On Nov. 30, Secretary of Agriculture Thomas J. Vilsack appointed five members to serve on the National Mango Board. During the board's November meeting, 2012 board members elected officers to serve in various leadership roles for 2013, as well as approve new marketing, research and industry relations programs for the upcoming year.

Myra and Drew Goodman, founders of Earthbound Farm, an organic industry leader, were recently inducted into the Social Venture Network’s hall of fame as Environmental Evangelists, with three other contemporary luminaries in the category. The honor was officially announced at a Nov. 13 ceremony at Gotham Hall in New York City.

The Social Venture Network hall of fame honorees are examples of what the national nonprofit calls the “most innovative and influential leaders of the socially responsible business movement.”

Some fruit and vegetables are being held up at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles as longshoremen at 10 of the 14 container terminals in those side-by-side ports are refusing to cross picket lines set up by a related clerical union that is on strike.

Ahold USA announced Nov. 26 that David Lessard has been promoted to vice president of produce and floral, effective immediately.

L&M Transportation Services Inc., a Raleigh, NC-based third-party logistics company, will establish a new Northwest transportation office, located in Othello, WA.  

The new office will be managed by Dave Long, who has over 35 years of experience in the potato and onion industry. The Othello WA office will be set up to handle produce and dry freight truckloads for the Pacific Northwest.  

Wada Farms Marketing Group LLC in Idaho Falls, ID, has recently introduced a new premium retail onion pack which it calls the Medallions Sleeve Pack, according to Chris Wada, director of marketing.

The unique pack is the first retail onion package of the particular style in the market, and currently the onion packer who co-packs the product for Wada Farms is "the only [packer] in the country currently able to even run this style," Mr. Wada said.