It is a new year, and there is a new look at 100 Vidalia Sweet Onion Drive in Vidalia, GA, where the Vidalia Onion Committee, Vidalia Area Convention & Visitors Bureau and Vidalia Onion Business Council are based. The grass and shrubs flanking the building's front walk have been uprooted, and thousands of Vidalia onion seedlings have been set out in their place.

The value-added and branded product line marketed by Southern Specialties Inc. has garnered solid acceptance by consumers and the trade, according to Charlie Eagle, vice president of business development for the Pompano Beach, FL-based firm. "We have been more involved in private labeling than we ever had in the past and, in spite of the economic conditions, it appears the specialty items are still very relevant," Mr. Eagle said.

All aspects of the offshore deal looked positive for Central American Produce Inc. on Jan. 20.

Gilroy, CA-based Christopher Ranch LLC, one of the nation's larger producers and distributors of garlic, has been growing, packing and selling organic garlic since the mid-1990s. Bill Christopher, managing partner of the company, said that it is simply a case of filling the needs of the firm’s customers.

Vice President of Marketing Patsy Ross elaborated that the company began its organic production because "we started getting inquiries from our customers."

The organic category continues to grow in demand for Maurice A. Auerbach Inc., Jeff Schwartz, vice president of the South Hackensack, NJ-based company, told The Produce News. "Increases are consistent, rather than dramatic," said Mr. Schwartz. “We have had to increase our sourcing in order to meet the growing demand.”

Ger-Nis International has new and exciting programs in the works for 2011, Nissa Pierson, owner and managing director of the Brooklyn, NY- headquartered company told The Produce News. "We are one of the only companies that brought the organic Edward mango, an early variety, in from Peru this year," said Ms. Pierson. “Because of the U.S. Department of Agriculture protocol that requires the fruit go through hot- water baths, we shipped them into Canada. We thought this would be a great year to increase our movements into Canada.