Potato shippers meet to develop marketing plan
Growers and packers from the Washington & Oregon United Potato Growers Cooperative and the United of Idaho Potato Growers Cooperative met in Pasco, WA, recently to discuss the upcoming summer potato harvest and marketing period.
At the meeting, it was agreed that all three states must work together to market the crop in an orderly fashion and to assure the growers a fair market price for their potatoes.
The group met under the umbrella of the Capper Volstead Act, which allows growers and shippers to meet and discuss marketing, pricing and supply.
PA Preferred program launched in Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA -- Despite a huge local marketing opportunity for Pennsylvania growers, only 1 percent of the produce sold by the Philadelphia Regional Produce Center is grown in the state.
In an effort to change that, Dennis Wolff, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, toured the Philadelphia market July 13 and held a subsequent press conference to discuss a new state program to promote Pennsylvania-grown produce. The event was moderated by Philadelphia market general manager Sonny DiCrecchio.
USDA to add fruits and vegetables to WIC
ALEXANDRIA, VA -- The U.S Department of Agriculture is planning to add fruits and vegetables to the Women, Infants & Children program, a move that could translate into $80 million for the produce industry once the program is in full swing, Steven Christensen, deputy administrator of the Special Nutrition Program of the USDA's Food & Nutrition Service, said at a July 13 industry meeting.
The public may get its first look at a revised WIC package as early as January, with a final rule expected in November.
Near-normal California grape season contrasts with 2004 conditions
As the 2005 fresh grape harvest gets underway in California's San Joaquin Valley, there are some striking differences between the current season and the 2004 season.
Most notable is that last year was one of the earliest harvests on record, district by district and variety by variety. The first harvest on many vineyards in 2004 came two to three weeks earlier than normal, and some growers said that it was the earliest start they remember.
A statement from Mann Packing
Officials at Mann Packing Co. Inc. released the following statement July 18: SALINAS, CA -- The sudden passing of Joe Nucci, president and CEO of Mann Packing, has touched all of us deeply. It has also given us time to reflect on what a gifted leader and manager Joe was.
California industry conducts food-safety tour
More than 20 health officials from the United States and Canada participated in a food-safety tour of California fields and production facilities July 12-14.
The tour, organized by Watsonville, CA-based Alliance for Food & Farming, provided an opportunity for these officials to see first-hand how California cantaloupes, tomatoes and lettuce are grown.
New service deal a boon for Ellis Fleisher and the Philadelphia produce market
PHILADELPHIA -- Ellis Fleisher Produce Co., a distributor on the Philadelphia Regional Produce Center, here, has extended its business through a new affiliation with Liberty Foods Inc., also based here.
Liberty Foods is a distributor of 45 food categories, serving a region ranging from Washington, DC, to New York state.
FreshPoint acquires Connecticut produce distributor
FreshPoint Inc., a leading specialty produce distributor based in Houston, has signed a purchase agreement to acquire The Fowler & Huntting Co. Inc., a full-line fresh fruit and vegetable distributor headquartered in Hartford, CT.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close by July 30.
Fowler & Huntting was founded in 1865 and supplies foodservice operations and retail customers throughout Connecticut, Rhode Island, western Massachusetts, southern Vermont and eastern New York.
DRC adds transportation dispute resolution
ANNAPOLIS, MD -- Companies in Canada, Mexico and the United States that are members of the Fruit & Vegetable Dispute Resolution Corp. can now turn to the DRC to resolve transportation disputes for the first time under a new resolution agreed to by top DRC officials during a July 8 meeting, here.
More than 90 percent of DRC members surveyed recently said that they supported expanding the company's negotiating power to transportation disputes, Matt McInerney, DRC chairman and executive vice president of Western Growers Association, said at the meeting.
Stemilt cherry mascot a hit in retail stores
Combine Stemilt Growers' sweet cherries with one of the more popular children's characters and the result is a dynamite promotion that's attracting cherry customers across the nation.
Stemilt's Elmo cherry display, featuring the popular Sesame Street character, is having a definite positive impact on cherry sales, according to Roger Pepperl, marketing director for Stemilt. Retailers have Elmo in produce sections nationwide, and consumers are flocking to the displays for plump Stemilt cherries.