FoodLink, a commerce and traceability platform that connects fresh food retailers and wholesalers to a network of over 2,000 growers, packers and shippers, announced that California Giant Berry Farms will use the company's item-specific tracking solution on all strawberries grown in the United States.

Under terms of the agreement, FoodLink will create QR-coded labels for "clamshell" strawberry containers. The code will contain information about the specific growing location of the packaged berries, allowing trading partners and consumers to trace the berries back to their source.

Freska Produce International is one of the larger U.S. importers of mangos, and it expects to continue to grow to keep up with the popularity of the crop.

Gary Clevenger, managing partner of the Oxnard, CA-based company, said, “Our goal is to grow about 5 [percent] to 6 percent every year, and we are on target for that growth again this year.”

“Bananas and plantains are now our biggest items,” Emil Serafino, vice president of the Exp Group LLC, in North Bergen, NJ, told The Produce News on Feb. 23. “We currently have six rooms in operation and construction is underway now for an additional eight. Within the next 12 months we will have 21 ripening rooms in operation.”

Mr. Serafino noted that growth in the tropical fruit and vegetable category is being spurred by ethnic groups that have immigrated to the United States.

Santa Maria, CA-based Azzule Systems announced the hire of KERRY BRIDGES as director of the PrimusGFS Scheme Feb. 25.

In her new role at Azzule, Ms. Bridges will develop, coordinate and direct the PrimusGFS auditing scheme on a global scale. She will focus on ongoing development of the scheme in coordination with the Global Food Safety Initiative — working closely with current and future certification bodies, and driving the global expansion of PrimusGFS within the fresh produce and fresh food industries, according to the company press release.

West Coast Tomato Growers is ramping up volumes of its “Oceanside Pole” brand tomatoes. Looking ahead to its second season marketing them, the Oppenheimer Group estimated that volume could jump to roughly 4.5 million cases between July and November.

Calavo Growers Inc. announced that it has created FreshRealm LLC, a cloud-based technology company that is building a platform that will allow participants, such as traditional retailers, large and small enterprises, communities and food banks, to plug into an ecosystem resembling a national fresh food cooperative.