Schnuck Markets Inc. announced an industry-first chainwide expansion with Simbe Robotics to further elevate the grocer’s business operations and customer experience. Building on previous successful expansions, the multi-year full-scale roll-out will bring Tally robots to all 111 Schnucks locations across the U.S. By incorporating Simbe’s solution into chainwide operations, Schnucks will gain even greater visibility into store conditions, with deeper levels of business insights as the retailer prepares to adjust to the quickly-evolving landscape of a post-pandemic world.

Nature Fresh Farms has expanded its sales team with two new hires: Brenda Necic and Pam Cherwak.

Over recent years Nature Fresh Farms has grown exponentially with new facilities and expansions across North America. In addition to organizational growth, they have also had the opportunity to welcome key individuals to their Nature Fresh Farms team. The company said it is thrilled to welcome Necic and Cherwak to its sales team.

Shuman Farms has RealSweet high-quality, premium sweet onions from Peru on hand and is currently making the transition from Vidalia to Peru. Shuman began growing sweet onions in Peru more than 20 years ago to meet the year-round consumer demand for premium sweet onions. Peru provides the ideal climate, soil and growing conditions, and allows retailers to keep premium sweet onions on shelf from September to March.

With a continuing focus on regional retail, Fagerberg Farms/Fagerberg Produce in Eaton, CO, kicked off the 2021 onion shipping season with its full slate of conventional varieties on Aug. 16, with organics to follow in September.

Agrokasa is expected to more than double its blueberry export shipments this season, with a similar increase expected next year.

José Antonio Castro, director of the Lima, Peru-based grower-shipper-exporter of avocados, table grapes and asparagus, told The Produce News that the addition of blueberries several years ago both expands the company’s risk management portfolio and allows for better utilization of its labor force.

With about three-quarters of its annual volume already picked and packed, and running a bit behind 2020 numbers, the California strawberry industry is expecting a strong final quarter allowing volume to surpass last year’s total.

Through the week ended Aug. 21, California had sent close to 150 million trays of fruit to market, which represents about a 4.5 percent decline from the previous year. By the end of the third week of 2020, California’s strawberry growers had marketed more than 157 million trays of fruit on the way to a crop that exceeded 200 million trays.