The February 10 USDA Specialty Crops Truck Rate Report paints a split market: Florida is tightening fast while South Texas is loosening, and California remains capacity-constrained on lower volumes.
Central and South Florida is the hottest origin in the report. Rates to Baltimore jumped +23% week-over-week, with Boston (+15%), New York (+11%), Chicago (+9%), and Philadelphia (+8%) all posting significant increases. Truck availability in Florida has moved to Shortage on most lanes and Slight Shortage into Atlanta. This is being driven by strong winter produce volumes — tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, squash, and sweet corn — colliding with tighter reefer availability in the Southeast. Carriers with capacity in Florida have pricing power right now.
Key Florida rates (per load):
- Florida → Baltimore: $4,200–$4,400
- Florida → Boston: $5,400–$5,600
- Florida → New York: $4,900–$5,100
- Florida → Chicago: $3,400–$3,600
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Mexico crossings through South Texas saw broad-based rate declines across nearly every destination, ranging from -7% to -17%. Truck availability shifted to Slight Surplus on most outbound lanes (except Atlanta, which remains Slight Shortage). The Philadelphia lane dropped the most at -17%, followed by Baltimore at -16%. This suggests a capacity rebalance after recent tightness, and brokers sourcing loads out of the McAllen/Laredo corridor may find more negotiating room this week.
California’s produce regions — Imperial/Coachella, Kern, Oxnard, Santa Maria, and South/Central districts — are reporting Shortage to Slight Shortage conditions on reefer capacity, particularly for eastbound loads to Baltimore and Philadelphia. Despite the tight trucks, rates were mostly flat to slightly lower week-over-week (-1% to -2% on most lanes). The exception: Kern District to Philadelphia ticked up +1%.
Citrus out of South/Central California (oranges, grapefruit, lemons) showed moderate softening of -1% to -5%, with adequate truck supply. Long-haul rates remain elevated — expect $7,500–$9,200+ to East Coast markets.
Mexico crossings through Nogales, AZ are running at Adequate truck availability with modest rate declines of -1% to -5% depending on destination. The longest lanes (Boston at $8,800–$9,100, New York at $8,100–$8,300) are still commanding premium rates, but the week-over-week trend is softening slightly.
Other Markets at a Glance
- San Luis Valley, CO (potatoes): Flat week-over-week. Adequate capacity. Rates stable.
- New York (apples): Adequate supply, no rate movement. Short-haul lanes ($1,800–$2,500) remain soft.
- Yakima Valley, WA (apples/pears): Mostly flat with adequate capacity. LA lane ticked up +7%, likely reflecting repositioning demand.
Source: USDA AMS Specialty Crops National Truck Rate Report, February 11, 2026. Rates represent open (spot) market per-load prices including broker fees for 48–53 ft. refrigerated trailers.
Reefer Market Conditions
The reefer market saw a significant drop in national load posts last week, plummeting 33%. Despite this decrease, volumes are still robust, sitting 78% above last year and doubling the 10-year average (excluding the pandemic years of 2021 and 2022). Simultaneously, available equipment posts declined by 14% week over week and 19% year over year. As a result of these shifts, the reefer load-to-truck ratio fell by 22% to 17.41.
National reefer linehaul spot rates
Reefer posted rates cooled last week, dropping $0.04 per mile to a national average of $2.53 per mile last week. This followed a significant $0.23 per mile (10%) jump over the preceding two weeks, which was caused by Winter Storms Fern and Gianna. Despite the recent dip, the current rate remains high. It is $0.59 per mile (31%) above the rate for the same period last year. Historically, the current rate is also substantially elevated, surpassing the 5-year average (excluding pandemic years) by $0.65 per mile, or 26%.
