As Sunkist's John McGuigan aptly put it, the devastating effects of the January 2007 freeze are now, thankfully, "in the rear view mirror," so far as most California citrus items are concerned. Navel oranges have rebounded with good volume, good quality, a generally good size structure, an early start and virtually no residual effects from the freeze, as have other citrus varieties with one exception.

The exception is lemons, which continue in tight supply and are expected to remain tight and high-priced through the end of the year.

HOUSTON -- Mexico Calidad Suprema is a program that was initiated by the government of Mexico to assure that product bearing the program's logo meets rigid standards with regard to quality and safety.

Initially, certification requirements were established to include compliance with U.S. protocols for Good Agricultural Practices and Good Manufacturing Practices.

HOUSTON -- Complementing its existing line of specialty melons, Dulcinea Farms has tested and will be introducing a new melon to the marketplace in summer 2008.

HOUSTON -- Although it's been 14 years in the making, Sun World's new grape variety is paying dividends, and company executives believe they have hit a home run with the new Scarlotta seedless variety.

The late-season variety produced 250,000 cartons this year and there are expectations for volume to increase for the next several years until it surpasses the 1 million-carton level. Increases after that will depend upon how many new acres are planted. Like other grape varieties, it takes three years from first planting to produce a commercial crop.

Although the f.o.b. prices for Iceberg lettuce that surpassed $35 in mid- October dropped considerably the third week of the month, the lettuce market remains strong, and experts said that the current conditions should hold for at least the next several weeks.

Speedy97 S.r.l., headquartered in Scordia in the province of Catania, Sicily, is a major grower and packer of high-quality Sicilian citrus fruits. Sebastiano Spicchiale, president and chief executive officer, Rudolf Baron Von Freyberg, partner and vice president, and Giuseppe Spicchiale, junior partner, attended their first PMA Fresh Summit in Houston in October. Initially not certain of what they would learn about doing business in the United States, they came away from the PMA experience inspired by future possibilities.