Fresh Produce Fridays

Peach Perfect: Virginia Grower Sets Guinness World Record

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 14:31:55 GMT

It’s nearing the end of apple season at the Chiles Peach Orchard in Crozet, Va., but almost all anyone can talk about right now is peaches. Well, one peach in particular.

Because this year the Chiles family grew a Guinness World Record peach — 1 pound, 13 ounces.

“This all happened right at the very end of peach season, so we’re getting all this publicity and articles,” says Henry Chiles, a fifth-generation grower. “We’re in Virginia, and it’s made the news all the way to Colorado. And it’s apple season. It’s funny, but it seems to be making news everywhere.”

Chiles says he got the idea by looking at social media posts from other peach growers, noting how close their peaches were to the record weight.

“I thought to myself, well, we might have a peach like that out on the farm this year,” he says.

While growers can prune trees and blossom thin to manage crop load and produce larger fruit, Chiles says this year’s large peaches were part mother nature, part variety.

“We had a pretty significant spring frost in April that really, really lessened our crop load, especially on some varieties, and this was one of them,” he says. “So, I kind of had my eye on a couple of big peaches on the farm, and we picked one early and weighed it and it wasn’t quite wasn’t quite a record-breaker.”

But not all was lost, as Chiles entered that peach at the county fair for the largest peach and won. And one day, Chiles says he walked through the orchard and he found what he believed to be the perfect world record-breaking peach.

“We didn’t do much extra other than what we would normally take care of the peaches. We just had the right weather conditions this year for growing monster peaches,” he says.

While growing the peach was easy, going through the process to get the peach certified as the world’s heaviest peach was not.

That’s where Ally Whitmer, Henry’s sister and also a fifth-generation farmer who focuses on special projects at the farm, came in. Whitmer says it took a lot of paperwork, videos, photos and waiting, which is not necessarily the easiest for a perishable item.

“There’s a lot of paperwork, a lot of videos, a lot of photos and a lot of waiting time, with a peach that is very perishable,” she says. “It was very nerve-wracking.”

As they awaited the results from the approval process, Chiles and Whitmer say they moved the peach around for fear that something could happen to it.

Whitmer says that once she submitted everything to Guinness World Records, she realized that they didn’t submit a witness for the weighing video. So, she had to gather up the outstanding members of the community, an agricultural specialist and more to record the weighing video one more time.

The specialist made the official measurements and listed the genus and species as part of the paperwork. And all witnesses, which included a volunteer firefighter, a local grocery owner, a businessman and more, needed to provide Guinness with credentials to verify titles and positions.

“It did lose a little bit of weight in the refrigerator,” Chiles says of the second weight attempt. “So, our world record weight is actually the refrigerator weight. It was actually even a little bit heavier when we picked it off the tree. We lost about two-hundredths of a pound just being in the refrigerator, but that’s OK. We still had enough.”

And where is the peach now?? It’s frozen as Chiles and Whitmer plan to have a 3D replica of the peach made to put on display at the family’s retail store, Chiles Peach Orchard in Crozet, Va.

As for plans to grow another heaviest peach, Chiles says he thinks he can do it again.

“I think that the record that we set this year is beatable, and I think that we probably will try to beat it again,” he says. “And I’m not saying that we’ll try every year. We do have the tree marked, and we will probably get a couple more of those trees made if we can or bought, and then, yeah, we probably will try again.”

What Does a Modern Apple Orchard Look Like?

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 14:44:44 GMT

When you think of an apple orchard, you might think of large trees full of foliage and apples so high up in the tree that you’d need a ladder to reach them. However, today’s modern apple orchards look much different.

Known as high-density system, these trees are much shorter and smaller. Bill Dodd, a fourth-generation apple grower at Hillcrest Orchards in Amherst, Ohio, grows his trees in a slender spindle growing system; he shares with The Packer a little bit about the advantages of growing apples in a high-density system.

“Typically trees are planted 2.5 to 3, maybe 4 feet apart in the row — fully dwarfing rootstocks to control the size of the tree, needs to be supported,” he says. “This is a four-wire system with trellis posts, and then, because of the dwarfing trees don’t have much of a root system water is critical so we have trickle irrigation set up.”

