Brandon Parker of Shuman Farms in Reidsville, GA, said, “It’s a really good show. To have everything under one roof, and such a nice place — it’s one of the nicer venues that we’ve attended — that’s great. We’ve been coming to the NEPC expo for 15-plus years or so, and it’s just a really good event that Laura and her team put on.”
Asked what he thought of the traffic on the show floor, Parker replied, “Overall, the traffic is good. We’re seeing a good mix of buyers. There’s such a good base here of retailers in the area. They’re able to drive in. So yes, we’re seeing a good number of retailers.”
Asked how important the New England area is to his company, Parker replied, “This market here actually has the highest consumption rate of sweet onions in the country. So, this is a very important market for us, and we continue to want to grow that market even more. There’s a really strong base here of consumers who gravitate to the sweet onion categories. So, it’s very important that we are here, and we continue to support our retail partners in a strong way.”
Marcus Albinder of Hudson River Fruit Distributors in Milton, NY, stated, “I think the show has been very successful for us. We’re based in the Northeast, and a lot of our customers are also around this vicinity, so it’s been excellent to be able to see a large amount of customers all within the same period of time. It’s been a good show to be at.”
Asked about the New England Produce Council itself, Albinder stated, “I think they’ve been doing a tremendous job. It takes a lot of effort to get all these big suppliers and retailers in the same room at the same time. I think they picked a fantastic location here at the Encore in Boston.”
Tim Harrington of Stemilt Growers in Wenatchee, WA, said that there’s a “great crowd today” and the show traffic “has been very steady.” He added, “We’re seeing all the important folks we had hoped to see. It’s great having a chance to really show what’s coming up for the upcoming season with apples and pears. We enjoy talking about it.”
He was enjoying the venue itself, too. “The facility is fantastic,” he said. “The dining and the receptions and the events have been wonderful. This morning’s breakfast was really a lot of fun.”
Commenting on the people walking the show floor, Harrington stated, “It’s been great to see all my key customers and have time to have a nice discussion with them about the upcoming season.”
Asked if he was seeing a good mix of buyers at the show, he stated, “That’s the wonderful thing about this produce show here in New England. You see retailers anywhere from New Jersey all the way up through Maine. Some chains have brought their produce managers along to participate in the show. Everybody from buyers to category managers to directors to merchandisers — all the folks you want to see and share information with have been here.”
Joe Atchison III of the New Jersey Department of Agriculture said, “The show’s going very well. We’ve had some great conversations. I’ve spoken with buyers from a couple of different chains up here in the Northeast. We really appreciate the opportunity to be here and communicate with these audiences.”
He added, “Traffic started out a little slow but has progressed as people made their way through the aisles and made their way to see Jersey Fresh. We always appreciate the turnout from the local chains and getting the opportunity to introduce them to what Jersey has to offer.”
The NJDA was showcasing a large number of items from the Garden State. “We have a lot of our summer favorites and some of our early fall entries,” he noted. “We have corn, tomatoes, peaches, peppers, Butternut squash, Acorn squash. We have eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash and some apples.”
Asked about the New England market area itself, Atchison replied, “New England is very important to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture because outside of the immediate New Jersey tri-state area, New England is the second largest market for our agricultural products. So as the seasons go from Florida up the eastern coast, we appreciate the opportunity to work with the retailers in this area.”