Banana prices are rising as farms in Central America and Ecuador have suffered severe weather, which has reduced supplies below demand levels.

Brian Kocher, president of Chiquita Brands North America, alerted Chiquita customers in a Feb. 22 letter that the Cincinnati-based marketer would invoke the force majeure clause in its contracts, and banana prices would rise $2 per box for pickups, effective March 2.

Celebrity Chef Emeril Lagasse will host a new television series "Emeril Green" on Planet Green, Discovery Communications' new 24-hour eco-lifestyle television network that will reach more than 50 million U.S. homes.

Planet Green network is set to launch June 4 with a full slate of original series and specials premiering throughout the summer. The "Emeril Green" series is slated for a July launch and will be shot exclusively in a Whole Foods store in Fairfax, VA. A pilot episode was shot during the first week of March, and the show will air at 8 p.m. five days a week.

In 2007, The Onion House in Weslaco, TX, invested in new packaging equipment to facilitate two-, three-, five- and 10-pound consumer packs of the famed Texas sweet onion.

"But we ended up shipping very few bags last year," said Don Ed Holmes, president of the Rio Grande Valley growing, packing and shipping operation.

It is highly unlikely that 2008 will bring a change in the U.S. Department of Agriculture marketing order that would regulate what is essentially a cutoff date for some varieties of Chilean grapes.

A shakeup has occurred at Spreckels, CA-based Tanimura & Antle Inc. According to published reports, President Ken Silveira, Vice President Of Sales & Marketing Rick Bravo and Vice President Of Crop Management Rick Russo all are no longer with the company.

In addition, it has been reported that Bob Antle, a part owner of T&A, has stepped in as sales manager. The report also said that John Killeen, vice president of marketing and business development, and Steve Koran, director of western sales, still are with the company.

Index Fresh, based in Bloomington, CA, announced the appointment of John Dmytriw to the position of sales director.

"We welcome John to the team at Index Fresh. I am excited about the enthusiasm he brings to his role in our sales department," Dana Thomas, president of Index Fresh, said in a press release.

Mr. Dmytriw spent the last seven-and-a-half years at West Pak Avocado in Temecula. Prior to that, he worked for Buyproduce.com in Irvine, CA.