Hurricane Ike was expected to at least leave the Texas Rio Grande Valley with some moisture. But the hurricane's fury was entirely directed to the east and north on the Texas coastline, John McClung, president of the Texas Produce Association in Mission, TX, indicated early Sept. 15.

"There was no adversity in the produce growing area" of Texas, he said, adding that after Ike cleared Texas Sept. 13, a cold front came into south Texas and left some rain.

PHILADELPHIA -- Plenty of golden shovels were on hand for the ceremonial groundbreaking of Philadelphia's new produce terminal market, held here Sept 4.

The temperature soared near Philadelphia's record-high of 93 degrees, but no one standing atop a windy, dusty, sandy plot of land in the southwestern part of the city had any real complaints. Finally, what was arguably the biggest day in the city's produce history had arrived. About 100 people were gathered for the groundbreaking were thrilled to see a day that seemed to be out of reach for the last seven years.

NAPLES, FL -- Members of the Florida Tomato Exchange and the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange met Sept. 4 for their annual membership meetings at the Joint Tomato Conference, here, at the Ritz-Carlton Naples.

WASHINGTON -- United Fresh Produce Association President Tom Stenzel urged the Food & Drug Administration to take another look at the science behind the investigation into this summer's Salmonella outbreak with the hopes that tomatoes would be finally cleared as a possible cause.

Crowded onto buses and packed into an auditorium, more than 100 attendees of United's Washington Public Policy Conference met with FDA officials to discuss lessons learned from the Salmonella outbreak.

Chiquita Brands International Inc. dedicated Sept. 10 the James R. Lugg Global Research & Innovation Center in Salinas, CA, affirming the company's commitment to the Salinas Valley.

The center is named in honor of Mr. Lugg, Fresh Express' executive vice president for science and quality, and celebrates the contributions of Fresh Express employees to the fresh produce industry.

The center also will comprise the company's trial farms, pilot manufacturing plant, consumer test kitchen and a retail merchandising lab where value- added products are created and tested.