Ben B. Schwartz & Sons hires Drew Billmeyer
Drew Billmeyer joined Detroit, MI-based Ben B. Schwartz & Sons as a merchandiser.
Prior to joining Ben B. Schwartz, Billmeyer worked for the past seven years as an options trader at Wolverine Trading in Chicago, trading options on the S&P 500 on the floor of the Chicago Board Options Exchange. This is his first job in the produce industry.
His father, Chris Billmeyer, is the owner of Ben B. Schwartz, and his younger brother Jake also works for the company.
Freska Produce touting six-pound carton
So far it has only received orders from one specific club store chain, but Freska Produce International LLC in Oxnard, CA, believes it has a winner in its six-pound mango carton.
Gary Clevenger, who is managing member and co-founder of the company, said the company developed the carton for one distribution center of Costco “but now we are in every depot.”
He said the six-pound carton features six large mangos and typically retails at a $5.99 to $6.99 price point. The smaller cartons are display-ready and are packed in a master carton.
D’Ottavio’s blueberry program is right on track
VINELAND, NJ — The extensive blueberry program that M. D’Ottavio Produce Inc. launched last year is right on track, according to company President Michael D’Ottavio. If all goes as planned, he will harvest his first crop of New Jersey blueberries in the summer of 2016, fulfilling a dream that he has had for more than 10 years.
Kingston Fresh expands its melon program
Kingston Fresh announced that it has expanded its strategic sourcing partnerships with established growers of watermelons and cantaloupes within the Georgia and Mississippi region. The move will allow Kingston to extend its available melon volumes with the added summer production. Further, the strategic alliance has allowed the company to better service its key customers on the Eastern Seaboard.
Stone fruit season strong for Homegrown Organic Farms
Homegrown Organic Farms is in the thick of its stone fruit season and will have a fairly consistent supply of fruit from early May through mid-August. Located in Porterville, CA, the company is one of the nation’s largest suppliers of organic produce. “We offer a full line of stone fruit including white and yellow peaches, nectarines, plums and pluots,” said Marketing Manager Cherie France.
She said the stone fruit season got off to an early start “after the dry weather and above-average temperatures we’ve experienced here in the valley the past few months.”
Conventional/organic mirror model gives Anthony Vineyards marketplace edge
The key to success for Anthony Vineyards has been consistency. Family patriarch Anthony Bianco, known for his business acumen at a young age, eventually garnered a national reputation following a proclamation by New Yorker Magazine naming him “Juice Grape King of the United States.”
Following his death in 1967, his four sons took their father’s vision to the next level with the founding of Anthony Vineyards.
Crown Jewels expects good volume of cantaloupes and dews throughout Westside deal
“We are looking forward to a good season on melons” for the Westside deal this year, Atomic Torosian, a partner in Crown Jewels Produce LLC in Fresno, CA, said in an interview with The Produce News. He expected to have good volume in cantaloupes all the way through the deal, “with honeydews to match,” which will be good for promotions throughout the season.
Turlock Fruit’s 2014 Westside melon program is similar to past years
“Everything is pretty much the same” as it has been in recent years for the Westside melon program for the 2014 season at Turlock Fruit Co. Inc. in Turlock, CA, according to Steve Smith, an owner and officer in the company. Turlock Fruit has the same mix of products with about the same acreage as in the past, he said.
The company grows cantaloupes and honeydew melons as well as seven varieties of mixed or specialty melons: Casaba, Juan Canary, orange-flesh honeydew, Santa Clause (also called Piel de Sapo), Crenshaw, Hami and Galia.
Pura Vida Farms ships melons nationwide from Arizona and California
During the spring season, Pura Vida Farms LLC in Scottsdale, AZ, grows and ships melons out of Yuma, AZ, and Blythe, CA, according to Wes Liefer, a partner in the company.
“We are shipping right now” out of Yuma, “ he said May 29. “In about seven to 10 days, we will start shipping out of Blythe. We should go to about July 15.”
Pura Vida grows “all melons,” he said. “We grow watermelons, cantaloupe, honeydew and all the specialty melons. The variety melons that we grow are orange-flesh, Santa Clause, Canary, Galia, Crenshaw, Casaba and Golden honeydew.”
New leadership helps C&K Market emerge from bankruptcy
With a new president in place and a new chief financial officer hired, Brookings, OR-based C&K Market Inc. is expected to emerging from bankruptcy protection this summer. A confirmation hearing before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court is set for June 25 in Eugene, OR.
David D. Doty, the company's new CFO, brings several decades of experience, including serving as the CFO of Star Markets Ltd. on the Hawaiian Islands. Most recently he held the same position for Meadow Valley Corp., a heavy highway civil construction firm based in Phoenix.