On Wednesday, April 2 President Trump declared that foreign trade and economic practices have created a national emergency. As a result, his administration's on-again, off-again tariffs are back on with a baseline 10 percent rate across the board — going higher for specific countries, nearly hitting 50 percent for some.

At its core, the produce industry thrives on relationships. At Feeding America, we know strong relationships with partners are core to increasing access to fresh, nutritious produce for our neighbors facing hunger. As the director of regional agri sourcing at Feeding America, I have had the opportunity to see unique and innovative ways to utilize industry relationships to help elevate the mission and accomplish just that.

The last in a series of cold low-pressure systems moves out of California today. As the system moves to the east cold temperatures and gusty winds will continue into Friday when a strong high-pressure ridge is set to move over the region. In the desert regions warm temperatures will return this weekend as high pressure moves into the area, bringing warm and dry conditions into next week.

Taylor Farms and Foodiverse have acquired two production plants specialized in the manufacturing of ready-to-eat salads, which belonged to the fresh business of Bonduelle in Germany. As part of this transition, Foodiverse, within its European business operations, will manage all activities for the unified businesses. This strategic move allows Foodiverse, along with the partnership of Taylor Farms, to strengthen its position in the German market and boost innovation in the fresh and healthy food sector.

Ippolito International has announced a leadership change in its sales department: effective this week, Bob Polovneff has been promoted to director of sales and commodity management. 

In this role, Polovneff will oversee the daily sales activities of the department. Additionally, he will have oversight of the commodity manager team. 

"Bob's contribution here has been impressive, and we're glad that he's able to assume a stronger role on our team," said Dan Canales, senior vice president of sales, marketing and processing.

North American Produce Buyers, based at the Ontario Food Terminal in Toronto, has been a reliable buyer and wholesaler of international produce, catering to Canadian food retailers for more than 50 years.

CPMA is a show that many in the organization take part in, and everyone from the team is looking forward to what’s ahead.