More than 16,000 bags of Little Smoochies mandarins were donated through the "Mandarins Making a Difference" campaign, aiding local hunger relief efforts.
The United Fresh Produce Association will address the inequality of opportunity in the industry, a collaboration with a U.S. Chamber of Commerce initiative following the death of George Floyd and nationwide protests.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has scheduled a series of web seminars to help produce growers and other producers sign up for direct payments through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program.
The PMA and United Fresh Produce say they had a “candid dialogue” with U.S. Department of Agriculture officials about the Farmers to Families Food Box Program and expressed hope that improvements can be made.
Ivanka Trump and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue visited Coastal Sunbelt Produce as the company began packing produce in the Farmers to Families Food Box Program.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture gives companies participating in the Farmers to Families Food Box Program leeway on what’s going in the produce boxes.
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect industry companies in different ways, and they are responding with everything from donations to frontline employees to rolling out plans to keep employees safe.
The United Fresh Produce Association and Produce Marketing Association has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to include them in any revisions or evaluations of the Farmers to Families Food Box Program.
Companies whose bids for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farmers to Families Food Box were accepted were getting to work the week of May 11 to pack and distribute the boxes.
With a price tag of $1.22 billion and hundreds of contracts, the USDA’s Farmers to Families Food Box Program is a massive endeavor to move fresh produce and other foods to needy families through food banks.
Produce companies and organizations continue to think of innovative ways of helping consumers and customers during the pandemic, from celebrating Cinco de Mayo to new ways of keeping employees safe.
Companies are reacting in their own ways to the pandemic, from organizing donations of food and money, an attention to worker safety and a little levity to brighten employees’ days.
Taylor Farms, Salinas, Calif., has released its 2020 Social Responsibility and Sustainability Report, focusing on the company’s core pillars of Healthy Business, Healthy Environment and Healthy Community.
California’s Farm to Family Program, a state agriculture program that boosts donations to food banks, has received a boost of $3.64 million as charities see unprecedented demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Produce companies are finding new ways to distribute food during the pandemic, as well as changing plans in the face of how the consumers are buying food now.
The Produce Marketing Association and Partnership for a Healthier America introduced the COVID-19 Fresh Food Fund to distribute fresh produce to people in need during the pandemic.
Through Pro*Act’s network of distributors, a new initiative called Feeding Our Frontlines is delivering more than $1 million in fresh produce to health care workers across the country.
Companies and industry associations are donating products and resources to respond to the pandemic, helping feed hungry families and keeping field workers safe.
Thermoformed packaging company Lacerta, which makes packaging for produce and other fresh foods has been make face shields to protect health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Produce and allied industry companies are finding ways to help consumers whose finances have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, with donations of produce and resources.
Brighter Bites, which distributes fresh fruit and education materials to school children and their families in major urban centers, has a $2 million campaign to continue meeting their needs during the pandemic.
The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service and the United Fresh Produce Association will partner on an April 23 web seminar discussing details of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Purchase and Distribution Program.
Dole, Western Growers, Imperfect Foods and other industry members are donating food and equipment, and offering services directly targeted to easing hardships during the pandemic.
Bowery Farming, New York, N.Y., is increasing support for to nonprofits, including Table to Table and Maryland Food Bank, providing more than 400 pounds of fresh produce a week during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Produce companies and allied industries continue to respond to the need for fresh produce, monetary donations and other resources at charitable organizations across the country as the pandemic continues.
Produce For Kids is inviting the industry to participate in Stock the Food Pantries, an initiative to donate to Feeding America’s COVID-19 Response Fund.
The United Fresh Start Foundation has awarded 25 companies $1,000 each to defray some of the costs of supplying fresh fruits and vegetables to children and families due to the pandemic closing schools.
It’s a disturbing paradox during the COVID-19 pandemic: Food banks are seeing skyrocketing demand with hours-long waits while growers are forced to waste tons of food.
Consumers staying at home on National Banana Day, April 15, will have no problem finding banana recipes and activities to celebrate, thanks to Chiquita Brands International.
