IN FRUIT: 
Blood oranges from the Riverina region in south western NSW are really great eating this week. A relatively short season, blood oranges have that distinctive berry/citrus taste that make the fruit so unique and sought after. Limes are expensive so lemons are a good option and there’s plenty of great value to be had in our Imperfect lemons. Imperfect lemons are showing the effect of a windy growing season but are perfectly juicy.

The headline act in fruit this week is undoubtedly Queensland strawberries. A week of excellent growing conditions see the strawberry numbers on the move and the quality is amazing. Blueberry volumes are gaining momentum. Once again, good growing conditions means the fruit is just the way we like it –  firm, crunchy and sweet.

IN VEG: 
Plenty of goods thing happening in the markets this week with broccoli, baby broccoli, silver beet, celery, cabbages, Chinese cabbage, imperfect tomatoes all in good supply. Tomatoes (in particular our Imperfects) from Bowen in North Queensland are excellent this week and a fantastic alternative to truss tomatoes which are both short in supply and expensive.

Cauliflowers from QLD, VIC and NSW are also outstanding in quality and value this week. There are strong numbers in the markets with all growing regions producing good volumes. Perhaps the best news is that the Australian asparagus season is about to start in the next few weeks. With the challenges facing exporters, I suspect it will be a good season for consumers.