VERO BEACH, FL - With the Mexican grape season finally here, Seald Sweet’s Category Manager Chris DeSana took the time to give me some insights on the current forecast for the season’s kickoff.

“The United States is the target audience for grapes grown in Mexico, with limited amounts exported to other markets,” Chris tells me when sharing some of the estimates for the upcoming season, explaining that, typically, about 80 percent of Sonoran product ships to the U.S. and Canada. “The greatest potential for far reaching markets would be new seedless varieties.”

The harvest season kicked off with the beginning of May, the two earliest regions being Obregon and Guaymas.

One change, Chris notes, is that this will be the first year that fruit will be commercially harvested in Obregon.

As for the challenges, so far Mother Nature continues to keep things interesting for growers.

“As an industry, it looks like the deal could be a little bit light in the early portion,” Chris says, explaining that adverse - meaning cooler - weather during bloom can affect timing and volume. “Mexico had some very cold weather and freezes in February during the bloom period. But overall the crop should be similar to last year – what was probably lost due to freeze damage should be gained by new plantings.”

But, with new grape production coming on in Mexico, Seald Sweet International is in continued growth mode with substantial volumes projected despite early season weather problems. The company is expecting shipments as high, or higher, than the previously tripled volumes it marketed during last year’s six-week Mexican season.

Last season’s growth, Chris tells me, will be seen when this season gets into full swing. “We tripled our program last year and are in continued growth mode this year with substantial volumes of product from both Hermosillo and Caborca growing regions. Continued development of this category has been an important part of our strategic plan. This enables our company to better serve our customers by meeting their needs in the grape category,” Chris says.

Once Seald Sweet gets into the peak harvest time frame, it anticipates promotional volumes of:

• Green Seedless grapes

• Red Seedless grapes

• Black Seedless grapes

• Red Globes

After things get rolling in May, the season is expected to run through the month of July.

AndNowUKnow will continue to keep in touch with Mexican grapes as they progress, as well as other Seald Sweet programs as they kick into gear, so stay tuned.

Seald Sweet