CHICAGO - The 2012 Apple Crop Outlook & Marketing Conference, held here, kicked off on Thursday, Aug. 16 with its first general session meeting and although the forecast for the 2012 U.S. apple crop isn't as promising as years prior, growers and industry veterans are remaining optimistic about what's to come.

"This year certainly does present quite a number of challenges," Mark Seetin, USApple director of regulatory and industry affairs, said during his presentation.

CHICAGO – The second and final day of the 2012 Apple Crop Outlook & Marketing Conference began bright and early the morning of Aug. 17 with the USApple state of the industry report and business meeting, and concluded with the announcement of the 2012 U.S. Apple Crop Forecast.

Dragonberry Produce Inc. has gained a reputation for providing its customers with sometimes unusual, but always exciting fresh produce offerings. Sales Executive Amy Nguyen said 20th Century pears are one of the commodities that has created such a strong foundation for the specialty boutique-style company located in Clackamas, OR. “The 20th Century pears we market have a delicate skin,” Ms. Nguyen said. “Our growers take the same care with these as they would with berries.”

On Tuesday, July 31, The Produce News spoke to Pat Calabretta, senior director of purchasing and merchandising for Sobeys Quebec. “Things are good, we’re full swing into our local season. Cherries, berries and stone fruit are always a strong category for us, as are local strawberries. We’re definitely seeing demand pick up for stone fruit,” said Mr. Calabretta.

“We’ve had some vendors affected by weather issues. We’re here to support the vendors. Overall the quality had been good. While there have been some issues, we try to rotate the quality stock quickly,” he said.

Castellini Co. LLC has hired DAVE SCHIRMANN as a salesperson and account manager at its Wilder, KY, location.

The California Table Grape Commission, based in Fresno, is actively involved in a variety of trade-oriented promotional activities and consumer communications efforts throughout the California grape season. Those programs were launched in May announcing the start of the season, and they continue through the peak production periods of late summer and fall, extending even past the end of the year.