Prime Time Shifting Pepper Production to Central Coast
OXNARD, CA - Prime Time International is on the move, having recently transitioned its pepper production to the Central Coast of California. Product will be with shipping from Oxnard for the next three months.
Mike Aiton, Director of Marketing, tells us, “This growing area generally produces our best quality of the year and as production spikes, FOB pricing declines making market conditions very favorable.”
It is expected that the cooler weather will make production more predictable and consistent when compared to the first few months of the California season, Aiton notes. Supplies of red, yellow, green, and mini sweet peppers will be in peak supply for the next six weeks and promotional opportunities are abundant.
Mini Sweet peppers continue to be a growing category at Prime Time and acreage and production have increased dramatically this year to meet the rising demand.
To accommodate the increased production, Prime Time has equipped its packing house in the city of Oxnard, with two high speed, state of the art, packing machines to handle the volume. Consistency of quality, weight and appearance will all be maximized with these new additions.
The company can also pack any combination of counts and colors thata retailer might want. Prime Time’s fully automated flow through system enables the company to quickly change to accommodate the many requirements of its customers.
As the California drought continues, Mike notes, “We are near the tipping point. Managing water and getting by with as little as possible has been a real challenge this season. Unless there are dramatic increases in available water, 2015 will be a very difficult one in the Ventura County growing areas.”
Currently, the set on the plants is heavy and volume will increase accordingly. Harvest is running about seven days earlier than a year ago which seems to bea recurring theme throughout California this year, he notes. Quality and sizing both appear to be outstanding at this time.
Prime Time will be in Oxnard until approximately the first of November before transitioning to Baja, California and Coachella until the first of next year.
