Hurricane Hilary delivered wind and rain to many of California’s table grape vineyards at peak harvest time for most of the 90 varieties grown in the state. The immediate aftermath of the hurricane brought additional rain and humidity to many growing areas, compounding problems and loss.

“The impact of the hurricane and its aftermath is devastating and heartbreaking,” said Kathleen Nave, president of the California Table Grape Commission. “To say that the grower and farmworker community is in shock is an understatement.”

After a slow start because of lingering volume from Mexico, California’s summer grape deal is currently operating on all cylinders heading toward its peak in September and expected solid volume through November and into December.

By the time Hurricane Hilary hit land and headed up through California, it had been downgraded to a tropical storm, which was clearly great news for homeowners and farmers alike.

The storm did some damage across the state, with the Palm Springs area and other desert towns being the hardest hit. It continued on that northeasterly path from Baja California with much of its power and rain unleashed in the Sierra foothills or on the other side of the Sierras. As such, the San Joaquin Valley was not hit as hard as expected.

Ian LeMay, president of the California Fresh Fruit Association, will become president and CEO of the California Table Grape Commission in the spring of 2025.

LeMay will succeed Kathleen Nave, who has served in the lead staff role since January 1999 when she succeeded Bruce Obbink. Nave joined the commission in 1987 and plans to retire in the spring of 2025. LeMay will join the commission staff as incoming president once he finds and successfully transitions his successor.

Spring has sprung and California avocado season has begun in earnest. Winter and early spring rains contributed to delaying the usual start of harvesting but were excellent for California avocado tree health. As a result, the 257 million pounds of California avocados estimated for this season likely will be concentrated from late April through summer. To bolster this volume, the California Avocado Commission is engaged with marketing support at full throttle.

Although the California avocado crop is smaller than last year, the 2023 marketing situation is much different than in 2022, and moving this year’s volume through the supply chain will create its own challenges. That seems to be the overarching view of several grower-shippers interviewed on the subject.

“The California avocado season is off to a slow start,” said Patrick Lucy, president of Del Rey Avocado Co. in Fallbrook, CA. “Because of the weather – we’ve had weeks of rain and wet groves – there has been a delay in the harvest.”