Sun Valley’s asparagus volume is ‘coming into its prime’
SWEDESBORO, NJ — Sun Valley Orchards, here, kicked off its 2015 New Jersey spring vegetable deal with a strong volume of good-quality asparagus. The crop started about a week later than normal due to very cold weather over the winter and early spring, but “we’ve had some heat the last few weeks, which brought the asparagus on pretty quickly,” Joe Marino told The Produce News Wednesday, May 13. “The asparagus has been pretty good so far.”
Peppadew USA and F&S Produce form growing-marketing alliance for Goldew
Peppadew USA, the U.S. arm of the South Africa-based developer of a specialty pepper known as Peppadew, is seeing an upward trend in the local production of Goldew, a sweet, tangy version of the pepper.
Pierre Crawley, managing director of Peppadew USA, based in Morganville, NJ, grows Goldew in the Garden State and has enlisted F&S Produce Co. in Rosenhayn, NJ, as a growing and distribution partner to help ramp up volume and sales.
Freshway Foods introduces new seasonal deli salads
Freshway Foods will introduce new seasonal deli salads at the upcoming IDDBA Dairy-Deli-Bake Conference. The new salads feature ingredients and flavors that consumers prefer, including plant-based protein, spicy flavors and unique fruits and vegetables.
Joe Watson leaving Rouses for PMA
Joe Watson, director of produce at Rouses Markets, headquartered in Thibodaux, LA, is leaving to join the Produce Marketing Association, headquartered in Newark, DE.
Watson, who has been with Rouses for 32 years, told The Produce News Monday, June 1, that his last day at Rouses will be Friday, June 5, and that he will be joining PMA at the end of this month.
Roll Global rebranded as The Wonderful Co.
Roll Global has officially changed its name to The Wonderful Co. This strategic move will align the company’s long-standing passion for harvesting healthy and nutritious foods with the consumers it serves across the United States and the globe.
Bagged lime sales up at Ruiz Sales
Ruiz Sales has been seeing a greater demand for bagged limes, according to Richard Ruiz, president of the Edinburg, TX-based company, which handles a variety of Mexican tropical items, with an emphasis on Persian limes.
A Day in the Life of New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Doug Fisher
TRENTON, NJ — The Produce News had a unique opportunity at the end of April to spend the entire day with Douglas H. Fisher, New Jersey’s secretary of agriculture. It was a chance to listen and observe how the secretary conducts meetings and interacts with both staff and members of the agriculture industry in the Garden State, including some prominent members of the state’s fresh produce industry.
Calif. retailer names Suzy Monford CEO
California retailer Andronico’s Community Markets has named Suzy Monford as its chief executive officer. Monford takes on the role at ACM as the company looks to continue its resurgence as an innovator in the San Francisco Bay area specialty food retail.
Jacob Griffith named Choptank Transport's general manager
Choptank Transport, based in Preston, MD, announced Jacob Griffith as its new general manager of the company’s Tampa, FL, office.
2015 Jersey Fresh produce season under way with good quantities of high-quality crops
The 2015 Jersey Fresh produce season is underway and should be highlighted by good quantities of high-quality produce. According to the New Jersey state climatologist, this winter was a cold and snowy season with below-average temperatures. March temperatures averaged 35.8 degrees, which is 5.3 degrees below normal and ranks as the 14th coldest winter since 1895. March 2015 was 0.5 degrees “milder” than March 2014. With the exception of 1914-15 and 1940-41, no other consecutive months of March have averaged such cold temperatures in the past 121 years.