Del Rey expects to double its Peruvian volume
Avocado imports from Peru are predicted to be up as much as 25-30 percent this year, but Del Rey Avocado Co. Inc. in Fallbrook, CA, expects an even larger gain, as its volume from that South American country could double.
“We think our volume will double, which is all good,” said Bob Lucy, who is a partner in the operation and in charge of sales. “The size distribution is going to be much better than last year, which should really help sales.”
Peruvian entity opens world’s largest packinghouse
CHAO, Peru — As avocado season was set to kick off here in early May, a new packinghouse said to be the largest in the world was nearing completion to handle the tremendous volume that will be shipped to the United States and elsewhere this year and in years to come.
Peruvian avocados fit well into McDaniel Fruit’s program
Rankin McDaniel Sr., president of McDaniel Fruit Co. in Fallbrook, CA, remembers when the U.S. avocado deal only meant California and Florida. That’s no longer the case, which obviously requires dealing with logistics challenges, but it also means a lot more fruit and steady supplies 52 weeks of the year.
Peru to host World Avocado Congress
The World Avocado Congress, a meeting held every four years that brings together those involved in the avocado industry from around the globe, is set to take place in Lima, Peru, Sept. 13-18.
Among the topics to be covered are genetic resources and nursery management; pests and disease control; culture management and techniques; post harvest and processing; health and nutrition; and marketing. Presentations will be in English and Spanish.
The event will also feature optional tours of avocado orchards both north and south of Lima.
Al Harrison files Chapter 7 bankruptcy
A longtime leader in North America’s watermelon industry has declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
The voluntary petition filed June 9 in Tucson, AZ, at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the District of Arizona indicates that Al Harrison Co. Distributors, based in Nogales, has declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Court documents indicate that Harrison owes between $1 million and $10 million. The firm’s assets are indicated to be between $50,000 and $100,000.
A&P said to be poised for sale
At one time the largest U.S. supermarket chain with more than 15,000 stores, the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. could be on its way out of the supermarket business.
The Montvale, NJ-based retailer is said to be positioning itself for sale, according to a joint statement issued by representatives of 11 food union locals, which said they are “well aware of the rumors circulating about the potential sale of the A&P company in whole or in part.”
School officials advocate for Child Nutrition Bill at seminar
CHICAGO — The Urban School Food Alliance, a group of six of the nation’s largest school districts, advocated for the reauthorization of the federal Child Nutrition Bill during a United Fresh convention seminar, here, June 9.
The alliance represents the school districts of New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Dallas and Orlando. Combined, these six school districts serve 3 million kids daily, which equates to more than 500 million meals a year.
New cold storage at Columbine Vineyards
A new state-of-the-art cold storage facility is now operational for Columbine Vineyards. “The new facility measures in at 204,200 square-feet, roughly 3.5 times the size of an American football field, and can store 750,000 boxes of produce when full,” said Lauren Olcott, marketing representative.
The Freshwave expecting increased volume of New Jersey blueberries
VINELAND, NJ — Consalo Family Farms is expecting to handle more volume of New Jersey blueberries in the 2015 season than it did last season, according to Tom Consalo, vice president of The Freshwave, which is the sole marketer of all products grown by Consalo Family Farms.
As to the timing of this year’s crop, “Right now we’re looking at [starting] a few days earlier than last year,” Consalo told The Produce News Tuesday afternoon, May 26, at the company’s office here in southern New Jersey.
Bill Hammerstrom joins Crown Jewels
Produce veteran Bill Hammerstrom has joined the Crown Jewels team. “He comes to us most recently working with the Superior Sales Inc. group, headquartered in Hudsonville, Michigan, with Bill’s home office based in Kingsburg, California,” Torosian said. “Bill lives produce every day as he lives and farms on his own home ranch growing peaches, sugar plums and alfalfa. Bill’s expertise has been in the area of grapes, citrus and all types of fruit crops.”