MIAMI — The Wholesale Florist & Florist Supplier Association’s annual Floral Distribution Conference, held here Oct. 24-26, drew close to 800 attendees, breaking a record going back nearly a quarter-century. It also had a sold-out exhibit area with 96 table-top displays, two fully booked airport tours, and a full house in its host hotel, the Doral Trump Resort.

Floral is coming back. Almost five years after the Great Recession officially began, a quarter of floral retailers say sales have bounced back, and nearly half of those retailers said their sales now exceed pre-recession numbers. The results are from a survey recently conducted by the Society of American Florists based on responses from more than 300 retail florists.

Early registration opened Dec. 3 for United Fresh 2013 in San Diego, The United Fresh Produce Association’s annual convention and expo serving all segments of the produce industry. This year’s theme, “Discover Fresh Horizons,” underscores the many opportunities for education, innovation and sales growth in fresh produce at the United Fresh show May 14-16.

Sometimes the produce game is about calculated risk. John Shuman, president of Shuman Produce Inc. in Reidsville, GA, took one of those leaps of faith when he decided to increase his Peruvian acreage earlier this year in advance of the season. The result has been a powerful performance in light of reduced Peruvian yields that has put the Georgia sweet onion provider in a very sweet position indeed.

“A customs broker who is completely dedicated to fruits and vegetables serves the importer best because every ounce of effort is concentrated within the produce industry,” said Ana Ramos, partner with her husband, Frank Ramos, in The Perishable Specialist Inc., located in Miami. “We are the epitome of streamlined process, and solely dedicated to fruits and vegetables, which represent 99.9 percent of our day-to-day business. We are more efficient because we are true perishable specialists.”

On Nov. 30, Secretary of Agriculture Thomas J. Vilsack appointed five members to serve on the National Mango Board. During the board's November meeting, 2012 board members elected officers to serve in various leadership roles for 2013, as well as approve new marketing, research and industry relations programs for the upcoming year.