More than a delivery. FRESH and LOCAL PRODUCE with small town roots.
ROUND TOMATOES SUPPLY ISSUES
May 6, 2020
Dear Valued Customer,
We are experiencing a low supply situation with round tomatoes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the early stages of the pandemic in the US, sales for tomatoes fell to unprecedented numbers. With low sales numbers, limited staff to grow and pick the product, and uncertainty about when the market would begin to turn around, many farmers were forced to walk away from their fields or plow them under.
With the country opening back up, the demand is rising and we are starting to see a greater demand than supply. In addition to the low production, we are seeing the harvest process further delayed by new social distancing regulations. In times of low supply or poor quality within the US, many distributors turn to Mexico for additional supply to keep supplies up and pricing fair. Unfortunately, the enforcement of the new Suspension Agreement guidelines with respect to quality is causing higher than normal rejection figures at the border. This further aggravates the already low supply situation. We are expecting a low supply and high demand on round tomatoes over the next few weeks. This will result in high prices and varied quality while we wait for new production areas to ramp up and provide some relief.
We ask that you consider using Roma Tomatoes when possible, and keep in mind sizing and quality could vary greatly over the next few weeks. All tomatoes should be checked at time of delivery and returns handled at that time. At minimum, returns will have to be addressed within 24 hours of delivery. As always, we are thankful to be able to service you, and appreciate your patience as we navigate this season of uncertainty.
Thank you,
Taylor Boys’ Produce, Inc.
Public Opinion:
News from Taylor Boys' Produce, Inc.
COVID-19 NEWS
March 12, 2020
Thank you all for your continued partnership and belief in us as your fresh produce provider. With the rise in anxiety and concern over the past few days, we want to assure you we are doing everything in our power to prevent any disruption in service. We know the food service industry will undergo pressure, and we will be here with you, through the entire journey.
At Taylor Boys’ Produce, Inc., the health and safety of our customers and employees is our top priority. Like all businesses, we are closely monitoring the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. As information becomes available from the CDC and other industry experts, we are adapting our policies and procedures to ensure the health and safety of our employees and customers. We wanted to provide you with an update on actions we are taking in response to the outbreak.
It is important that we remember that COVID-19 has not been linked specifically to food products. The FDA’s website answers several questions in regards to this:
Q: Are food products produced in the United States a risk for the spread of COVID-19?
A: There is no evidence to suggest that food produced in the United States can transmit COVID-19.
Q: Can I get sick with COVID-19 from touching food, the food packaging, or food contact surfaces, if the coronavirus was present on it?
A: Currently there is no evidence of food or food packaging being associated with transmission of COVID-19. Like other viruses, it is possible that the virus that causes COVID-19 can survive on surfaces or objects. For that reason, it is critical to follow the 4 key steps of food safety -clean, separate, cook, and chill.
As a company that is dedicated to food safe practices and certified by PrimusGFS, we continue to make sure our rigorous GMPs and SOPs are strictly followed and have put additional measures into place that include:
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In addition to our current practice of sanitizing the trucks at the end of every route we are equipping our drivers with sanitation supplies in all trucks to sanitize the cab area frequently. Hand trucks will be sanitized frequently as well.
In addition to our current practice of sanitizing the trucks at the end of every route we are equipping our drivers with sanitation supplies in all trucks to sanitize the cab area frequently. Hand trucks will be sanitized frequently as well. •Reinforcing our existing training on effective hand washing and the use of personal protective equipment.
Reinforcing our existing training on effective hand washing and the use of personal protective equipment. •Employees are asked to clean and sanitize their cell phones daily.
Employees are asked to clean and sanitize their cell phones daily.•Reminding employees to stay home from work if they are sick, and staying home until they are symptom free for 24 hours without the aid of medication.
Reminding employees to stay home from work if they are sick, and staying home until they are symptom free for 24 hours without the aid of medication.•Non-punitive leave policies in place so that employees can be at home while sick or to care for sick family members.
Non-punitive leave policies in place so that employees can be at home while sick or to care for sick family members.•Implementing heightened facility sanitation practices, which includes making sure restrooms, break room, and frequently touched surfaces such as door knobs are sanitized often.
