NEPC Expo attendees pack trade show floor
The New England Produce Council’s 22nd annual Produce, Floral & Foodservice Expo was held Aug. 24-25 at the Omni Boston Hotel at The Seaport. This was the first year at the new venue, and high expectations for the event were exceeded. Produce industry members showcased their products for a packed trade show floor.
Blake Bolden (center) a former hockey player with the National Women's Hockey League, who has broken barriers since she was a young girl, delivered the keynote speech Thursday, Aug. 25, at the New England Produce Council's expo. She is shown with NEPC President Tom Murray and NEPC Executive Director Laura Sullivan.
Katie Manetti and Juliemar Rosado of the National Watermelon Promotion Board.
Tim Stejskal of Fresh Innovations CA LLC with Bob McGowan of Affinity Sales.
Bonnie Lundblad of Sunny Valley International.
John Cushing and Michael Harwood of New York Apple Sales.
John Venables and Bruce Klein of Maurice A. Auerbach Inc.
Marybeth March and David Santucci of Giorgio Fresh.
Tyler Hagmaier (center) of Peapod Digital Labs, flanked by Brandon Parker and Adam Brady of Shuman Farms.
Corrine Barry and Dan Welk of Dole Fresh Vegetables.
Joe Atchison III and Christine Fries of the New Jersey Department of Agriculture.
Katie Rabuck and David Masser of Sterman Masser Inc.
Bob Catinella and Bob Koehler of Pear Bureau Northwest.
Tom Marrolli, Lexi McCarthy and Ken Reagan of State Garden/Olivia's Organics.
Nick Georgantas, Peter Shore, Leighanne Thomsen and Mike York of Calavo.
Michael Strock of Strock & Co. with Paul Newstead of Domex Superfresh Growers.
Shawn Wilbur, Gary Prusher and Mike Ward of Remedy Organics.
Tony Barreira, Ed Reynolds, Geoff Kyle and Tara Glazer of Fresh Taste Produce USA.
Tim Harrington of Stemilt Growers with Denise Gagne, Matthew Wilbur and James Guido of Stop & Shop.
Emidio Cappussi of Mucci Farms.
Jeff Haffty of Litehouse.
Chris Holden and Michael Hill of Naturesweet.
Denise Gagne (center) of Stop & Shop, flanked by Leslie Germain and Joe Nava of West Pak Avocado.
Bobby Fingerlin and Brandon Rossi of Index Fresh.
Dane Almassy, Nambi Arumugam, Nicole Simmons and Wilson Gibbons of Aerofarms.
Richard Greten, Lauren Seigle and Bill Stofflett of Tive.
Keith Sloan of Great Lakes International Trading Co. and Kristen Holden of Mariani Nut Co.
Josh Curland and Matt Dinitto of Brightfarms.
Mark Orsi, Larry Goens, Adam Lazo, Peter Fatse, Bill MacDonald and Rich Rappa of Wonderful Sales LLC.
Oscar Garcia, Alfonso Delgado, Stephanie Bazan, Ryan Fukuda and Alejandro Duran of Avocados From Mexico.
Elizabeth Keenan of Keenan Farms Inc. and Theresa Nolan of the James & Theresa Nolan Foundation.
Glen Reynolds and Brandy Thueson of Potandon Produce.
Allison Myers of the Chilean Fresh Fruit Association.
Raquel Mello and Justin Oppici of Hapco Farms.
Maggie Hall and Bryan Garibay of La Bonanza Avocados.
Angela Hernandez, Jackie Nakashian and Jeri Elsasser of Trinity Fruit Co.
Patrick Matthias, Phil Rindone, John Pandol and Scott Reade of Pandol Bros.
Pam and Don Sparks of Nash Produce.
Crystal Berry of Fresh Innovations LLC.
Danielle Ritell of Bolthouse Farms.
Richard Pazderski of Bland Farms.
Tim Harrington of Stemilt Growers and Catherine Delettera of Zespri Kiwifruit.
Philipp Harlov and Camilo Penalosa of Infinite Herbs & Specialties.
Alisha Albinder of Hudson River Fruit.
Juan Monsalve and James Rasmussen of LGS Specialty Sales.
Stephanie Cantero and Doug Classen of The Nunes Co. Inc.
Jill Mazer and Chantal McCrossin of FS Fresh Foods.
Rebecca Meyers of Misionero.
Marian Lapide and Rachel Syngo of Melon 1.
Lindsay Belfatto, Hunter Camps and Ranwa Dbaibo of Ark Foods.
Dean Martel and Kendra Noll of organicgirl.
Kamden Bates of Smith Packing Inc.
John Alva of Goodness Gardens.
Federico Piccone of Pampa Store.
Charles Olins of Saco Foods.
Luke Fountain and Carey Jimenez of Atlas Produce Distribution Inc.
Gordon Hochberg
About Gordon M. Hochberg | 
Gordon M. Hochberg was born in New York City, and grew up in Westchester County, NY. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in history from Lafayette College in 1973.
He started his career at The Produce News in the late 1970s, and has been with the publication ever since.
He served on the Board of Trustees of the New Jersey Agricultural Society from 2012 to 2018. He currently serves on the Southeast Produce Council’s Board of Governors.
He enjoys music, theater and reading (American and ancient history are his favorites). And he’s been a lifelong fan of the New York Yankees since attending his first game in the late 1950s. He and his wife, Kathi, have been married since 1974.
Ryan Beckman
About Ryan Beckman |
Ryan Beckman was born and raised in New Jersey. After studying creative writing at Rutgers University, he attended SUNY Binghamton and earned his master’s degree in English. The following year he and his wife, Amanda, journeyed to the province of Ontario to spend some time living in Toronto and cheering for the Maple Leafs. Ryan and Amanda now live in New York and spend their evenings staring at their ever-smiling son, Oscar.
Ryan is always looking for a good book to read, is sure to be a few hours behind on sleep and will never stop loving 8-bit games.
