Wohlford: ‘We think that this year is just the first in a string of record-breaking crops’
Energy and excitement are running high in Washington apple orchards this season. Producers such as Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers in Wenatchee, WA, expect careful long-range planning to pay significant dividends — fruit of exceptional volume, quality and size — in the coming years.
Wolter: Careful category management increases sales
Suzanne Wolter, director of marketing for Rainier Fruit Co., said apples provide the kind of lift that benefits both the category and overall produce department sales.
Holtzinger Fruit Co. hires Paul Montmeny
Yakima, WA-based Holtzinger Fruit Co. recently welcomed retail and produce sales veteran Paul Montmeny to its team as sales manager.
Montmeny brings over 25 years of experience in the apple/berry industry to Holtzinger. He has a diverse background of experience in marketing and selling apples, with successes in international and domestic program development.
College football reporter Heather Cox signs on with IPC for a second year
Heather Cox is back with a new lineup of weekly videos and contests that are scoring big points with college football and Idaho potato fans across the country. The popular college football sideline reporter and Boise resident was recruited by the Idaho Potato Commission last year to help promote Idaho potatoes during the fall season, one of the heaviest buying periods for the brand.
N.C. sweet potato harvest is complete and back to normal, reports indicate
BENSON, NC — The 2014 North Carolina sweet potato harvest was wrapping up in early November — 86 percent complete, according to the North Carolina Agribusiness Council — and back to normal proportions and of high quality, according to the head of the North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission and several growers.
Bi-Lo, Harveys and Winn-Dixie enhance customer data security with Apple Pay
Bi-Lo Holdings, parent company of Bi-Lo, Harveys and Winn-Dixie grocery stores, is enhancing customers' data security by supporting Apple Pay across its entire Southeast footprint. The new payment option will also make checkout faster and more convenient for customers.
Del Monte Fresh opens fresh-cut facility in Toronto
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. Inc. announced that its first state-of-the-art Canadian distribution center, which opened in January, is now being complemented by the opening of a fresh-cut facility in Oshawa, ON. The facility services the Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa metropolitan areas with fresh produce.
RBest Produce achieves PrimusGFS certification, actively focused on food safety
In October RBest Produce Inc. and sister company El Sol Brands Inc. celebrated their first year anniversary operating from the newly built warehouse in Port Washington, NY. Along with this milestone, last month the company’s 70,000-square-foot facility achieved Primus Global Food Safety Certification.
Moroccan clementine quality is up, says Lange's Bill Weyland
A joint effort to boost the quality of Moroccan clementines is apparent this fall, according to Bill Weyland, vice president of Tom Lange Co. International, based in Springfield, IL.
Experience the key to Champion’s onion success
Onions have factored into the lives of Champion Produce Sales’ staffers for years and in some cases generations, as John Wong, president of the operation, noted in early November when the 2014 crop was seeing good movement out of the Parma, ID, facility as well as another facility in neighboring Utah.
“Our family farms have grown delicious Spanish Sweet onions for more than 60 years,” Wong said, adding that Champion prides itself on providing “such a nutritious food for healthy lifestyles.”