A container developed for high-speed machine packing of berries is the perfect clamshell for hand packing both grape and cherry tomatoes.

Norma Contreras, who is in sales with Sambrailo Packaging, Salinas, CA, said the larger “RunRite” blueberry clamshell is the container of choice for the firm’s tomato customers in both Baja California and the many districts in California where they grow the smaller-profile tomato.

Richard Papen, sales manager of Papen Farms Inc. in Dover, DE, told The Produce News that the company was having a similar spring to last year, but that products are expected to come on a little earlier.

“We had a mild winter and a warm March, but in April the temperatures were about normal,” said Mr. Papen. “Sweet corn will start on July 4, and green beans could start on June 15, about a week early. We thought we’d be even earlier, but nature has a way of evening things out.”

The weather on Virginia’s Eastern Shore has been a little on the dry side, but temperatures have been perfect for potatoes, resulting in what looks to be a strong crop.

Butch Nottingham, marketing specialist for the Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, headquartered in Richmond, VA, told The Produce News that the agency focuses heavily on the state’s potato crops.

Victor Savanello, produce category manager at Allegiance Retail Services LLC, is leaving to join JOH Sales & Marketing as account executive in commodity sales.

John Harley, sales manager for Anthony Vineyards Inc. in Bakersfield, CA, has been producing organic grapes for about 10 years.

“We are fully integrated as a grower, packer and shipper,” said Mr. Harley. “Our organic line is in table grapes only, but we offer all varieties.”

He noted that as increasing numbers of retailers learn about the company’s consistent organic supplies, more are embracing having seasonal California grapes.

“This opportunity was not available as recent as five or six years ago, and is what brought us to the organic table,” he said.

Last year was an unusual one for West Side melons, and particularly for cantaloupe. The harvest got a later-than-normal start, and when a Listeria outbreak associated with cantaloupe from Colorado hit the news in the fall, demand dropped off, leaving some cantaloupe fields unharvested.

Melon growers on the famed West Side of the San Joaquin Valley are hopeful for a better situation this year in several respects.