After serving for 15 years as president of HydroSerre Mirabel, Martin Desrochers has left the firm he founded with his brother, Luc, and his father, Gervais, and also has resigned his position on the board of directors of the Fruit & Vegetable Dispute Resolution Corp.

The Mirabel, QC-based firm, one of the larger suppliers of hydroponically grown Boston lettuce in North America, has over 21 acres of greenhouses in Quebec and is known for its floating raft technology, which Luc Desrochers adapted for commercial use in the early 1980s.

A random inquiry to dozens of fresh produce industry members indicates that both presidential candidates enjoy significant support from the produce industry's rank-and-file.

An unscientific e-mail blast sent to different produce business classifications across the nation resulted in many different responses, with adamant supporters of both Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama and Republican candidate Sen. John McCain.

BAKERSFIELD, CA -- Sun World International LLC featured a new look with the unveiling of a new company web site (www.sun-world.com) the week of Oct. 6-10. The redesigned site is colorful, easy to navigate and features the company's proprietary brands and products.

Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer recently appointed three producer members, three alternate producer members, two importer members and two alternate importer members to serve on the Hass Avocado Board.

Reappointed to the board were producer members Ben R. Drake of Temecula, CA, and Kenneth J. Roth of Vista, CA; Kay S. Wild, alternate producer member of Vista, CA; importer members James C. Donovan of Ventura, CA, and Giovanni Cavaletto of Redlands, CA; and alternate importer members Elena H. Garcia of Chandler, AZ, and Pilar Charrada of Los Angeles.

Although the heaviest volume of produce crossing from Mexico into the United States through Nogales, AZ, comes during the winter and early spring primarily out of the state of Sinaloa, the Nogales deal kicks off in earnest in October and November with melons and assorted vegetables from the state of Sonora, which borders Arizona.

NORWALK, CA -- Food safety was the topic of discussion at the Fresh Produce & Floral Council membership luncheon, held here Oct. 1 at the Norwalk Marriott. Neil Checketts, senior director of food safety and food defense for Wal-Mart and the featured speaker at the event, spoke about a myriad of food safety topics that confront retailers, foodservice operators and consumers.

Mr. Checketts first focused upon risk factors for retailers. He said that Wal- Mart founder Sam Walton once said, "The bigger Wal-Mart gets, the more important it is that we think small."