Southern Valley Fruit & Vegetable has made several facility and internal improvements over the past year.

Dug Schwalls, director of sales for the company, headquartered in Norman Park, GA, said, “We added nearly 80,000 square feet of cooling space to our Georgia facility this year. And we have installed a new squash packingline in the past year.”

Mr. Schwalls said that the company grows and packs its own farm-grown product.

With the Bell pepper market of all colors continuing to show great strength at retail, Mecca, CA-based Pasha Marketing has increased its acreage of that commodity this season and dropped a couple of others.

“We’ve opted out of green beans and seedless watermelons this year,” said Franz De Klotz, who wears the title of managing partner along with Nick Bozick. Pasha Marketing is the vegetable arm of Richard Bagdasarian Inc.

VALDOSTA, GA — The produce manager in the loud red silk tie, suspenders and shades has a problem — he just does not know it. As produce peddlers ply him with free booze and small talk, his department is falling apart around him. But this is not a typical morning in a supermarket — it is actually the annual Produce Seminar Workshop sponsored by General Produce, Inc. of Atlanta, GA.

Longtime industry veteran Andy Economou remembers the day well: “Vladimir Tudor came to me in November of 1992 and said, ‘I want you to sell my deal.’ We made the deal and I have been coming to Coachella ever since. As far as I am concerned you have to be there to do it right, so every year I bring out some sales people with me and we spend two months in California. Believe me it’s a great break from Philadelphia. We enjoy it.”

After a 27-year partnership between grower and sales agent, Keber Distributing Inc. of Thermal, CA, is planning to shut its door as early as the end of May as the two principals head into retirement.

Sales agent Dick Keber, who founded the company in partnership with grower Joe Kitagawa in 1986, said Mr. Kitagawa has signed an agreement to lease all of his farm land to Bakersfield, CA-based Grimmway Farms and its Cal Organics division.

“We represent Taylor Orchards in Reynolds, Georgia, which is in Taylor County,” said Michael Blume, sales representative for Keystone Fruit Marketing Inc., headquartered in Greencastle, PA. “Taylor is not only the largest peach grower in Georgia, but it is one of the largest peach growers in the United States.”

Mr. Blume said that Keystone Fruit Marketing packs its Georgia peaches under the “Georgia Fruit Co.” label.

Taylor Farms is owned and operated by the Wainwright family. It is a third-generation family farm that started growing peaches in the 1940s.