Clouds around my ankles?

Well the sky has fallen on the historical onion market so much that the clouds are around my ankles. Potato prices have also calmed down and now we can get down to business. Lets recap.

POTATOES:
Russets are steady as they go in Idaho. 60's and large still tight but 2's and small spuds readily available. Wisconsin is winding down and are still shipping good quality at this time. Whites are in season in CA and look very nice. Yukons also shipping from CA and the price is down a bit from last week and will continue to adjust into next week as more guys go online with heavy volume. Reds...practically every state. CA, AZ, FL, TX and ND are all shipping. My pick for best color is AZ and best value would be FL. Value meaning where color and price meet appropriately.

SWEET POTATOES:
Tight..quantities are getting slim so be patient.

ONIONS:
South TX is trying to clean up with lots of volume availble which has caused a sloppy market. At the same time southern CA also has heavy vloume and is looking for orders. West TX is starting next week and we will see where this thing is headed. Right now it almost seems buyers can name their prices and shippers are grudgingly accepting. We will see what happens when TX cleans up.

Have a tremendous day.

Freedom Kongvold
Philip G Ball CO
570-586-5700

Don't forget to breathe.....

As the crazy high markets on onions start to come down it is going to be very important for buyers to not forget to breathe! When you buy at $50 and 10 minutes later it's $45 this could cause the most seasoned buyer hold his breathe and then forget he is holding his breathe as it hits $40.00 5 minutes after that. Lets recap..
ONIONS - Texas has some motivated shippers with heavy volumes available and southern CA starting up. Jumbo whites have fallen off their chair and yellows are trickling southward. Reds however remain strong as volume is low. Keep buying heavy but sell fast. Contracts are now beeing accepted in ID for the next season so call us to get posted on what they are priced at. You will be blown away!
POTATOES - Russets moving along with normal flow from most areas this time of year. Big sizes are in big demand the market keeps getting stronger as the days go by. Small bag prices are stagnant and there are motivated sellers abound. Good time to run some ads. Whites and YUkons are HOT as florida is cleaned up. This is will be the hot potato item for some time. Not much will be available in N.Florida and CA is digging up small size and low yields. Reds are about to be the buffet item. Starting next week you will have ND,CA, AZ, S.FL and N.FL all shipping reds. But for now bees do not exist and ayes are plentiful.

Have a great week.

Freedom Kongvold
Philip G Ball Company
570-586-5700

Markets which way?

Your guess is as good as the rest of the industry. Receivers are optimistics that markets will come down on onions next week with the start of Texas and shippers are still preaching lower yields..who is right? Lets take a quick walk thru some markets. SWEET POTATOES...markets are steady with some push upwards in MS & LA. Jumbos are not as easy as they were in NC so order ahead for your Easter action. POTATOES....WHITES - CA will be starting up again with volume around 4/16 and until then it is all FL which is why the markets jumped again. YUKONS..same story as whites. REDS..still good supply in ND and people are getting liking them more and more as FL raises their prices higher and higher. Strange turn of events this week though as FL raised their prices yet again, sold out for the week and then lowered their prices for next weeks business? Try planning ahead when shippers are doing crazy stuff like that! RUSSETS..WI is steady as she goes. ID has raised their carton market up again ever so stightly, two's are up as well but consumers seem to remain flat. ONIONS...TX will start shipping with volume next week and this is what we have been waiting for. BUt for now WHITES- No choice but Mexico product which are not the prettiest we've ever seen but when there isn't anything else they work. REDS...WA still has some holding their high price and proud of it. Mexico also good supplies of Jumbo & Medium reds coming across. YELLOWS..WA is still shipping with good solid product with great shells. Don't let them get warm or you will have instant chia pets. Markets are steady where they were last week. Mexico also good availability but tailing off just in time of TX. Be carefull as you navigate these markets in the next couple of weeks as there will be changes on all items as districts change and product remains tight. Have fun!

Freedom Kongvold
Philip G Ball Company
570-586-5700

Markets a soaring...

Well this isn't pretty so let's get through it quickly. POTATOES....RUSSETS - Markets in Idaho on non-aye are still flat with the carton market on the rise. Sheds are not at full speed since they do not have enough business on non-aye. REDS-Florida where have you gone?! All of a sudden red ayes are hard to get and the markets are gaining ground on new crop reds. Sangre variety are still available in ND with weaker color but fair prices. WHITES - Florida at sunstantial prices and no repreive till CA comes back in (2weeks from now). YUKONS- Good luck finding good ones and when you find them good luck getting the quantioties you need. Florida is your only shot at quality. ONIONS....YELLOWS - markets are up to $28 in WA and $35 in TX. Everyone is holding their breathe hoping that Texas crops will help with these prices...don't hold your breath. WHITES- easy one. Texas at $50. REDS - tight in WA and TX and prices are demanding. Smaller buyers are buying second hand to limit inventories which gives large wholesalers some extra demand to replace the slower regular sales. Have a great week and keep the letters coming.

Freedom Kongvold
www.philipgball.com

Current Update..

Today lets start with onions. One word..HOT! The market on white & red onions is wild. While the whites have been able to command $44-$55 depending on loading location at least you can load at will. The reds however have increased in price to $12-$15 dep[ending on location but hard as heck to get load volumes. Yellows have stagnated a bit and we might start to see some motivated sellers. SWEET POTATOES....Market is good with strong prices and low inventories in Louisiana & Mississippi. North Carolina has good supply of one's and two's but be wary of the Jumbo availability in the short term. POTATOES...Tis the season for reds with St. Patty's day quickly approaching. Make sure to have your red bees booked in ahead but I wouldn't expect anyone to get shorted since there is a good supply of bees this year in both ND and FL. Reds in Florida are looking sharp. Regarding whites the CA gang should be gapping for a month which puts the pressure on FL to keep us all supplied. Watch for higher prices? Russets are, how should we say......available. Slow market and deals being made on non aye. Cartons and two's are in demand but sheds are running slower due to the sleepiness on the packages. TRUCKS... plenty looking for loads. Give us a call for any information you need on the current markets and availablity.

Freedom Kongvold
www.philipgball.com

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