Southern Specialties Inc. is excited that Carlos Solf, vice president of procurement, has assumed the role of PAIA co-chairman East Coast for 2024-25. The West Coast co-chairman is Craig Rolandelli of JMB.

Solf, a native of Peru, joined Southern Specialties 22 years ago after earning his masters degree from the University of Notre Dame. Under his stewardship Southern Specialties’ asparagus program has grown to become among the largest in the nation.

Pantone recently announced its Pantone Color of the Year for 2024 - Peach Fuzz. Acknowledging the importance of connection and kindness, a warm and soft hue of color can bring abundance and newness with comfort and gentleness. 

Creative agency Freshmade recently completed new website designs for two modern produce companies, Fowler Packing and Always Fresh. The new websites strategically communicate each brand's unique story and values through engaging content produced entirely in-house by Freshmade.

Stop & Shop is increasing support for its Feed it Forward charitable giving initiatives with some help from Marty the Robot and Badger Technologies, a product division of Jabil. Marty’s presence in a large majority of Stop & Shop stores strengthens operational efficiencies and helps Stop & Shop serve those in need.

The Controlled Environment Agriculture Alliance will host its first webinar of 2024 titled You Can’t Buy Power the Way You Buy Paper! Using Energy as a Competitive Advantage. The webinar will be held at 2 p.m. EST, Thursday, Jan. 18. Those interested in attending can register here at no cost.

To offer increased access and encourage greater consumption of nutritious foods among its members, Vitality Group, a global health and wellbeing company specializing in behavior change, is partnering with Tangelo to administer Food as Medicine at scale. Tangelo’s food prescription benefit platform makes customizable and clinically driven Food as Medicine programs available for Vitality clients to help their populations achieve better health results.