The education festival at the recently held IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show highlighted so many worthwhile areas of the produce world. In my humble opinion, among the most important was Feeding Those in Need: Innovative Partnerships in Global Food Distribution — and not to preach, but feeding those in need is a mantra that should be adopted by everybody within the produce industry.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture filed an administrative complaint against Berry People LLC for alleged violations of the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act. The company, operating from California, allegedly failed to make payment promptly to 19 produce sellers in the amount of $3.52 million from December 2022 through August 2023.

Flashfood released Flashfood 3.0, a redesigned app featuring a fresh interface with shopping features built to make it faster to find, shop and compare great Flashfood deals. The new app offers a smoother experience every step of the way — from creating an account to browsing specific items at local stores — making it easier than ever to save money on fresh groceries.

This is the company’s largest app release to-date and drastically transforms the usability and visuals of the marketplace. New features include:

The Foundation for Fresh Produce announced the new 2025 board members at the Global Produce & Floral Show in Atlanta.  The Foundation was founded by The International Fresh Produce Association and its mission is to grow a healthier world by changing the trajectory of human health.

The board of directors for 2025 will be chaired by Dwight Ferguson, president and CEO of California Agricultural Leadership Foundation.  Alex DiNovo, president and COO of DNO Produce, will continue to serve on the board and executive committee as past chair.   

The National Watermelon Promotion Board announced its continued partnership with the Marine Corps Marathon (MCM) for the 11th consecutive year.

Metro Inc. announced the inauguration of its automated distribution center for fresh products in Toronto, which marks the completion of a nearly billion-dollar investment in the modernization of its supply chain.