Just in time for the 2010 blueberry season, California Giant Berry Farms is launching a state-of-the-art cooling and packing facility in Aurora, OR.

Located in the Willamette Valley, this facility has been designated by California Giant as a strategic shipping location for this highly productive region. Establishing the Pacific Northwest as the cornerstone of its domestic production program, this new facility furthers the company's commitment to a year-round quality bush berry program.

Guatemala experienced a major volcanic eruption May 27-28, which killed at least three people, poured ash upon Guatemala City and brought a declared "state of calamity." And on May 29, matters became much worse, as Guatemala and neighboring Honduras and El Salvador were struck by tropical storm Agatha, which caused flooding and mudslides that killed at least 180 people.

In the wake of recent budget cuts in Florida that slashed support for citrus industry research efforts, the state's largest citrus trade organization blasted Gov. Charlie Crist in a June 2 e-mail sent to thousands of members and media outlets.

VANCOUVER, BC -- When Karen Brux moved back to the United States from Taiwan in 2002, she had the task of selling gold kiwifruit to the North American retail market. She relied heavily on the knowledge garnered while living and working in Asia for the previous decade.

For anyone who makes a living growing fruits and vegetables, the whims of Mother Nature are an all-too-familiar part of the deal.

Up and down the East Coast, growers have seen the timing of their deals thrown off this spring, with Florida and Georgia trying to recover from record freezes and states in the mid-Atlantic region having endured drenching rains that pushed back planting schedules.