CASTROVILLE, CA " Ocean Mist Farms, based here, has hired Joe Feldman as vice president of commodity sales. He most recently was vice president of sales and marketing for nearby Pride of San Juan, a role he held for the past two-and-a-half years.

Prior to working at PSJ, Mr. Feldman, 44, was a salesman for Apio Inc. for four years. Before Apio he had spent 16 years with River Ranch Fresh Foods LLC, finishing as sales manager.

Brooks Tropicals in Homestead, FL, announced Feb. 1 a number of personnel changes.

Amanda Douglas, who has been with the company for three years, has been promoted to director of sales management. Her duties will include inventory management and providing appropriate departments with accurate information. She will also assist in specific commodity interoffice coordinations.

Paramount Farms, a leading vertically integrated supplier of pistachios and almonds based in Los Angeles, is extending its reach in the snacking category with the introduction of "Sunkist Almond Munchies," a new line of six delicious heart-healthy almond snacks.

Each strawberry season in Florida is different because of the things that affect it " not the least of which is the weather.

?Hurricanes Charlie and Frances blew through the state in early fall before we had begun our strawberry deal," said Chip Hinton, executive director of the Florida Strawberry Growers Association. "But Hurricane Jeanne, the third storm to hit the peninsula, arrived after we had put about 5,000 acres out. The total damage that resulted [had] a negative impact of about $10 million."

A federal-court jury in Fresno, CA, found Coalinga, CA-based Harris Farms Inc. liable for sexual harassment and awarded one of its employees nearly $1 million, a verdict that has outraged Harris Farms " one of California?s larger agricultural businesses.

The verdict was handed down Friday, Jan. 21. Sylvia Gomez, human resource director for Harris Farms, told The Produce News Monday, Jan. 24, that Harris Farms likely would appeal the verdict.

International trade is at an all-time high, with no sign of slowing down. Products that are new to the U.S. market seem to surface daily, and many of them quickly carve a niche and become a permanent part of the produce department landscape.

Among the newly introduced items that consumers will have the pleasure of savoring in 2005 are specialty citrus varieties from Sicily, namely the Tarocco, Moro and Sanguinello orange varieties.