Dodd still has some older plantings on his farm, with about 150 trees per acre, compared to his high-density blocks, which can range anywhere between 1,200 to 2,000 trees per acre. He says trees cost about $10 each, so it is definitely more expensive to grow in a high-density system

“You can do the math on 1,200 trees per acre, or 150 trees per acre,” he says. “It’s pretty expensive to plant the high-density.”

And that’s not only the trees; there’s also the wires and the poles to create the trellis system as well as the drip irrigation.

So, if it’s more expensive, why do growers do it? While it might seem counterintuitive, Dodd says those smaller trees in the higher-density plantings are more productive than the larger ones. There are fewer leaves on the higher-density trees, which means the tree can focus more on growing fruit than growing tall.

“This so very productive compared to the older style, bigger trees, much more efficient, easier to prune, easier to harvest,” he says. “Pretty much everything seems to be easier with them. Also, the fruit has access to way more sunlight, which helps with color.”

How the Purple Tomato is Changing Consumer Perception of GMOs

Fri, 12 Sep 2025 15:45:05 GMT

Eating the rainbow has become easier and more flavorful in recent years, especially when it comes to anthocyanins — the purple pigment that’s in blueberries, blackberries, red grape skins, eggplant and now — thanks to genetic modification — the purple tomato.

Nathan Pumplin is CEO of Norfolk Healthy Produce, the company behind the Empress Purple Tomato, a bioengineered tomato made by adding two genes from snapdragons. These tomatoes are a rich source of antioxidants because the purple pigments are in the whole tomato, not just the skin.

“They’re really good for people’s health, and most of us don’t eat nearly enough anthocyanins,” Pumplin says.

But the trained molecular biologist, who has worked for nearly 20 years in R&D and commercializing new types of plants that solve problems, says bringing a GMO purple tomato to market has not been without challenges.

“The first GMOs were really marketed to farmers, and the innovative farmers said: ‘OK, there’s these new GMO crops, do I want to use them?’ And they very quickly saw: ‘Wow, this solves a lot of problems for me. Yes, I want to adopt them,’” he says. “What was forgotten was that it was food being produced and sold to consumers, and consumers never had an opportunity to engage with GMOs in the food system.”

“There were people who felt the food supply was playing God in the lab by adding DNA to create new varieties, and no one had asked them if they wanted to opt in or opt out,” Pumplin continues. “I think a lot of people felt like they were treated like guinea pigs. Their opinions and their values weren’t respected when those first crops launched. And that’s a huge problem.”

Adding to the challenge is the reality that most consumers don’t know what a GMO is, making education critical to driving demand for the purple tomato.

The Empress Purple Tomato is a stunner in a variety of dishes from appetizers to salads.

(Photo courtesy of Norfolk Healthy Produce)

“What’s really gratifying is that we find, generally, 80% to 90% of people in the U.S. want this product,” Pumplin says. “They know it’s a GMO, and they get a chance to ask questions like: ‘Well, don’t all GMOs have pesticides?’ And we can say: ‘No, there’s no pesticides on these. And they have the opportunity to ask a lot of questions, and then the vast majority of people say, ‘OK, I really want this.’”

While Pumplin says backlash against GMOs halted innovation and new product development for years, now he sees things coming full circle. And as consumers are hungry for the new, the flavorful and the nutritious, the fresh produce industry has innovated with the help of GMOs in some exciting ways.

“Now we have some breakthrough products, and so I’m really proud to say, our purple tomato — which is marketed in grocery stores right now under the Empress brand — is doing extremely well,” he says. “We also have the Pinkglow pineapple from Del Monte on the market. We have the Arctic Apple, which is growing and doing very well in a lot of segments.”

“I think we’re on the brink of a widespread recognition within the industry that this is something that consumers are no longer afraid of,” he adds. “They simply want a better product. They want something they can afford. They want something that their kids will eat. They want something that’s nutritious, that’s beautiful, that tastes good, all of that.”

But while today’s consumer might be ready for the better, purple tomato, Pumplin says it’s the produce industry that needs to catch up on GMOs.

