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                sourcing a variety of organic grapes year- round.
“For four weeks, Pandol will have organic grapes of all three colors. Additionally, we
have two growers with Fair Trade certifica- tions,” says Pandol. “We have six varieties in the 5-to-50,000 box range and five varieties in the 50-to-500,000 box range.”
Shippers who invested in organic grapes out of Mexico have been rewarded with increasing sales.
“We started our organic program in Hermosillo last year, and that volume will double this year,” says Earl McMenamin, California and Mexican grape manager at Pacific Trellis Fruit in Los Angeles. “We’re
excited with the growth of our new organics from Hermosillo. We have green, red, and black organic grapes, and I don’t think many people have all three colors.”
There are also other efforts to tailor the supply coming out of Mexico to suit consumer preferences.
“Currently, there is a global shift to newer varieties of seedless grapes of all colors; Mexico is no exception,” says Tom “TW” Wilson, grape sales manager at Giumarra Companies in Los Angeles.“We are working
  SMALLER WINDOW
Table grape production is far smaller in the spring than summer and even more modest than the winter harvest from Chilean vineyards.
“This year, there will be 3 million boxes from Chile and 1.1 million from Mexico,” says Earl McMenamin, Cali- fornia and Mexican grape manager at Pacific Trellis Fruit in Los Angeles. “We have a significant amount of spring grapes. Our earliest ranch is in Guayamas, where we start in late April with Perlettes. That ranch also produces Sugraone. La Costa is our next ranch, with Flames and Perlettes around May 12 and Summer Royal around May 15. Our last ranch in Caborca will last us through June. We finish up the first of July, and the California’s Central Valley starts.”
Shippers tend to prefer arranging sales terms to be more stable than might be dictated by unpredictable changes in short-term supply.
“We base our programs and the amount of grapes that we want to promote and commit, not on what is happening with the weather in a particular grape growing region or another,” says Miguel Suarez, presi- dent of MAS Melons & Grapes in Rio Rico, AZ. “Our programs are developed mostly on information on how many hectares are going to be participating on the supply of our region. In our opinion, it is way too risky try to struc- ture a program based on a particular weather problem.”
It is possible for some retailers to make pricing arrangements in advance to ensure adequate supply throughout the spring.
“Most of the business is priced two to three weeks out,” says John Pandol, director of special projects at Pandol Bros in Delano, CA. “A few retailers who require either large volumes or special packs set prices in tiers through the season to ensure supply. That appeals to some growers.” pb
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