After a difficult start during May and June in the Coachella Valley, the California grape season appeared in July to be showing promise for much improvement as the harvest got underway in the San Joaquin Valley.

It did seem to be a mixed bag, as growers cited a wide range of conditions and expectations. Most growers seemed to expect moderate volume, steady supplies and excellent quality on most varieties.

The New York Apple Association in Fishers, NY, announced that its 2006 Defense Commissary Agency display contest was an overwhelming success.

With a total of 20 entries, it was the second-highest participation in the seven-year history of the program. Four winning displays were chosen, with awards going to Patrick AFB Commissary in Patrick, FL; Fort Gillem Commissary in Forest Park, GA; Fort Rucker Commissary in Fort Rucker, AL; and Fort Drum Commissary in Fort Drum, NY.

A sticker that could tell whether an apple is ripe in the orchard and packinghouse is being tested this fall and could be marketed as early as next year.

Mark Riley, associate professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering at the University of Arizona, teamed with Arizona psychologist Robert Klein years ago to develop a new device they hope is different from other technologies that have proven to be expensive or time-consuming in measuring fruit ripeness.

Sundia Corp., based in San Francisco, announced that its Original Watermelon Juice and watermelon juice blends are now found in the produce sections of over 2,000 retail stores nationwide, exceeding the company's expectations.

The watermelon marketer and juice company picked up retail distribution in New England and the Midwest the third week of July. Retailers carrying Sundia juices now include Whole Foods, Randall's, A&P, Shaw's, Albertson's, Wal-Mart, HEB and Tom Thumb.

MONTEREY, CA -- Technological innovations will play a key role in improving the taste of fresh produce and in marshaling produce through the supply chain, according to two University of California- Davis professors who spoke during the recent Produce Marketing Association Foodservice Conference & Expo, here.

James Thompson, a professor in the school's biological and agricultural engineering department, and Michael Reid, a professor in the school's department of plant sciences, presented a foreshadowing into the future during a workshop held at the PMA conference.

CEDARVILLE, NJ -- In Mike Maxwell's view, the produce world is like a relay race.

The president of Procacci Bros. Sales/Garden State Farms in Philadelphia elaborated by saying that each segment of the produce industry focuses on carrying the baton for its segment of the race. But within the industry, the various players tend not to know a great deal about what happens before they receive the baton, or what happens with their valuable produce after they let it go.