Duda Farm Fresh Foods' Dandy Celery Dippers are now available for foodservice. The company will be showcasing the new five-pound bag size at booth No. 901 during the IFPA Foodservice Conference this week in Monterey, CA.

Last fall, Duda launched celery dippers to retail audiences and saw the opportunity to bring the unique two-inch fresh-cut celery sticks to foodservice operators seeking the latest innovation in fresh-cut celery.

JFE Franchising Inc. of Houston, TX, is recalling products because they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.

Frontier Produce, a produce distribution company based out of Oklahoma, joined FreshEdge, a family of best-in-class fresh food distribution companies backed by Wind Point Partners. Frontier operates out of three facilities, two in Tulsa, OK, and one in Oklahoma City. All together these facilities boast over 80,000 square feet of warehouse space.

FreshEdge now operates more than 1.3 million square feet of warehouse space across 35 facilities with a fleet of more than 1,100 trucks.

The 2024 pear crop is projected to be the smallest in 40 years, as winter freeze damaged the crop while other pears will be left with frost markings. Stemilt Marketing Director Brianna Shales said making comparable sales on pears presents a challenge, but there are five key activities retailers can take advantage of during this rare crop.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has filed administrative complaints against Smile Onion 7 Inc. and Lakeside Produce Inc. for alleged violations of the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act.

Smile Onion 7, operating from Maryland, allegedly failed to make payment promptly to 15 produce sellers in the amount of $1 million from October 2022 through December 2023.

Lakeside Produce, operating from Michigan, allegedly failed to make payment promptly to three produce sellers in the amount of $1.15 million August 2022 through January 2023.

The persistent high-pressure ridge out west looks to finally move to the east late this week, bringing near-seasonal temperatures to the Salinas and Santa Maria valleys. This is welcome relief from the hot temperatures, allowing crops to recover in the fields.