“There’s just simply so little fear among the broad consumer base right now, and also such a desire for new and better products,” he says. “A big part of my messaging is to try to make sure that folks in the produce industry, these key decision-makers, understand where their consumers are.

“Because I think that’s actually the biggest gap right now. Consumers have moved on, and a lot of the decision-makers in the industry, haven’t caught up to where the consumers are,” he says. “They think the consumers are still 10 years ago, afraid of GMOs, and that’s not true anymore.”

Connect with Shoppers Through Emotion, Storytelling, Nostalgia

Fri, 15 Aug 2025 17:12:52 GMT

When it comes to connecting with the consumer in the produce aisle, every second counts. One glance can make — or break — a sale according to Jean-Pierre Lacroix, founder and president of strategic design agency SLD, and author of “Think Blink Manifesto.”

For more than 30 years, Lacroix has helped brands connect with shoppers through impactful design and storytelling. Here are his three tips for creating instant connections in your produce aisle.

“People were buying local because they made the equation that local meant fresh: It meant the product wasn’t traveling that far,” he says.

Lacroix calls this emotional connection with, for example, local produce, a mental shortcut. His first tip, then, is to label produce with its origin clearly and consistently. Make the local aspect stand out with colors, icons or maps.

“Most consumers probably have 30 products on their short list in their mind that they buy repetitively,” he says.

“[Grocers can overcome that list] through storytelling,” Lacroix continues. “When we were working with Calgary Co-op, we said, ‘You know, you didn’t tell a story. This product was grown on this farm in Alberta by this family of growers. You know, there’s a story of the family.’”

Next, highlight who grew the food, where it came from, and why it’s special. Shoppers buy more when they feel a personal connection.

“That’s nostalgia,” Lacroix says. “You’re linking moments of your life, of your past life when you were a child, or your parents when they were children. You’re linking those equities to that moment, and that’s a very emotional moment.”

And finally, Lacroix says seasonal recipes and family traditions can turn a casual browser into a buyer.

“Eighty percent of all buying decisions we make are emotional, and visuals drive them,” he says. “We absorb images 600,000 times faster than words. So all those signs that retailers put up, that means work for the brain; but if you had a visual there, maybe it’s a pie. See ingredients that connect instantly with the consumer.”

Design with emotion; tell the story, and make every blink count in your produce aisle.

Your Next Read:
Designing Desire: How ‘Think Blink’ Moves Produce Sales

Fresh Produce Friday: Growing Community One Garden at a Time

Fri, 01 Aug 2025 12:33:43 GMT

Something fresh is growing in the heart of Denver, Colo. From schoolyards to vacant lots, Denver Urban Gardens, known as DUG, is planting not only vegetables, they’re planting possibility.

One such space is the Cedar Park Community Garden and Food Forest. What was once a gas station location became a community park that DUG is now reimagining to represent all that the group offers, including gardens, food forests and sensory gardens.

“We came up with a plan to use the spaces in the park, creating opportunities for growing food or informal food forest spaces,” says Noah Bernstein (former) director of gardens for DUG.

DUG helps people grow food where they live. Whether it’s a backyard garden, school plot or a community space, DUG provides the tools, the know-how and the support to make it happen.

“When we have more green spaces, we increase our biodiversity; we increase our diversity within the community,” Bernstein says.

With a network of over 200 gardens and food forests across seven counties, Denver Urban Gardens is cultivating more than food — it’s growing community leadership, health equity and environmental resilience.

“This is a part of urban agriculture, this is a part of growing,” Berstein says. “We have hungry people here in the city, and our hope is that we’ll discourage any theft from the gardens and also encourage more food access.”

DUG’s plan is to have the Cedar Park Community Garden and Food Forest open in 2026 so people can begin planting in the community garden and growing food.

“So please, in the next few years, as you come around this site, pick yourself some fruit and nuts. It’s going to be really cool,” says Taylor Kibble, garden projects manager for DUG.

Your Next Read:

What Makes Michigan So Great for Ag?

