PMA Fresh Connections: Retail
More than 170 attendees from the fresh produce and floral industry gathered in Philadelphia June 18-19 for networking and education at the Produce Marketing Association's Fresh Connections: Retail. Attendees also participated in a private tour of the Philadelphia Wholesale Market, one of the nation’s most innovative wholesale markets.
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Terminal market concept drives St. Louis
ST. LOUIS -- The ongoing success of the St. Louis Produce Market is a tribute to the terminal market concept.
Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers adds organics to its stone fruit offerings
Dan Wohlford, national marketing representative for Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers, said the firm will add organic stone fruit to its manifest this season. “We will start with apricots, peaches, nectarines and pluots,” he said.
Country Sweet Produce offers ‘full gamut’ of conventional and organic onions
From the first of June through about mid-August, Country Sweet Produce Inc. in Bakersfield, CA, the marketing arm of Donald Valpredo Farms, offers a “full gamut” of onions, both organic and conventional, grown in the San Joaquin Valley of California, according to Duke Dodder, commodity sales manager.
The mix includes yellows, whites, reds, flat yellow sweet onions and red Italian sweets, he said.
Industry professionals working diligently on ways to ease the high and increasing cost of transportation
Increasing costs of production are affecting the entire produce industry today, but one issue that is causing a huge upset that may intensify tremendously is the cost and tenuousness supplies of fuel and trucking regulations that have most growers, shippers and even end users on the nervous edge of their seats.
New York looking at outstanding back-to-back apple seasons
As old and new apple crop seasons dovetail each other, insights from the orchard show a bright future for New York's industry. "Last year, we had an excellent crop, a full crop, one of the largest crops in history," said Jim Allen, president of the New York Apple Association in Fishers, NY. "Pricing was OK. Quality and packouts were good. We're still selling last year's crop."
Cherry crop update from Domex
Dave Gleason, chief horticulturalist for Domex Superfresh Growers, provides and update on this year's cherry crop in one of its lower Yakima Valley orchards. Harvest is progressing nicely this year, and color is developing due to warm weather with cool nights. The flavor is excellent and the crop loads are ideal for great fruit.
Safeway launches new salad kits
Safeway has launched a new line of chopped salads. The "Safeway Farms" kits are available in five varieties, each containing greens, toppings and dressing.
"We work closely with our growers to make sure every ingredient is always fresh and delicious and grown with the highest standards," the company states on its website.
The Asian Sesame salad kit contains Napa cabbage, carrots, celery, green onions, cilantro, garlic ginger wonton strips and peanuts and tangy sesame ginger dressing.
New projects under way for Village Farms
“We own and operate greenhouses in Texas and Delta, British Columbia,” said Douglas Kling, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for
Village Farms LP, headquartered in Heathrow, FL. “In addition we have strong high tech greenhouse partners in Mexico, the Dominican Republic and in Canada.”
Mucci Farms anticipating groundbreaking in U.S.
Continuing with its calculated growth track, Mucci Farms Ltd. plans to break ground on its newest state-of-the-art facility on American soil this fall. “We are deep into negotiations which will be a U.S. build,” said Joe Spano, the company’s vice president of sales and marketing. “We have acquired the land and hope the next build will wave the American flag.”