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Air and soil temperatures were reported to be:
o The average minimum air temperature increased to 22.5°C (72.5°F)
o The average air temperature rose to 26.8°C (80.2°F)
o The average soil temperature also increased to 26.7°C (80.1°F)
o Solar radiation was mostly moderate with moderate risk to cause sunburn and “corky fruit”.
o The relative humidity rose slightly to 86.3%.
o Large fruit (4,5 and 6 count) declined to 48.2% of our harvest, and 5 count made up 16.9%.
o Most of our fruit continues to be harvested at 20 WAF (78.3%). The balance corresponded to fruit from 21 WAF (12%) and younger fruit from 19 WAF (9.7%).
o Crownless fruit volume decreased to 9.9% of the total packed.
o The sugar content of our fruit continued above 15 Brix. It is important to mention that during sampling an insignificant percentage of fruit with a Brix level lower than 13.5 was recorded (only 2.2% of the sample), but the volume with a Brix level higher than 15.5 remained quite high, 41.5% of the sample. The standard deviation of Brix readings was below 1 on all our farms.
o The average firmness of our fruit improved. Only 3% of the sample was recorded with psi less than 2.7. The minimum was 2.7 psi; the average reached 3.4 psi and the maximum was 4.4 psi.
o All fruit quality characteristics were reported according to our standards.
o Vessel delays in the west coast were reported due to a mechanical issue at port of Caldera.
o As previously predicted by the IMN, the Caribbean region continued to experience significant drought in the second week of the year. The days were very hot and the solar radiation was mostly moderate. A very low risk pf NDF is expected this week.