Mon, 11 Aug 2025 17:52:29 GMT

A study conducted by Michigan State University highlights the unique role that specialty crops play in the state’s economy, contributing about $6.3 billion and creating about 41,000 full-time jobs.

Many of these Michigan farms grow a diverse range of crops, from apples to asparagus to vegetables. It is the diversity that sets Michigan specialty crops apart, coupled with the state’s unique climate.

Juliette McAvoy, a second-generation grower, shares a little bit about what sets Michigan produce apart. Her family’s orchard, on the northwest coast of the state’s lower peninsula is about 3 miles inland from Lake Michigan and about 45 minutes north of Traverse City.

“We grow a lot of different stuff on our farm starting with asparagus which we’re harvesting right now strawberries, sweet cherries, tart cherries, pears, plums, apricots, nectarines, apples and a whole bunch of veggies and random stuff in between,” she says. “We really have a lot going on all the way from May to October and our focus on our farm is to bring people here. We do a lot of agritourism, where people can come pick something for almost three months or four months out of the year.”

Diversification, McAvoy says, is the key to her family’s business.

“We are very diversified and that has been intentional not only does it reduce risk but my father who started the the business over 45 years ago he learned quickly that in order to get labor that you’ve trained and you like you needed to be able to you wanted to keep them in for as long as possible,” she says. “We’ve intentionally tried to expand our growing season beyond just sweet cherries which is you know maybe three or four weeks in July.”

McAvoy says this diversification has helped drive people to visit her family’s farm markets for fresh produce, baked goods and more.

And as for what makes Michigan such a great state to grow a variety of different fresh produce offerings? The lake, of course.

“Lake Michigan plays a really big role into why this is such a good fruit growing region and because it tempers the fluctuations in temperature,” she says. “The lake keeps our winters a little milder than if you were inland more and then we our springs are a little cooler than if you’re inland more. That’s one of the reasons why we can still grow fruit this far north.”

McAvoy says the drumlins, which are the ridges left after the glaciers receded thousands of years ago helped creat sloping hill and the moderate temperatures which also helps growers.

“These sloping hills paired with the lake as a moderator of temperature really make this one of the there’s special fruit growing regions here in Michigan,” she says. “We also think it’s quite beautiful and we’re very lucky to be able to live here and work here.”

Has a viral TikTok trend created a global pistachio shortage?

Fri, 23 May 2025 11:44:11 GMT

Last month the Financial Times and other outlets reported that the Dubai chocolate craze has led to an international shortage of pistachios. Created in 2022 by Dubai-based FIX Dessert Chocolatier, the original milk chocolate bar featured pistachio cream, tahini and knafeh pastry.

Following a viral video from a TikTok influencer, global demand for the Dubai chocolate bars has skyrocketed, and it has inspired releases from Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, Shake Shack and more.

As for the international pistachio shortage? Zachary Fraser, president and CEO of the American Pistachio Growers, a nonprofit trade association that represents about 800 pistachio growers in California, Arizona and New Mexico, said that’s not the entire story.

Alternate-bearing pistachios have on and off years. The crop harvested last fall was in an “off” year, and that was coupled with a viral global social media trend, Fraser said.

“The fact that the popularity of Dubai chocolate hit at a time that the crop year was down is what I call a perfect happy accident,” he said. “It is driving an unprecedented amount of demand for our product, and that, combined with the decades’ worth of research that we’ve done on nutrition and the amount of work that we’ve done to drive great promotion around the globe, you lean into it, and you make sure that you take advantage of all the good things you’ve done to lead up to that point.”

While TikTok trends come and go, Fraser said he doesn’t see that happening with pistachios.

“I don’t see the demand going down,” he said. “The taste of an American-grown pistachio is off the charts. The color is amazing. We’re still discovering new ways that we can use a pistachio.”

Fraser said American Pistachio Growers plans to continue to tout the health benefits of incorporating pistachios into diets.

“Rule No. 1 of marketing is you should never complain when something goes viral,” he said. “And No. 2 is you absolutely bust your tail to make sure that it stays that way, and that’s what our team is doing right now. We’re not looking at it as a year-to-year thing. We’re looking at it as this, this should be a good two-decade run for us if we do it correctly.”

