Latest News From Industry

The produce industry’s mad merchandising skills are evidenced by the National Watermelon Promotion Board’s newly named winners in its annual Retail Merchandising Contest.

According to advocacy groups, the Financial Protection for Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Act seeks to provide needed financial protections that would help avoid bankruptcy, such as the recent case of Lakeside Produce.

Luis Guardia, president of the Food Research & Action Center, said the group is troubled that a recent USDA report reveals hunger in America soared in 2022 after falling the previous year due to pandemic relief efforts.

GrubMarket has acquired PA China Farm, a provider of specialty fruits and vegetables.

The USDA says it will establish a Regional Agricultural Promotion Program and expand federal procurement of U.S. agricultural products aimed at bolstering specialty crop exports and addressing food insecurity globally.

“Our Centre of Sales and Marketing Excellence is the gateway to all of our major markets ... and it was brilliant we could have our growers join us for this important event,” said Zespri CEO Dan Mathieson.

Avocados From Mexico celebrated its 10th anniversary at the International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce and Floral Show, Oct. 19-21, with a VIP event in its booth.

The purpose of the pilot program is to improve food and agricultural supply chain resiliency by addressing challenges agricultural employers face with labor shortages and instability, the USDA says.

“Innovation” was the word on everyone’s lips at the International Fresh Produce Association’s high-energy and well-attended Global Produce and Floral Show, Oct. 19-21.

From the proliferation of compostable packaging options to a snack-sized supernova, fresh produce purveyors unveiled the most exciting updates and products at the 2023 Global Produce and Floral Show in Anaheim, Calif.

IFPA’s bustling Global Produce and Floral Show brought together members from the fresh produce supply chain from more than 60 countries and featured over 1,160 exhibiting companies, including 157 first-timers.

Attendees brought their A-game to the show floor at the IFPA’s 2023 Global Produce & Floral trade show, creating an inspired, and at times raucous, display of products, people and innovations.

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce and Floral Show kicked off with a rousing State of the Industry address by CEO Cathy Burns, Oct. 19.

The International Fresh Produce Association has kicked off its annual show, bringing together a diverse industry and delivering programming and parties with its signature showmanship and panache.

Among its priorities, the bill proposes creating a Specialty Crop Mechanization and Automation Research and Development Program within the USDA to support specialty crop mechanization and automation projects.

Los Angeles-based Giumarra Companies will host the “Giumarra Golf Club” as part of the company’s broad participation at IFPA’s Global Produce & Floral Show in Anaheim, Calif.

Through the partnership, students receive a coupon for fresh produce, redeemable at local Dollar General stores that now offer fresh fruit and vegetables.

The 15th anniversary of Fruit Attraction ended Oct. 5 with the best participation figures in the history of the trade fair.

The fifth Eastern Produce Council Leadership Class recently had a chance to visit Hionis Greenhouses and the Clifford E. and Melda C. Snyder Research and Extension Farm at Rutgers University.

Giorgio Fresh Co. will share the latest addition to its stuffed-mushroom line at the International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce & Floral Show.

The USDA's sanctions include suspending the businesses’ PACA licenses and barring their principal operators from engaging in PACA-licensed business or other activities without approval from USDA.

The USDA says the company satisfied a reparation order in the amount of nearly $28,000, issued under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act involving unpaid produce transactions.

Bosch Growers, based in the Netherlands, is partnering with Ever Tru Farms to distribute premium strawberries, which will carry the Ever Tru Farms label.

The results spotlight the many challenges that demonstrate an urgent need to improve predictability for a more efficient, resilient and sustainable produce supply chain, according to ProducePay.

GrubMarket says its booth will allow attendees to explore fresh and tech-driven offerings, as its subsidiaries will display its unique contributions to the evolving global fresh produce ecosystem.

The company says the campaign will communicate the key differentiators that it offers to retail, wholesale, and foodservice customers throughout North America as a preferred supplier of avocados and mangoes.

Along with bright green skin and a quirky personality, Bob for Apples from New York is the anchor for NYAA News, a virtual news station for apple lovers everywhere.

The California-based fresh citrus cooperative is kicking off its new sales strategy and streaming commercial at the upcoming International Fresh Produce Association Global Produce & Floral Show.

“For us, it was a perfect, unicorn type of an event — you just don't get these kinds of opportunities very often, if ever,” Frutura’s CEO David Krause tells The Packer in a Q&A about what these acquisitions mean.

Responding to changes in Central America’s competitive landscape and market potential, the vegetable breeding company says it plans to integrate its operations in the region.

The Salinas, Calif.-based sustainability consulting firm is poised to launch a software solution designed to help growers respond to Walmart and similar buyer surveys efficiently and effectively.

Single-serving salad kits, veggie chips and dip, and new blends will be featured at the International Fresh Produce Association’s upcoming Global Produce & Floral Show.

The Castroville, Calif.-based grower and marketer of fresh artichokes is set to debut its new 30-by-30-foot booth at the International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce & Floral Show, Oct. 19-21.

The Canadian Produce Marketing Association has announced the launch of its 2024-2026 strategic plan.

Sun World International is set to host an experiential sampling station for its Autumncrisp brand grapes at The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival presented by Capital One, Oct. 13-15.

The fast-growing indoor farming brand has opened a 210,000-square-foot hydroponic greenhouse in Monroe, Ga. — its second greenhouse opening in two months and the company’s 12th greenhouse nationwide.

San Antonio-based NatureSweet is warning that ending the U.S.-Mexico Tomato Suspension Agreement could add tariffs of more than 20% on the imports of fresh tomatoes into the U.S.

The Syracuse, Utah-based company has announced plans to expand operations to the East Coast with a distribution and packing facility in Cincinnati, set to be fully operational beginning early 2024.

The National Council of Agricultural Employers (NCAE) has announced its agenda for its 10th Annual Ag Employer Labor Forum.

An annual Research Field Day is among the activities the Benson-based North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission has scheduled for sweetpotato growers during the fall/winter season.

Okanagan Specialty Fruits, the creators of genetically engineered nonbrowning Arctic apples, has recently unveiled a 110,000-square-foot processing facility in Moses Lake, Wash.

The National Association of Perishable Agricultural Receivers is getting a makeover. The Washington, D.C.-based trade association founded in 1989 is now the Produce Distributors Association.

The Packer and PMG invite attendees of IFPA's Global Produce and Floral Show to join us Oct. 20, as we present this year’s Produce Retailer of the Year and Produce Marketer of the Year awards.

Check out the top 10 most popular podcast chats we’ve had with industry leaders, delving into the hot-hot-hot issues of the day.

This year’s annual Back-to-School campaign by Healthy Family Project saw a record 238 million impressions, as seven partner brands joined forces to make going back to school easier and healthier for families.

Bloom Fresh unveiled its new corporate identity and reaffirmed its commitment to breeding table grapes and cherry varieties in 24 countries at Fruit Attraction Madrid 2023.

Industry professionals and retailers are invited to stop by Zespri’s booth No. 3293 during the International Fresh Produce Association's Global Produce & Floral Show to "Taste the Obsession."

Dysfunction junction is not where ag advocates want the farm bill to be.

The Kingsville, Ontario-based greenhouse grower has announced it has leased two Kentucky greenhouses — one in Richmond and another in Morehead — which represent a combined 120 acres of fully lit production.

The chance to network with thousands of other fresh produce and floral professionals is the biggest draw of the International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce & Floral Show.