“The charge is on to put more fruits and vegetables on plates,” said Mary Ostlund, director of marketing for Brooks Tropicals, a leading grower-shipper of tropical fruits and vegetables headquartered Homestead, FL. “It’s not just larger portions of side-dish standbys: we’re branching out. Enter ‘tropicals,’ which are enticing their way to the family’s dinner table with great exotic tastes.”

She added that it is not only taste that is driving tropical fruits and vegetables into shopping carts, but the discovery of big pluses on the nutritional side.

Wendy Brannen, who has served as executive director of the Vidalia Onion Committee since July 2005, has resigned to take a position with U.S. Apple Association in Washington, DC.

The owners of East Coast Brokers & Packers in Plant City, FL, have filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 in a Florida court and have indicated in a statement to the press that they will continue operating.

According to the Tampa Bay Tribune, Evelyn and Batista Madonia Sr. are well-known in the Plant City area and also own the Red Rose Inn & Suites, which has been closed since last May. The same article states that the biggest creditor in the bankruptcy is Met Life Agricultural Investments, which is owed $46 million.

“We will have good volumes of French beans, papayas, limes and specialty value added vegetable items on display at the upcoming NEPC Expo,” Daryl Johnston, vice president of sales for Pompano Beach, FL-based Southern Specialties Inc. “I will be joined at booth number 342 by Charlie Eagle, vice president of marketing and business development.”

Goldens and Fujis, seeing steady movement despite the presence of imported fruit in the marketplace, represent value to consumers and a reliable focal point for retailers, according to Scott Marboe, marketing director for Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers in Wenatchee, WA.

“Spice World certainly is exhibiting at the NEPC Expo,” Louis Hymel, director of purchasing and marketing for Spice World Inc., headquartered in Orlando, FL, told The Produce News. “We will be at booth number 527.”

He noted that Drew Caneza, sales representative, Arden Laughter, also a sales representative, and Chris Whitson, vice president of sales would be at the company’s booth at the New England Produce Council Expo to greet and meet with customers.