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Part two of The Packer’s editor Tom Karst and the North Carolina SweetPotato Commission’s Michelle Grainger.

Look for a bigger crop of Northwest cherries in 2021 and a nice-sized promotion window for retailers.

The cherry crop for Orondo, Wash.-based Auvil Fruit will be similar but possibly a little larger than a year ago, said Ray Norwood, director of sales and marketing for the company.

BC Tree Fruits had a beautiful cherry set this year with a heavy bloom, said Laurel Van Dam, director of media relations for the Kelowna, British Columbia-based company.

Medium and large companies grow Peruvian avocados year-round along the coastal regions of the long South American country, while small farms are nestled in the mountains.

While avocados have been around since before written history, the commercial export of the fruit to the U.S. is relatively new. Here’s a timeline of notable events in the U.S.-Peru avocado relationship.

Other than chipping potatoes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Market News Service did not report any fruit and vegetable shipment figures from Ohio in 2020.

A cold spell early in the growing season has delayed some Mid-Atlantic harvests, but not for long. Overall, the region’s summer crop is looking good.

Crop conditions look good so far for Willard, Ohio-based Wiers Farm Inc.

Michael Family Farms, Urbana, Ohio, has increased its potato acreage by 35% in 2021 compared with 2020, said Kathy Michael Sponheim, co-owner and sales, marketing and administration.