PHILADELPHIA -- The story begs a pun related to the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League.

But the saga of the future of a new fresh fruit and vegetable market for Philadelphia is so incongruous and unpredictable that it is time to move beyond puns.

"The eagle has returned to the property," a dead-serious Jimmy Storey told The Produce News May 9 shortly after he met with the board of the Philadelphia Fresh Food Terminal Corp. Mr. Storey, who is president of the board, owns Quaker City Produce on the Philadelphia Regional Produce Center.

SOLEDAD, CA -- In an industry that is increasingly moving toward transparency of its operations, Salinas, CA-based Dole Fresh Vegetables Inc. hosted a media tour of its Monterey County operations on Thursday, April 26.

Wal-Mart has entered the retail produce fray with the opening of seven Supercenters in Ontario.

Company officials from Wal-Mart Canada Corp., which is part of the firm's international division, told The Produce News that the first three Supercenters were opened Nov. 8 in Stouffville, London and Ancaster. Another four have opened in Sarnia, Scarborough, Vaughn and Brampton since.

Chiquita Brands International Inc., based in Cincinnati, has agreed to sell its 12 refrigerated cargo vessels for $227 million. The ships will be chartered back from an alliance formed by Eastwind Maritime Inc. and NYKLauritzenCool AB.

The parties also entered a long-term strategic agreement in which the alliance will serve as Chiquita's preferred supplier in ocean shipping to and from Europe and North America.

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced that it will send Idaho nearly $11 million to eradicate the potato cyst nematode, an announcement that came just days after Mexico agreed to reopen its market to Idaho potatoes.

Mexico joined a handful of other countries in suspending imports of Idaho potatoes after PCN was detected for the first time in a soil sample collected from an Idaho processing facility in April 2006. Since then, studies found PCN in seven fields within a one-mile radius.

SALINAS, CA -- As of June 15, NewStar Fresh Foods, based here, will focus its attention and energies fully on its green onions, asparagus and spinach value-added line.

The company no longer will be involved with Iceberg lettuce, Romaine, leaf lettuces and celery. About a year ago, NewStar got out of broccoli and cauliflower. Its transition out of its commodities business is a positive and proactive step, said John Killeen, vice president of sales and marketing for NewStar.