions" for U.S. consumers to use potatoes have gone up, but domestic consumption "by volume is down [and] that is counter-intuitive."

Garlic prices held up remarkably well on the whole in 2013 in spite of the large volume of garlic imported from China. This year, the Chinese crop is expected to be down a little in volume, which should make for stronger markets in the United States, according to James (Jim) Provost, managing partner of I Love Produce LLC in Kelton, PA.

Provost had just returned from a trip to China when The Produce News talked to him July 24.

For Peter Warren, business development for Ayco Farms Inc. in Pompano Beach, FL, the Peruvian asparagus deal can be boiled down to a simple equation: a good f.o.b. price equals retail promotions, which equals good sales.

“You can sell 10 times more product [at retail] if the price is $2.99 than if it is $5.99,” he stated.

More than most items, he said asparagus is price-sensitive and reacts very favorably to promotions and promotion pricing. Consequently, he gets frustrated when the price drifts higher and promotions dry up.

Capitalizing on the growing popularity of the locally grown trend, Baloian Farms, based in Fresno, CA, announced a partnership with Michigan growers to offer retailers their sauté kits with locally grown squash. This value-added product features yellow and green squash with a seasoning packet included.

Tozer Seeds announced that it has entered into exclusive marketing agreements with six companies to grow and market Kalettes, the kale and brussels sprouts hybrid.

The companies that have entered into the marketing agreement with Tozer for Kalettes are 4Earth Farms, Classic Salads, Mann Packing, Ocean Mist Farms, Southern Specialties and WP Rawl. As part of the agreement, Kalettes seeds will be sold by Johnny's Select Seeds to small farmers and home growers.