NEW ORLEANS -- In his annual State of the Industry address, Bryan Silbermann, president and chief executive officer of the Produce Marketing Association, worked hard to conjure up the image of the late technological wizard Steve Jobs of computer fame.

Dressed in Mr. Jobs' identifiable all-black attire, Silbermann began with a joke on that subject and he referred to the Apple founder very early in his talk. All of this was seemingly well-planned to focus the audience's attention on Mr. Jobs' greatest asset: innovation.

Church Bros. has named Brian Jameson as vice president of agriculture operations, hired a new sales assistant and promoted another employee to the role of purchasing manager.

Jameson, a California State University-Chico graduate, will manage the replenishment and scheduling activities for Church Bros.’ processing partner True Leaf Farms and help manage the strategic sourcing strategy for the company.

It’sFresh!, a technology innovations company delivering breakthrough solutions for food freshness, won the Best First-Time Exhibitor Award at the Produce Marketing Association Fresh Summit Convention & Expo in New Orleans. The company was showcasing its unique ethylene-removal technology, which extends the shelf life and quality of produce by as many as three days in store. The technology is currently rolling out in major retailers in the United States as well as abroad.

McDaniel Fruit Co. in Fallbrook, CA, expects to “follow the flow of the industry” regarding the growth of its Mexican avocado program, as demand for Hass avocados in the U.S. market continues to climb, according to Rankin McDaniel Sr., president of the company.

“Our Mexican program is growing as the Mexican avocado reaches more and more markets,” he said Oct. 21.

NEW ORLEANS -- By some accounts, as much as 50 percent of the food grown or produced for consumption in the United States is lost or wasted along the way.

While almost half of those losses come at the consumer level, the other half is "wasted" along the supply chain, which means there are great opportunities to reduce that number for both the benefit of the bottom line and to feed those in this country that are less fortunate.

There have been some challenges this year getting some holiday items into the warehouse as early in the season as usual, according to Salvatore (Sal) Vacca, president of A.J. Trucco Inc. in New York City.

With several items, “we are having a problem getting merchandise at the moment,” Vacca said Oct. 11.