BONITA SPRINGS, FL -- Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who took office in January, has not made many friends in the Florida citrus industry in his short tenure, but he confronted some of those he has crossed at an invitation-only luncheon of grower-shippers June 15 at the Florida Citrus Conference at the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort, here.

Agricultural businesses would have three years to start screening all new hires with mandatory E-verify checks to assure that their workforce is legal, according to a bill introduced June 14 by U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX).

"E-Verify is a successful program to help ensure that jobs are reserved for citizens and legal workers," said Rep. Smith, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee and who held a June 15 hearing on his legislation, the Legal Workforce Act (H.R. 2164).

Stephen Whitney, who has served as the president and chief executive officer of the Canadian-based Dispute Resolution Corp. since its inception in 1999, has announced his retirement, effective Dec. 31, 2011.

Facing stiff foreign competition, balky weather, a dwindling labor supply and a future punctuated with question-marks, Pacific Collier Fresh Co. in Immokalee, FL, one of Florida's larger grower-shippers of fresh vegetables, ceased operations effective immediately, the company announced June 14.

The U.S. Apple Association announced the second week in June the hiring of Mark Gedris as its new director of membership and communications. In his new position, Mr. Gedris will lead USApple's member communications programs, provide strategic guidance to USApple's media relations and direct the association's membership recruitment and retention programs.

WASHINGTON -- The Environmental Working Group’s latest “Dirty Dozen” list released June 13 took direct aim at apples this year, saying that the commodity jumped three spots to claim the top spot for pesticide residue hits.