Fraser said he’s seen growing demand globally for pistachios, especially in India.

“India is making pistachios a part of their daily diet,” he said. “That’s 1.4 billion human beings. Let’s say 20% of 1.4 billion human beings — 300 million — are making pistachios a regular part of their daily diet.”

While it’s early and harvest isn’t until fall, Fraser said he expects a good-sized crop this year.

“It’s going to be a crop that hopefully can keep up with the demand,” he said. “Demand is outpacing supply, and I think that will continue to be the case.”

Fraser said his organization plans to capitalize on this momentum built by the Dubai chocolate bars and also tout the sustainable practices of pistachio growers in the country.

“We want consumers to know that the Dubai chocolate that they’re putting in their mouth is not only delicious, but it’s sustainably farmed,” he said.

And with the challenges pistachio growers face with water, regulatory issues and an increase in the cost of farming, the Dubai chocolate pistachio craze is a nice reprieve for the industry as it tackles those challenges.

“It’s just a really fun time to be in the pistachio world right now,” Fraser said. “Let’s celebrate something that’s really powerful, really popular.”

How Growing Gardens builds resilient communities

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 16:06:00 GMT

Growing Gardens in Portland, Ore., is planting more than just vegetables — it’s planting hope.

The nonprofit has been an important part of the city’s food landscape for nearly 30 years, creating what Executive Director Jason Skipton calls “garden-based interventions,” in an effort to “build and create equitable communities centering garden-based education and leadership development in agriculture.”

Growing Gardens has three core programs: Home Gardens, which plants in Portland backyards; Lettuce Grow, a hands-on, garden-based education for incarcerated students; and Youth Grow, a program that works with Portland public schools to provide learning gardens and hands-on education.

“Home Gardens is a three-year program where we offer support to gardeners who are interested in learning to grow their own food,” says Rashae Burns, who directs this program for Growing Gardens. “We give them seeds, plant starts, workshops and one-on-one support to the gardening spaces at home or spaces [elsewhere].”

Roma Leiva, home gardens partnership coordinator for Growing Gardens, says the Home Gardens program is an empowering process for home growers.

“This is a place where you can learn. You can learn constantly and be empowered to create your own garden, even if it’s to grow in a pot at home,” Leiva says.

Through hands-on support, education and ongoing mentorship, Growing Gardens is helping families grow their own fresh food, right at home. For many participants, this is a first step toward food security, better health and community ties, showing that food justice can start one seed at a time.

“Now is the time to invest in our local food system,” Skipton says. “Come and join us.”

Your next read: Portland’s urban farmers fight to keep fresh food flowing to underserved communities

Behind the scenes at Gush Farms' strawberry operation

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 19:59:00 GMT

Even on a snowy day in early April, Montreal residents can expect fresh, locally grown strawberries thanks to Gush Farms, a pesticide-free vertical farm in the heart of the city.

Gush Farms grows berries in about a 105-day cycle and uses short-day strawberries in its three grow rooms that have six tiers and four double rows.

“Growing vertically allows us to be more space efficient, so cracking the code of this style of farming can improve yields and domesticate strawberry production and move away from reliance on imports here in Canada,” said Zachary Mason, chief technical officer for Gush Farms.

Mason said Gush Farms recently planted its youngest grow room.

“They’ll start flowering in a few weeks and then fruiting after about 50 days, at which point we’ll start harvesting for 50 days and restart the cycle,” he said.

In its second grow room, green berries and some nearly ripe berries start to progress. While the berries continue to grow, crews come in and help prune runners off to help the plant better focus its energy on fruit growth.

“The plants are putting out a lot of runners,” Mason said. “Our team here is pruning them diligently, and also in an indoor context, it’s important to prune for light distribution.”

Plants in Gush Farms’ oldest room is about 3-months-old and is in between harvests, where the plants produce more green fruit for the next flush.

Crews harvest at night or early morning to fill orders, which get sent to Lufa Farms.

