After an early start last year in virtually all items grown in New Jersey, including peaches, the 2013 New Jersey peach season is looking at a more normal harvest schedule, according to Joe Grasso of Frank Donio Inc. in Hammonton, NJ.

In fact, “We’re going to start packing our first Jersey peaches this weekend,” he told The Produce News Tuesday, July 2. “The peach season is definitely back to where it should be” as far as timing is concerned.

There was quite a bit of rain in the Garden State as well as in many parts of the eastern United States during the month of June, so there has been “heavier spraying than usual” of crops, said Grasso, who is in both buying and sales at the company, located in the southern part of the state.

Joe Grasso of Hammonton, NJ-based Frank Donio Inc.But he is looking forward to a good crop of peaches this coming season. “The way the weather’s been,” and after talking to some growers and others, “I think you’re going to get good fruit,” he stated.

Peaches included, Frank Donio Inc. handles a full line of fresh fruits and vegetables from all over the country, including its home state. “We pack for three growers who have [a combined] 450 acres of peaches,” said Grasso, who has been with Frank Donio Inc. for about 11 years. Those three New Jersey peach growers are located in Bridgeton, the Hammonton area and the Swedesboro area, he noted.

All the peaches are packed in Donio’s well-known “Top Crop” label.

And with summer having officially started fewer than two weeks before this interview, Grasso was eagerly anticipating not only peaches but all the other items that the hot weather brings. As he put it simply, “We’re looking forward to getting some nice summer fruit.”