Avocado marketers in the United States currently find themselves in a position that marketers in almost any other commodity would surely envy. An expected surge in volume of 40 percent or more in the marketplace above previous record levels would be a frightening thing for most.

But for the avocado trade, demand for the product is believed to have grown to such an extent that it will take every bit of that expected 1.4 billion pounds of fruit, and more, to satisfy consumer cravings for Hass avocados.

NEWARK, DE -- Produce supply chain members looking for traceability solutions at Produce Marketing Association's Fresh Summit International Convention & Exposition will find it all in the Produce Traceability Learning Center on the expo floor when the convention convenes Oct. 2-5 in Anaheim, CA.

The Produce Traceability Learning Center offers an opportunity for convention attendees from across the produce supply chain to:

Westlake Produce Co.'s Winter Haven, FL, division and Voita Citrus of Florida Inc., based in Tampa, FL, announced in a joint statement that they have consolidated their sales offices and will now operate as Westlake Produce Co. The consolidated entity will operate from Westlake's Winter Haven office.

New York apple growers will be picking rain-fattened apples this season, and a statewide crop at least as big as last year's is predicted, according to a consensus of the state's growers and industry leaders.

"Fresh-picked local fruit will be abundant this fall," Jim Allen, president of the New York Apple Association, based in Fishers, NY, said in an Aug. 3 press release. "Consumers will be delighted with the fresh taste and bigger size of our new-crop apples this season."

Samples taken from an avocado tree in Florida in late July confirmed that the tree has laurel wilt, a fungal disease that is carried and spread by the ambrosia beetle. The state now finds itself in yet another battle to save a valuable commercial crop.

Many of the assets of the several firms that made up Mills Family Farms, a longtime Salinas Valley agricultural operation, are scheduled to be auctioned off Aug. 12 at the Monterey County Administration Building.

Mills Family Farms suspended operations in July 2008, citing financial difficulties in relationship to several real estate developments in which the firm and its principal owners -- Basil Mills and Roger Mills -- were involved.