The theme of this spring issue is education. After all, we’re all adults here, so there’s hardly any back-to-school September refocus for us. But we keep it fresh. If we’re doing our jobs right, we’re learning all the time, day in, day out, year-round.
Read the digital issue of the March-April 2023 PMG magazine.
That’s especially true when we enter this industry, start a new job or rise to the occasion of a new role, whether it’s a lateral move or up the ladder.
Our learning takes the form of on-the-job training, continuing education classes, workshops, seminars and the ol’ school of hard knocks.
We know how important it is to have a well-informed personal shopper for a produce retailer’s success in e-commerce. That’s why we dedicated this issue’s cover story to how retailers and third-party services train their personal shoppers to pick well for that at-home consumer, page 24.
Retail dietitians play a critical, but sometimes overlooked, role in educating the shopper, which can push produce sales, detailed by registered dietitian Annette Maggi on page 12.
On page 16, Kristin Leigh Lore clears up the relations among broccoli and its cousins. We know how confusing extended family relations can get.
And if you ever find yourself wondering, “What’s the difference between [this] and [that]?” then you’re in luck. As spring has yet to approach by publishing time, we’re looking forward to the coming produce, such as spring onions … and scallions, which are distinguished from each other on page 33.
Speaking of spring, artichokes are a beloved delicacy, yet lack of education can prohibit a consumer from purchasing it, page 8. A big part of that education is information on preparing the produce, which is also key to the mango piece on page 9.
Pro tip: There’s a growing number of free, virtual courses on ProduceEDU.com, a professional training platform. Each course has a quiz at the end and a certificate of completion. You might as well use this resource while it’s still free.
