ORLANDO, FL -- The 2008-09 Produce Marketing Association's board of directors took office Thursday, Oct. 23 during PMA's 2008 Fresh Summit International Convention & Exposition, here. Chairman of the Board Dave Corsi, vice president of produce and floral operations at Wegmans Food Markets in Rochester, NY, is joined by three other officers and 23 directors.

Frontera Produce Ltd., a vertically integrated grower, packer and shipper of fresh produce based in Edinburg, TX, announced the launch of a new company, Frontera Fresh Logistics LLC, which was created to provide added value and service to Frontera Produce's customer base and to allow the company to build on its existing carrier relationships.

The new company aims to provide perishable full truckload and LTL service throughout the United States, as well as temperature-controlled storage and forward-distribution in strategically located areas.

Will Brown has been appointed undersecretary of the California Department of Food & Agriculture by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Mr. Brown, 58, of San Mateo, has a broad background in both business and government, and a long history of working with agricultural and consumer food distribution and retail interests, as well as on a wide range of federal and state public-policy issues.

For retailers and one lucky consumer, victory never tasted so sweet.

This summer, the Vidalia Onion Committee's Original Sweet Onion Trivia Contest playfully educated more than 6,500 consumers about the pioneer of all sweet onions and, in the process, pushed retail sales. The contest's grand prize winner, Jo Anne Johnson of Boise, ID, will be rewarded with an all- expense-paid trip for four to historic Savannah, GA.

The North American Strawberry Growers Association will hold its annual meeting and conference Jan. 19-21 in New Orleans at the historic Hotel Monteleone. The meeting will feature two days of speaker presentations, panels and round-table discussions, followed by a one-day tour of local berry farms in the Ponchatoula district.

The association will be bringing in strawberry experts from growing regions at home and abroad. Featured speakers include Philip Lieten, a well-known agronomist who works with Fresh Forward in the Netherlands.