Two Homestead, FL-based tropical produce specialists have combined forces to provide greater resources and enhanced service to their growing customer base as Fresh King Inc. has acquired C-Brand Tropicals Inc.

"Our customers now have a wider selection and greater resources to choose from, more convenience and more volume availability," Peter Schnebly, co- owner of Fresh King, said in a press release. "The synergies created through the combination of the two companies have already yielded exciting results."

WASHINGTON -- The largest lenders of New York family farms warned the week of Oct. 9-13 that the recent raids by immigration authorities and the lack of a stable workforce could result in a loss of more than 200,000 acres of crop production and millions of dollars in that state.

SALINAS, CA -- The Nunes Co. President Tom Nunes Jr. announced Tuesday Oct. 10 that the company received results from an independent lab showing that multiple samples of both green leaf lettuce and water were negative for E. coli 0157:H7.

The news follows the company's voluntary recall issued Oct. 8 for certain heads of green leaf lettuce after the company discovered that water used to irrigate the lettuce may have been contaminated with E. coli.

Summeripe Worldwide Inc. in Dinuba, CA, and Nickelodeon have completed a new multi-year licensing agreement to bring Nickelodeon's most popular characters, SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer, to grocers nationwide on kid-friendly packages of farm-fresh peaches, plums and nectarines.

"Yes, master, it's true."

Barbara Eden and Dawn Wells will grant the wish of fans everywhere when they meet attendees and pose for pictures at the Idaho Potato Commission booth (No. 4705) at this year's PMA Fresh Summit in San Diego.

Paint it Pink, the fundraising team from Faye Clack Communications Inc., a niche agency that specializes in strategic communications for the food industry, recently announced its successful completion of the 60-kilometer walk in the Toronto Weekend to End Breast Cancer benefiting Princess Margaret Hospital.