CAC seeing record-breaking shipments
The California Avocado Commission, based in Irvine, announced that record levels of avocado shipments occurred in May, with Cinco de Mayo and Memorial Day shipments reaching all-time highs. The record-breaking trend continued into June with the second week of June recording an all-time high one-week tally of avocado shipments of just over 22 million pounds.
Partnerships bring Imagination Farms closer to its goal
With the mission to increase consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables among children, Indianapolis-based Imagination Farms has taken significant positive steps in that direction with two recently announced partnerships with prominent fruit producers.
In the first alliance, Imagination Farms joined with Ito Packing Inc. in Reedley, CA, to market stone fruit and blueberries under the "Disney Garden" brand. The items were the first fresh produce products to carry the brand.
Arvin district expected to start a little late with good size and quality and close to a full crop
If the grape crop in California's Arvin district, the earliest in the San Joaquin Valley, comes off in the way it appeared to be shaping up as of the second week of June, it will be a welcome relief to buyers who have struggled to secure promotable volumes during the Mexico and Coachella spring grape seasons.
The desert grape deals so far, out of both Mexico and Coachella, had been light on most varieties as well as late, making grape supplies short and prices steeper than usual at mid-season for the deals.
JBJ Distributing to open office in Indiana
Fullerton, CA-based JBJ Distributing Inc. is planning a July 5 opening of a regional sales office in Crown Point, IN, about three- quarters of an hour from Chicago.
Rob Gurney, who has been with JBJ for 12 years, will run the one- person office for the company, which is a subsidiary of Veg-Land Sales Inc., also based in Fullerton. Veg-Land Inc., a 110,000- square-foot warehouse, and Flower Land -- flowers for retailers -- also are subsidiaries of JBJ and are based in Fullerton. The Crown Point facility will be JBJ's first regional office.
New Mexico onion deal off to a good start
With supplies down a bit, the New Mexico onion deal got off to a good start, and in mid-June shippers were quoting prices better than usual for this time of year.
Stormy Adams of Shiloh Produce Inc. in Hatch, NM, summed up the comments of many who were interviewed by The Produce News when he said, "The crop is short, so demand is up and the prices are pretty good."
New group seeks to energize fresh asparagus industry
Newly formed WEA Farms in Lima, Peru, is launching a new line of value-added fresh asparagus products for retailers. Focusing on providing value-added items like Euro covers, microwavable bags, MA bags, tips, clamshells and other special packs, WEA intends to energize the fresh asparagus industry.
Damon Distributing opens L.A. office
Nogales, AZ-based Damon Distributing opened an office in Los Angeles the week of June 19 across from the Los Angeles Wholesale Market.
Though Damon Distributing is well acquainted with the Los Angeles Wholesale Market and services customers in Los Angeles, the opening of its L.A. facility marks the first time Damon Distributing has opened an office in Los Angeles.
The Perishables Group to provide data solutions to BI LO/Bruno's
The Perishables Group, an independent consulting firm specializing in the fresh foods industry, has a new agreement with BI LO and Bruno's to provide the necessary data and tools for a customized perishables performance tracking and category development program.
The agreement will enable BI LO/Bruno's and its supplier partners to gain new insights into category performance across the perishables departments including produce, meat, seafood, deli and bakery.
New brochures/rack cards ready for Vidalia onions
The Vidalia Onion Committee has designed three new brochures and point-of-sale cards available to growers and packers, produce managers, the public and anyone else wanting to find out about Vidalia onions and how to prepare them.
Vidalia Onions - Just the Sweet Facts is an informative brochure that tells all about the history of Vidalia onions, interesting facts, growing season and availability, planting and harvesting, and how to store and save.
Del Monte Fresh teams with Disney on DVD promotion
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. Inc. in Coral Gables, FL, announced that it will partner with Disney to promote the upcoming DVD release of "Leroy & Stitch," the newest adventure from the original "Lilo & Stitch" series.
"We are very excited about this promotional tie-in with Disney because it promotes the release of the DVD in a fun way that encourages kids to eat more healthy fruits, and in this case, our delicious Del Monte Gold extra sweet pineapple," Matt Smith, vice president of marketing, said in a statement .