REPORT

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SEAFOOD SHRIMP, DOMESTIC (WHITES AND BROWNS): New season opened as scheduled on Monday, August 15. The fleet is out shrimping and we expect to see shrimp to the dock this weekend. Prices continue to rise as we leave the spring catch and inventory is low. DOMESTIC PUDS: New season opened Monday, August 15. There is a shortage of mid-sized PUDS. SHRIMP, IMPORTED (BLACK TIGER AND WHITES): Black Tiger Shrimp 26/30 and smaller are starting to firm up in price. Tiger inventory is low and we feel pricing will continue to rise as we get closer to the holiday season. Farmed whites, both Asian and Latin America, are seeing price increases. This market is unstable with pricing and product. (MEXICAN BROWNS AND WHITES): Mexican farmed shrimp are seeing a decrease in production. This will have an effect on Asian and Latin American Whites. Wild Mexican shrimp should get in full harvest swing by the end of August. CATFISH, DOMESTIC & IMPORTED DOMESTIC: With this warm weather pattern in the South, farmers are now able to feed fish daily. Fish are growing fast but the warm weather has caused algae blooms that have caused off flavors, so harvest has been slow. Outlook is for a good season, late but good. IMPORTED: New season produced a fair amount of fish. Prices remain high due to USDA bill and uncertain costs associated with inspections. We are going to see higher pricing next week. Long-term outlook for the summer is higher pricing. SALMON CHILEAN FARMED SALMON: The fresh market is now firm on fish from Chile. Fish from Europe and Canada are seeing higher prices. However, frozen portions remain at a premium as those fish were priced during the strike and continuing algae bloom. Wild fresh Salmon catch is now reported to be lower than expected. MAHI MAHI The Mahi season for the most part is over in Peru and Ecuador. Fishing was subpar on larger fish, causing high prices and low inventory. Most feel the Central and South American product is the best quality. Make sure you are comparing “apples to apples” on Country of Origin. SCALLOPS SEA: Pricing is starting to see signs of weakening 10/20, and 20/30 Dry Scallops could be at or near the bottom. BAY: Pricing is now steady, but we feel there is some more upside to this market. Inventory is tight. TILAPIA Pricing is unstable with reports of a drought and salt water entering the ponds. Inventory in the US seems to be good; replacement cost seem to be trending lower. 6 PANGASIUS We are seeing an uptick in prices that will happen as new product starts to hit the US. We expect to see unstable to higher pricing as the USDA starts to take over inspection of Imported Catfish. There have been some Vietnam producers shut down due to lack of profits. Shortages of small fillets (3-5 oz) are causing this price rise. WHITEFISH COMPLEX COD: The market for Atlantic and Pacific Cod continues to see stronger pricing. It is expected to see cod pricing higher than haddock this year. Pacific Cod fishing was a good catch. POLLOCK: The fishery for Pacific Pollock has produced just smaller fish (2-4 oz ) fillets. This could cause an inventory issue for once frozen loins if they don’t start catching larger fish. HADDOCK: Production seems to be in good shape with continued fishing. Additional fish from the Bering Sea are keeping pricing down. Some suppliers feel we can see these lower prices through Lent 2017. Summer fish are being harvested. This will be softer flesh fish and we may see this fish at a discount . TUNA, YELLOWFIN (FROZEN STEAKS & LOINS): Tuna is fairly stable in pricing and inventories are good. SWORDFISH The catch in Central and South America has been slow, with mostly smaller fish being caught. We could see higher pricing as this fish hits the market. KING CRAB (RED & GOLDEN): King Crab pricing is unsteady at this time. Inventories are getting low and we could see higher prices throughout the summer. CRABMEAT (BLUE & RED, PASTEURIZED): Imports on Blue and Red Swimming crab are stable and pricing seems to be steady at this point. Mexico is now on conservation on the West Coast. SNOW CRAB ALASKAN: Vendors are reporting they are out of product and will not have any more until the new season. The new quota should be out by the end of October. CANADIAN: Pricing moved up a little this week but many think that we are at or near the top. We are seeing retail step into the market in these summer months, keeping pressure on the 5-8 market both in price and inventory. LOBSTER TAILS NORTH AMERICAN LOBSTER: Production is picking up and we could see more inventory soon. With any luck this will lead to lower pricing. LOBSTER TAILS WARM-WATER: Warm-water tails are now steady on all sizes. LOBSTER MEAT: Pricing remains firm, and inventory is tight.

PRODUCE VEGETABLES POTATOES Russet: Burbanks are done with Norkotahs in full production. Current market is flat with exception to 80s and smaller. Non-Idaho russets from Washington are down again on all sizes, while Wisconsin is starting up. Reds: A lot of reds are available in Wisconsin and Washington. Current market is down over last week as supplies improve. Yellows: Yellow potatoes are tighter which caused the market to go up over last week from Washington. Wisconsin just started and should have more volume next week. GARLIC Chinese Peeled Garlic pricing continues to be high this week and supplies continue to be limited. The process of peeling the new California Garlic crop remains slow due to lack of curing. Skins hold tighter on the cloves which slows the peeling process. CABBAGE Cabbage market is mixed this week. Cabbage out of Oxnard District California and Western/Central New York are down. Cabbage out of Michigan is up. Cabbage out of Central Coast California is flat. Supply is light and demand is moderate. LEAF LETTUCE Red and Green Leaf: Quality and supplies are good with good demand, but the market is slightly up over last week. Current concerns continue to be insect damage, fringe burn, brittle, light dehydration, frog skin, occasional seeder and leggy. Weights are generally 20 to 24 lbs in both red and green leaf. Romaine: Unlike the Red and Green Leaf, market is slightly down over last week with more volume. Current quality issues include insect damage, fringe burn, brittle, light dehydration, frog skin, occasional seeder and leggy. Weights are around low 30s to low 40s. ONIONS Sizing has become more consistent but peaking still on jumbos and mediums. Washington has increased its volume, which has forced the market to go down again on all sizes. Idaho and Oregon also have good volume and the overlap is causing the market to go down. New Mexico and California are winding down and should be done soon. CHILE PEPPERS Chile pepper market is mixed this week. Jalapeño and Serrano markets are up. Poblano peppers are down. Supply and demand are moderate. CUCUMBERS Supplies are mainly coming out of Michigan. Demand continues to be sluggish. There are quality issues with the product, which is causing lower volume. The current market is flat over last week. Western cucumbers are out of Baja and quality is extremely variable. Market is generally steady as demand is weak. Supplies are expected to remain tight for the next 10 days to two weeks when new fields will come into production. SQUASH Yellow Squash: Supplies are mainly coming out of Michigan. Demand continues to be sluggish. Quality issues are appearing due to weather. Market is slightly up over last week. Zucchini: Michigan is the main sourcing region. Current market is slightly up over last week. Supplies in the West are coming out of Santa Maria and Washington. Quality is good but becoming variable. GREEN BEANS Green bean market is mixed this week. Round Green Type are up. Haricot Verts are down. Supply is light and demand is light. ICEBERG LETTUCE Supplies and demand are good, which is keeping the market flat over last week. Common issues include brittle, insect damage, misshapen, big vein, mildew and mechanical. Solidity has been irregular and ranges from fairly firm to firm. Head size is generally medium to medium plus. Weights are ranging from high 30s to mid 40s. 7