“The customer will have it in their fridge the same day it’s harvested in most cases,” Mason said. “That freshness is kind of unbeatable and you can taste it compared to what grocery store varieties, and also the cultivar we grow here is not optimized for shelf life transport. It’s optimized for taste, and so you can taste the difference just in the variety that we grow as well.”

Gush Farms uses an NFT — or nutrient film technique — system where water flows constantly with a set amount of nutrients and the perfect pH.

Mason said that Gush Farms is pesticide-free and that the cultivars used are selected for flavor, not for shelf life or shipability.

“You really notice the difference when you try them,” he said. “Our problem is that we can’t produce enough to meet the demand. It’s a good problem to have, and we hope to drop the price to serve a much larger market once we scale up to our next farm.”

Growers see advantage to growing citrus under protective netting

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 19:39:14 GMT

Citrus greening, also known as huanglongbing or HLB, has been a devastating force for the Florida citrus industry, where growers have experienced production losses as high as 90% due to the disease, which is spread by the Asian citrus psyllid.

But not all is lost in Florida, as brothers Jerry Mixon and Keith Mixon have invested significantly in production under exclusion netting designed to keep the Asian citrus psyllid at bay.

The Mixon brothers have chosen to grow citrus under protective screen — or CUPS — to protect the trees from the threat of citrus greening and grow sustainable and quality fruit.

“We have seen a continued increase in volume over the last three or four years. One of the things that we’ve been very pleased with is the trend upward last year. We wound up being at about 900 boxes an acre, which is kind of where the university who started all this suggested we’d be,” Jerry Mixon said.

Keith Mixon said that, aside from protecting the trees against Asian citrus psyllids coming in, the CUPS system has also helped the brothers produce better quality fruit.

“What we’re finding is that the screens prevent the wind from touching and shaking the trees at all,” Keith Mixon said. “We get really blemish-free fruit outside and inside, though, is where the real magic is. It’s more mellow than maybe you remember as a kid. This is really mellow it’s packed with all kind of great nutrition and we’re really finding that our grandkids and kids love them and we think the whole world does.”

The Mixons also showed off the newest planting of 240 acres of trees in the CUPS growing system.

“It’s a project that is a culmination of things that my brother Jerry and I have learned over the last 10 years and have really defined a new way of doing this in scale,” Keith Mixon said. "... We’re really excited about how fast these trees grow how quickly they produce and how beautiful the fruit is both outside and inside ... .”

How tariffs will impact consumers buying fresh produce

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 13:17:05 GMT

Last week President Donald Trump announced the U.S. will impose a 10% tariff on more than 50 countries, going into effect April 5. He said the U.S. will also impose reciprocal higher tariffs on countries with which the U.S. has a large trade deficit. Those will go into effect April 9 at 12:01 a.m.

Also in that announcement, President Trump indicated goods that fall under the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Free Trade Agreement would continue to see 0% tariffs, and this includes imported fresh fruits and vegetables.

Dante Galeazzi, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association, says the fresh produce industries in Mexico and Canada dodged a bullet with this announcement, but the fresh produce industry didn’t come out entirely unscathed from the impact of tariffs.

“They are the principal sourcing point for a lot of our imported fruits and vegetables,” he says. “However, our fresh produce industry was not entirely spared, and I say that because consumers need to be aware that especially at this time of year, before the United States has started their spring/slash summer season, we are still depending on imports for a lot of fresh produce items that are going to be impacted by these tariffs.”

Galeazzi said this includes fresh produce from Central American countries such as avocados from Columbia, grapes from Chile and asparagus from Peru.

“As a result, all of these locations in Latin America are receiving at minimum, a 10% tariff,” he said. “So if you were paying $1 for your mango, it’s going to be $1.10 now.”

He said consumers may not see price increases initially, but closer to May because retailers purchased the fresh produce currently in store at a previous price.

“It’s probably going to be a month or so before you start to see price increases because of the way that fresh produce moves through the system,” he said. “You’ve already got stuff on the shelf that was bought at a previous price, and the stuff that’s going to be behind that immediately for the next two weeks is going to be all these items that were priced ahead of the tariffs. At some point, three to four weeks from now, the new produce will start coming in that has been subject to the tariffs. And so that’s the point where you could start seeing price increases.”

