TUNA
The catch in the month of May remains poor. The fish continue to swim at deeper levels due to warm water. SKIPJACK is already above the level of $2,000/mt. Some say $2,200-$2,300/mt are possible to see in July/August. The demand for yellowfin is still sending to frozen loin steak while the canning size of yellowfin is at the level of $2,300/mt at the moment. There is no change in albacore in terms of catch and its price which is at the level of $3,200/mt. Pole & Line Albacore remain in short supply.
Raw Material Price
SKJ = US $2,100/ton
YFN = US $2,300/ton
Albacore = US $3,200/ton
Tongol = US $2,100/ton
GREEK PEPPERONCINI
The crop for Greek Pepperoncini is expected to be late by two weeks due to the recent rains as well as to plants being exposed to the later high summer temperatures.
Similar to last year, the growers keep facing challenges with the availability of the field workers, as a result of the worldwide labor situation. Packers already had to provide their growers with higher raw material pricing just to help them cover their increased costs, as otherwise they were reluctant to grow this year. Packers are concerned that additional increases may be necessary to stimulate growers, but to what extent is subject to the weather and labor conditions.
Currently, the forecast is that there will be at least 5% increase of prices of Pepperoncini products.
COCONUT
At present, the Coconut supply and pricing have stabilized, but we don’t expect that to continue long into the coming months. Increased demand and adverse weather conditions could have negative effects on the market. As Importers delayed buying to focus on selling off expensive inventory, there will soon be gaps to fill on the shelves. Importers will soon be rushing to replenish stock and cover needs before capacities are filled.
The demand for young fresh coconut from China continues to be high. The El Nino weather system is approaching and will also impact the supply with high heat and drought conditions. Coming out of the 3rd consecutive year of La Nina, which has never happened before in history, experts are expecting these severe El Nino drought conditions to last longer than usual. With the expected increase in demand and decrease of supply, there is only one direction for prices to go. Buyers
should be looking to place orders soon while supply and pricing are in their favor.
PINEAPPLE
The supply situation of pineapple is not good, production in Thailand will fall to the lowest level in more than a decade. Normally, the fruit volume will increase after long holidays in mid April, going into the summer crop. This year supply is worse than expected due to drought, which affects size and volume of the incoming fruits. Rainfall later on won’t help as the season will last only 1.5-2 more months. Choice grade is difficult to find. There’s high possibility of El Nino that will happen in Indonesia on second half of this year. Even packers have put effort to anticipate this to reduce the impact. However, they still foresee the raw material will be tight.
OLIVE OIL
The lack of rain in the spring period along with low level of water reservoirs, endangers the water supply of the irrigated plantations in the summer period. Dry plantations already suffer hydric stress.
High temperatures in the month of April have advanced the blossom, and in a considerable percentage the flowers have burned. These facts make the sector think that the next harvest can be at the same level as the current one, with the disadvantage of arriving without any carry over from this year, due to low availability. This situation is shooting up olive oil prices to levels never seen before. Acme will continue looking at the market and global data in our effort to provide an accurate forecast for the next crop.
ROASTED RED PEPPERS
The weather conditions in Peru are the main factor affecting the July crop. Heavy rains caused a delay in the planting stage of the new season and are expected to result in 10%-15% less raw material. Another concern is the weather temperature being 4-5C higher than usual. Although Pepper plants like heat, extra irrigation is critical and should be in place. With lots of water resources available to Peruvian agricultural areas, growers are hoping that at the end they will have a good season for Peppers and would be able to meet the market demand.
MUSHROOMS
The ITC final determinations have been published and are in effect. These Anti-Dumping Duties on canned mushrooms will have a huge impact on pricing and availability in the US market. With limited supply and option that are outside the scope of ADD, Buyers will find it hard to be competitive. If Buyers haven’t yet secured supply, they will be forced to make the tough choice between keeping shelves stocked or not participating in this market.
OTHER NEWS
THE EURO
In the past few months, Euro currency has undergone a variety of ups and downs, influenced by interest rates, economic factors and political events. Bank analysts still project 1.05 to 1.10 range for the rest of the year, they think the FX currency market will face uncertainties in Q3 and will enter a period of relative stability when we approach the year end. The European Central Bank (ECB) have taken various measures this year to stabilize the euro and prevent a breakup.
