Joe Pezzini, chief operating officer Ocean Mist Farms, received the Valley of the World Ag Leader award from the National Steinbeck Center.

The award honors an individual whose work has broken new ground and/or who has added significantly to the industry while making a difference in the community in which they live.

The United Fresh Foundation is pleased to announce the 12 members of the 2012-13 United Fresh Produce Industry Leadership Program. Presented through the foundation's Center for Leadership Excellence and sponsored by a grant from DuPont Crop Protection, this program was launched in 1995 and has graduated more than 180 program participants.

The Produce Industry Leadership Program welcomes the following professionals to its 18th Class:

• Catherine Baggott, Earthbound Farms

• Helena Beckett, Tanimura & Antle

• Jamie Brannen, Gerrald's Vidalia Sweet Onions

A baker’s dozen agribusinesses in North Carolina are the 2012 beneficiaries of the North Carolina Value-Added Cost Share program, which has doled out more than $1 million since 2009 and will award $269,883 in this, its final year.

Funded by the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, NCVACS provides an agricultural producer or processor with up to $50,000 to purchase new or used specialized equipment to start or grow a value-added operation. NCVACS is coordinated by North Carolina MarketReady, a program of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension.

With a lot of talk going around about hail damage to California stone fruit, and particularly to apricots in some areas, David Stone, president and chief executive officer of Valhalla Sales & Marketing Inc. in Kingsburg, CA, feels very fortunate.

The company’s primary crops are, in order of the largest volume, apricots, plums, Pluots and fresh prunes, followed by smaller amounts of peaches and nectarines.

Thanks to a new databar technology, consumers will be able to view a grower video on 16 different apples supplied by Chelan Fresh by scanning the sticker on the apple. The video connects the consumer, regardless of geography, directly to the apple orchards of Chelan, WA.  

Mike Locati, chairman of the Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee, said he expects this year's onion volume to be on par with the 2011 production season. “We’re pretty much on target,” he told The Produce News May 8.

Walla Wallas are grown under U.S. Department of Agriculture Marketing Order 956. The protected growing area is situated in Walla Walla Valley of southeast Washington and northeast Oregon. Walla Walla sweet onions are known for their low sulfur content, high water content and exceptionally sweet flavor.