One of the things I have become exposed to on the tropical beaches and gently waving palms of Product (A)Isle is the changing of the agricultural year as denoted by the fruits we feature and are on sale.
When I originally started working in earnest in July, cherries were the top of our list. Throughout July and even into August, we went through 8 to 10 flats of cherries even during my limited shifts. Most of the cherries were from Washington. Some just came in boxes, their bags encased on white plastic bags, others came in artfully decorated boxes with full colour inserts telling us how these were carefully grown in an artisanal style.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, our customers have no concern about the artisanal nature of cherries and are purely concerned with price. Out went the bags of cherries with the inserts and decorated boxes to grace a recycle bin.
Cherries in turn gave way to stone fruits and their kin. Peaches and nectarines graced the coconut groves. On the whole they are easier to deal with as they containers they mostly come in - black folding containers called IFCOs which undoubtedly stands for something I cannot remember - can be easily stacked on the tables and slanted shelves, and the cardboard boxes that the rest come in are easily manageable in terms of weight distribution - the fruits being more fragile than, say, onions, and are packaged accordingly.
One additional advantage of stone fruits: unlike cherries, where the unwritten code seemed to be "it is okay to sample and spit your pit out on the floor", stone fruits are much too big to each sample and spit the pits to the side. (We are still finding cherry pits on the floor under things from three months ago; my view of human nature on the whole remains as dismal as it ever was.)
Stone fruits have in turn given way to grapes and pears and apples. These are more familiar fruits and timing to me as these were all grown in Old Home and local towns would have entire industries geared around them. Most of the applies we have are the ones that we usually have throughout the year, although there are some specialties (Sweet Tango, Kanzi) which seem to have appeared. At least three kinds of pears as well which I find amusing: my memory of pears growing up was from a single tree that my mother faithfully canned for many years and of which I could not tell you the name.
What comes next? Frankly, I have no idea - but that is one of the joys of this job among the many including no after work emails and being able to leave the job on the beaches and in the groves. It is nice to have a job where more than likely the surprises are all actually pleasant and educational ones.
What's next? I'm going to guess citrus fruits. I confess I think of grocery stores as having all things at all times of the year, although I notice that the prices fluctuate seasonally, of course.
ReplyDeleteI don't buy much produce anymore but stick with what we grow ourselves. That makes it easier to keep the food budget under control.
Leigh, I suspect you are right in terms of citrus - certainly from my point of view, the best grapefruits in the world (from the Rio Grande Valley) are available in December, as are the best mandarins.
DeleteActually, seasonal pricing and deals are the key to understanding what is in season (e.g., what is seasonal at the moment), I suspect because it is plentiful and they want to move it. Availability is a good sign as well, although some things are available all year (like mandarins and grapes, for example) while cherries simply disappear.
I confess that even though we buy our groceries including the product, I now try to make sure as much as possible is the in-house brands for the employee discount.
Thank you for the lessons on putting up fruit at the supermarket / co-op. It appears like the job is suiting your life. It is nice having a job that begins and ends at the store without having to worry about in-coming email requests the next day.
ReplyDeleteYou are more than welcome. It certainly is a pretty unique writing niche, if nothing else.
DeleteI have had to take work home (at least mentally) for so long, I had forgotten what it is like to just "have a job".
Nice indeed to have a job that's non-electronically connected, leave the work site and the job stays there. Cherries and grapes, some shoppers believe they have a mandate to sample them before paying for them.......(sigh).
ReplyDeleteNylon12, it is a good "mental flossing" after my usual workday.
DeleteEven if they would just eat the cherry and hold on to the pit or throw it away, that is one thing. To just "conveniently'" leave it on the floor...
Although I have been known to smell fruit to get a handle on ripeness, I have never sampled any while in a store. I find it bizarre and unsanitary.
ReplyDeleteWe generally buy fruit only when it is in season locally so we aren't getting stuff picked green in the southern hemisphere and shipped here. The one exception is bananas which we buy year round and are always picked green and shipped here from distant countries.
Ed, the thought would never had occurred to me at all. The fact that this apparently is a common practice was pretty disturbing.
DeleteNormally I would have said oranges, but with all the droughts and severe weather, I don't know.
ReplyDeleteFall is nut harvest time. Gourds, squash and the like.
Will be interested to see in your next post. :-)
Eclipse Saturday around noon.
You all be safe and God bless.
Linda It will be interesting to see what impact there is.
DeleteInterestingly, we do not get a lot of seasonal vegetables in the same way, or at least as noticeably.