SPARTA, MI — To prepare its well-established packinghouse for the 2011 apple season, Jack Brown Produce Inc., here, added a sophisticated second packingline. Among other benefits, the new line brought a capability to scan for internal defects in apples, according to Sales Manager, Mitchell Brinks.

Then, a frost reduced the 2012 Michigan apple crop to less than 10 percent of the state’s normal volume. Although Jack Brown packed some apples until November 2012, the firm’s equipment was grossly under utilized. Still, the new line worked well.

Winvian touts itself as a resort experience like no other. Nestled in the heart of the Litchfield Hills of Connecticut, the 113-acre property is an oasis of nature and serenity that was created especially to recharge and indulge the senses in a unique way.

One more foreign country is joining the ranks of those who contribute to the summer citrus demand in North America.

On July 10, the Federal Register; The Daily Journal of the United States Government published an article titled Importation of Fresh Citrus Fruit From Uruguay, Including Citrus: A Rule by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

“We are very excited that mushrooms are being touted as such an important super-food today,” Fred Recchiuti, general manager of Basciani Foods, also known as Basciani Mushroom Farms, in Avondale, PA, said. “Chef Richard Blais was recently featured on ‘The View’ [ABC]. In his segment he introduced the ‘blendability’ of mushrooms, and he prepared a 50 percent beef and 50 percent mushroom burger, naming it the Earth and Turf Burger.”

Blais, Recchiuti added, also prepared a mushroom mayonnaise and mushroom mustard, ala the Mushroom Council’s wap it or Top It” campaign.

The clock is ticking as producers seek alternative methods to prevent fire blight from decimating organic pear and apple orchards. Use of oxytetracycline, one of the major agents to control the disease, will not be permitted as of October 2014.

The Chilean Avocado Importers Association expects a volume increase of 30 to 35 percent over last year, with the main season for Chilean avocados extending from September through March, according to a written statement from the association to The Produce News. “Promotable volumes will be available throughout the fall and winter months, with marketing programs put in place to support retail sales,” the statement said.