Dave's Market Update
In Fruit
“More fabulous fruit specials this week. Leading the charge this week are fabulous new season Gala apples from Bilpin, just 2 hours’ drive from our Sydney shops. The Stanhope fruit in Queensland is still a week away so Sydney will supply the Qld stores for a short time. Be wary of Victorian fruit, some of it is OK but a large part of it is still immature and won’t eat well. Sadly, cherries are now finished.
Limes, peaches and nectarines are all top quality and cheap. Imperfect apricots are still a good option and we have a sensational line of very large west Australian Hass avocados at a bargain price.A fantastic Honey Gold mango special is in every HFM store. Enjoy the summer weather with fruit to please every taste.
In Veg
The hot steamy days have adversely affected many veg crops and as a result, volumes on most lines are way down. Of course, prices are rising as always but there are exceptions to this notably, pre-pack carrots and as the week goes on green Shanghai.
Our buyers will be scanning the markets for other opportunities and by this weekend, I expect other opportunities will arise.”
-David Harris
Dave's Pick of the Week
“This week, we have beautiful new season Gala apples in-stores. Any other apple comes from last year’s harvest and is therefore at least 8 months old. They are still OK to eat but won’t have that crisp fresh flavour of a new season apple.
Our fruit is at this time grown in Bilpin in the Blue Mountains, about 50 kms as the crow flies from most of our NSW stores. It’s on our shelves within a couple of days of picking, this local fruit is far better eating than the somewhat immature Victorian fruit that is flooding into the Sydney markets. The Bilpin fruit is surprisingly inexpensive and just the ideal for the school lunch box. Crunchy, sweet, healthy and attractively priced as well – a great option this week.
All indications are that this is going to be a fantastic year for apples.”
- David Harris
HOW TO PICK Choose firm fruit - the flesh of the apple should not easily give way to finger pressure.
HOW TO STORE
To keep your apples fresher for longer especially with the current hot weather, store them in the fridge.