Archive for December, 2018

Earl’s Organic Buyer’s Notes December 30th

December 30, 2018 | Susan

Mexico is bracing for a cold weather front over the weekend. Temperatures are expected to reach as low as 35 degrees in the growing regions of Sonora and Sinaloa. Warm veg items including cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers and summer squash are all expected to be tight next week.

Cold weather is also expected in the California desert and Yuma, AZ growing regions. Organic Girl is expecting heavy lettuce ice through the weekend. However, with the exception of mache and romaine leaves, they are in good shape on all items next week. Stay tuned for weather related updates from your Earl’s Sales Rep.

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Earl’s Organic Produce Buyer’s Notes December 16th

December 17, 2018 | Susan

The first land of Forbidden Blueberries out of Santa Maria is here! Coming soon- Buddah Hands and Page Mandarins from Cunningham Farm located in a secluded valley next to the Cleveland National Forest between Fallbrook and Temecula in San Diego County.

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Forbidden Blueberries Expanding Program

December 10, 2018 | Susan

Sandy Newman and James Ontiveros

We are very excited to announce that after 13 years Forbidden Fruit Orchard is expanding its organic blueberry program. After years of mastering her craft, grower Sandy Newman of Forbidden Fruit has partnered up with 9th generation California producer, James Ontiveros. James has a long history of growing both wine grapes and blueberries and has a dedicated love of farming and the land that supports Sandy’s like-minded mission. These growers both focus on producing low-chill blueberry varieties in the coastal, sub-tropical microclimates of Lompoc & Santa Maria. As these farms grow on the shoulders of California’s central valley blueberry season they provide local, California blueberries year round. More importantly, the flavor is outstanding! The Lompoc farm will continue to produce high quality blueberries in both late spring and early fall while the Santa Maria ranch harvests from mid-fall through spring. With this new and invigorating partnership expansion, we expect to provide many more months of certified organic California blueberries.

Forbidden Blueberries out of Santa Maria landing as early as Tuesday this week! Ask your Earl’s Sales Rep for more information.

Earl’s Organic Produce Buyer’s Notes December 9th

December 9, 2018 | Susan

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Rainy Weather Patterns Affect Sweet Potato Condition

December 5, 2018 | Susan

Sweet potatoes are harvested once a year in late August to early September, stored and then packed to order. Sweet Potatoes can tolerate high heat however, they preferred to be stored in a cool and dry place. As the season goes on they go to sleep, only to be woken up once they are removed from the micro-environments they are stored in. As the rainy weather starts we have gone from an extremely dry environment to a very wet environment. The excess moisture in the air is the catalyst for the sweet potatoes to wake up and can cause them to have a shorter shelf life.

During the wet winter months we recommend:

*Not washing sweet potatoes until they are ready to be cooked.

*Store in a cool (over 55 degrees F), dry, well-ventilated area away from light.

*Do not refrigerate sweet potatoes unless they are already cooked. Cold temperatures will give sweet potatoes a hard core and affect the flavor.

Try these delicious sweet potato recipes all year long.

Earl's Organic Guide to Sweet Potatoes no Thanksgiving mention