CALIFORNIA & MEXICO - Tropical Storm Kay hit with a unique intensity this weekend, bringing winds, flooding rains, and staggering temperatures to California and additional impacts to Western Mexico. Although downgraded to a tropical rainstorm on Saturday, many in the regions are still assessing the impacts left in Kay’s wake, according to an update by AccuWeather.

While many reports generalize about the impacts of the weather, Dante Galeazzi, President and Chief Executive Officer, Texas International Produce Association, joins me to discuss the most significant details relevant to our industry today.

“Companies and commodities in northwestern Mexico including the states of Baja California, Sonora, and Sinaloa are going to continue to assess the impacts of Tropical Storm Kay going into this week,” Dante shares. “Late Friday and Saturday, rain was reported in many of those regions, although the heaviest rains were more north near the U.S. and Mexico border.”

Dante brings us additional updates from the impacted areas as well including the detail that open field production in Southern Baja California experienced some production delays. Fortunately, the heaviest rains were further north, so after a few days of warm weather, production is expected to return to normal quickly thereafter.

“For example, mangos in northern Sinaloa experienced harvest delays, and we should expect further delays through this week as more rain is forecasted,” Dante reflects. “Additionally, greenhouse production on items that include tomatoes, bells, squash, etc. in Southern Sonora and Northern Sinaloa is expecting no impact, although we expect maybe small transportation delays. Further south in Mexico, tropical items such as pineapples, papayas, etc., in states like Colima are reporting very little to no impact as rains were light.”

It is important to note that individual companies will have their own unique reports on the impact of the storms, and so we advise direct communication with your grower partners on the most up-to-date information on the impacts of Tropical Storm Kay.

More information on the impacts to Southern California can be found in this report, and we will continue to bring you updates as we follow up with those companies based in these regions.