Implementing heightened facility sanitation practices, which includes making sure restrooms, break room, and frequently touched surfaces such as door knobs are sanitized often. •We are closing our facilities to any visitors and canceling work trips and events for the foreseeable future.
We are closing our facilities to any visitors and canceling work trips and events for the foreseeable future.•Sales team members are asked to not make any onsite visits for the foreseeable future.
Sales team members are asked to not make any onsite visits for the foreseeable future.•Planning for limited available staff by bolstering cross training, planning flexible work scheduling, and testing remote desktops to ensure managers can work from home.
Planning for limited available staff by bolstering cross training, planning flexible work scheduling, and testing remote desktops to ensure managers can work from home. We are making every effort to keep it business as usual for our customers, and encourage you to reach out to us with any questions, concerns, or requests.
Sincerely,
Taylor Boys’ Produce, Inc.
MUSHROOM SUPPLY ISSUES
May 15, 2020
Dear Valued Customer,
We could see shortages of fresh mushrooms over the next 6 to 10 weeks. Shortages are the result of heavy demand in retail markets and a significant decrease in foodservice over the last several weeks. This change has resulted in low supply for foodservice vendors. In addition to this, changes have been made at the farm level to limit the number of workers onsite as part of social distancing practices further limiting productivity.
Thank you
Taylor Boys’ Produce, Inc.
BROCCOLI PRICING EXPECTED TO RISE
June 5, 2020
Dear Valued Customer,
The Salinas Valley growing region has experienced extreme swings in temperatures and high humidity that has drastically affected the growth and quality of the broccoli crop. This has significantly reduced supplies and created an extreme industry shortage and a spike in the broccoli market. Due to these shortages and the market conditions associated, a temporary increase on broccoli products is expected. We will return to lower prices as soon as possible. Thank you for your continued support!
Taylor Boys’ Produce, Inc.
EFFECTS OF HURRICANE HELENE
We hope and pray that your families and businesses are safe and that you will be able to return to operation soon if you have been impacted by this unprecedented disaster.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene we are wanting to share the following information to help our customers.
Q: Are we open?
A: Yes. We are running routes Monday through Friday until further notice.
Q: Did we lose power?
A: Yes. We lost power during the storm Friday morning. We have not had power restored to our site. However our food has remain refrigerated (see below). Our administrative team continues to work onsite via generator. Our team is available to take calls and orders from 8 AM to 4 PM Monday through Friday. Our voicemail is also up for those needing to leave a message for us.
Q: Is our food safe to eat?
A: Yes. After losing power Friday we immediately loaded product onto refrigerated trucks to maintain safe temperatures. Additionally following our food safety plan we made a decision within 24 hours to move operations into another produce warehouse located approximately an hour away. This facility meets or exceeds all of our food safety protocol and was willing to help us during our time of need.
Q: When will I get my order?
A: All orders that were pushed from Friday to Saturday have been deleted from our system. This is in effort to save precious time, energy, and resources for our team while they try to determine who needs orders and who does not. When you have placed an order it will be delivered the next business day, but could come late afternoon. Please do not call for ETAs as our team is unable to get those for you at this time. If you are planning to make an order, please order enough each deliver that if your next order is late you will not be without product. This will help us serve you better.
Q: What are road conditions in our service area?
Many of our service areas are still completely without power including traffic signals. Roadways are slow becoming passable but there are still areas we are having to work around. Typical secondary roads our drivers use are unusable so all deliveries are taking more time. We ask for your patience and understanding as we try to service everyone we can reach. Our number one priority is the safety of our team.
Q: How can I reach Taylor Boys' Produce?
A: Our phone lines are working and we have our team in to answer calls. However we know that many cellphone service providers are still having issues. If you cannot call out to reach us, please email your orders or questions to [email protected].
Q: Can I come pick up product?
A: No we are not capable of doing order pick ups by customer. We are operating out of another facility and have NO FOOD PRODUCTS here. Additionally we can not service our customers at the other facility.
Q: Are there any areas we are not servicing at this time?
A: We are not attempting to service most of our Asheville and Hendersonville NC locations due to the catastrophic flooding that has occurred there. At this time the risk is too high to send our team into those areas.
