Though his family's roots in produce run deep, Luc Charbonneau got his start in produce the old-fashioned way: selling bananas from the back of his car.

WASHINGTON -- President-elect Barack Obama should move fast to name a U.S. Food & Drug Administration commissioner if the administration "hopes to hit the ground running" on key issues, such as tightening import regulation, according to a Nov. 24 letter to Mr. Obama's transition team from the Alliance for a Stronger FDA, an umbrella group of 180 consumer, industry and health organizations advocating more money for FDA.

DILLSBURG, PA -- Retailers are proud of the displays that were featured in their produce departments during the fall months of September, October and November, and National Apple Month wants to see the results of each retailer's efforts.

National Apple Month announced the first week of December its final call for entries for the 2008 fall display contests in retail supermarkets and military commissaries. More than 50 winners will be named in the contest with awards ranging from $25 to $1,000 in cash prizes or charitable donations.

Dave Roberts of DCR Co. in Visalia, CA, has been elected the new chairman of California Citrus Mutual's board of directors, a statewide citrus producer's trade association based in Exeter, CA, that represents more than 200,000 acres of citrus farms in California.

As of Tuesday, Dec. 2, the California Department of Food & Agriculture had established a 107-square-mile quarantine zone in the El Cajon area of San Diego County following the detection of a Mediterranean fruit fly infestation.

As of Wednesday, Dec. 3, 18 wild adult Medflies had been detected at 12 sites in the area, and Medfly larvae had been detected at two sites. In addition to the challenge of combating the Medfly population, San Diego County also is battling Asian citrus psyllid and Diaprepes root weevils that pose a serious threat to agriculture.

DELANO, CA -- Paramount Citrus will soon add to its 30,000 acres of citrus with the purchase of 1,000 acres the company plans to use for the expansion of its clementine production and growth of the "Cuties" brand of California clementines.

The acquisition from members of the George family of land in eastern Fresno, CA, supports Paramount Citrus' long-term strategy of ensuring that the company meets customer demand, according to Paramount Citrus President David Krause.