San Juan Bautista, CA-based Earthbound Farm has agreed to acquire San Juan Bautista neighbor Pride of San Juan's manufacturing operations in an effort to expand its reach in the foodservice market with specialty salads, herbs and edible flowers.

Pride of San Juan will retain its farming operations and will supply Earthbound Farm with volume to fulfill orders for the Pride of San Juan labels.

Cases of Melissa's Great Book of Produce (John Wiley & Sons) began hitting bookstores in early March, but it is also being introduced in a place where not many books about food generally appear: in the produce departments of grocery stores across the country.

CHICAGO -- Larger-than-life graphics of Newman's Own Organics hit the streets of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin this month. The graphics cover the entire body of delivery trucks belonging to Goodness Greeness, a leading distributor of organic produce in the Midwest, and are the result of a distribution partnership between Goodness Greeness and Newman's Own Organics.

In late February, a national retail chain ran a mango ad with the National Mango Promotion Board logo. That was the first fruit of the labors of the board's merchandising staff.

As of early February, it was looking as though the California asparagus season might get underway earlier than ever due to mild winter weather. But wet and exceptionally cool weather from late February through early March has delayed the crop, making it later than usual rather than earlier. It may also be lighter than normal in volume throughout the season (which typically runs through May), according to some sources.

Robert A. Grimm, co-founder of Grimmway Enterprises Inc. in Bakersfield, CA, and the current president of the operation, died Friday, March 17 of a massive heart attack. He was 54 years old.