LIVINGSTON, NJ — In an effort to distinguish itself in the highly competitive environment of upscale supermarket retailing, Kings Food Market has taken on the challenge of providing its customers with fresh local produce 24 hours after it’s harvested.

“It’s a venture we decided to try this year,” Paul Kneeland, vice president of produce and floral for Kings, told The Produce News May 23 at the grand reopening of its Livingston location. “It’s something we feel will differentiate us.”

WASHINGTON -- Trying to get legislation through on a presidential election year is no easy task, but 30 board members for Western Growers Association descended on Washington, DC, for three days in May to lobby for an agricultural worker program, a 2012 farm bill and other top shelf issues.

On April 24-25, representatives of the 58-member committee to develop voluntary American standards for sustainable agricultural products, including cut flowers and potted plants, met in Washington, DC, to review the first rendition of the proposed standards. The standards, if accepted by the American National Standards Institute, would be used to certify a company’s products as sustainable.

Hiawatha Corp. in Shelton, WA, has created an eco-friendly product group for the holiday season labeled “GoGreener,” with three new products for 2012 that are recyclable and biodegradable. The products will debut at the International Floriculture Expo in Miami later this month.

Mike Omler, floral procurement manager for Kroger Co. in the Sunshine Bouquet booth at the 2011 FPFC Southern California Expo, which set an attendance record.

Temkin International, the packaging manufacturer in Payson, UT, has launched two new products — laminated sheets for potted plants that lock in and protect the colors on potted plant sheets and heavy-duty sleeves for orchids and other upscale plants that need extra protection.