Galeazzi said overall, President Trump’s announcement is fairly good news for the fresh produce industry, especially the growers in Canada and Mexico.

“As an industry, we were very fortunate that none of our major sourcing points received the very high tariff rates that we saw go against some of the other countries, like China and India,” he said. “And so as a result, your fresh produce should experience very minimal price increases. But the best part is that you will have availability at the fresh produce aisle. The good news is Americans, large and wide, will continue to have the availability they enjoy today. They might just pay another dime or more to get that fresh produce.”

What consumers need to understand about food bank cuts

Thu, 03 Apr 2025 20:21:15 GMT

Earlier this month, the USDA cut funding for two federal programs that spent $1 billion annually to help schools and food banks buy food from local farms and ranches.

Leslie Gordon, the president and CEO of the Food Bank for New York City, said this funding cut is a huge loss, as food banks will spend less to buy fresh fruits and vegetables from local farms. The loss of these federal funds also will affect food banks’ work with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, she said.

“SNAP dollars provide support through retailers in the billions and billions of dollars across the United States,” Gordon said. “If we pulled the rug out from those SNAP dollars, then you’ve got the retail sector that needs to find some additional margin in there too.

“All in all, if we’re purchasing less from our farmers — whether it’s fruit, whether it’s veg, whether it’s beef, whether it’s chicken, whether it’s value-added products — for local producers, if we’re not buying what they’re selling then they’re going to need to make more money on the little that they have that’s moving,” she continued. “We’re going to see that causes food price pressure, too, that’s really hard.”

The Food Bank for New York City provides more than 66 million free meals a year to New Yorkers in need, and its education programs support more than 13,000 children and families. Gordon said cuts to food programs will have significant impacts on the well-being of school-aged children.

“If you’re a person who just generally cares about others in your own home community, then you should know that all of the potential impacts in cuts to food programs like school food. If your kid is a school student right now, think about the other kids that might be in his or her class and how they’re impacted if they don’t have access to good nutritious food,” she said. “Maybe the teacher now will have more distractions. Like adults, kids have a tendency to act out if they’re hungry.”

Gordon encourages people to advocate for childhood nutrition through learning more about its benefits and impact to communities throughout the country. She also stresses the importance of having conversations with lawmakers about the effect of these program cuts.

“You may say if you live in an urban area or a small village that has no farms, and you can’t see farms, that this doesn’t impact you. I’m here to tell you that farms impact all of us this is our collective United States food system at work,” she said. “You need to be able to speak to your lawmakers to say ‘I care about kids being fed and their childhood nutrition. I care about families in my community and making sure they have the connection to all the good nutritious resources they have. I care and making sure about making sure that food is not only accessible and affordable for me and my family but for others across the United States.’

“We need to get better educated on where our food comes from, how it impacts us, what good nutrition looks like,” she continued. “Read early and often; get educated on all these programs. Get educated on the U.S. farming industry. That helps inform conversations that you’re having with lawmakers too.”

Take a virtual tour of Wish Farms' warehouse

Mon, 10 Mar 2025 22:59:04 GMT

Berry grower-shipper and marketer Wish Farms has been in business for 103 years and has been a staple in the Plant City, Fla., area since the late 1930s. In a year, Wish Farms ships about 120 million pounds of strawberries and about 35 million pounds of blueberries across the country.

The company’s 36-acre headquarters features a 125,000-square-foot warehouse and cooling facility, a 24,000-square-foot office, a blueberry farm, walking trails and more. Wish Farm’s facilities use 2,100 solar panels, which Wish Farms said meet about 60% of its electricity needs.

All berries that come into the company’s facility first undergo rapid cooling to ensure freshness. The modular automated cooling system uses 40% to 50% less energy than conventional cooling tunnels. The company picks berries every two to three days and packs up to 125,000 blueberries a day.

Wish Farms field-packs its strawberries and raspberries but machine-packs its blueberries. For packing, Wish Farms takes its cooled blueberries in bulk and washes, sorts and grades the berries before packing. Wish Farms uses an optical sorter, which selects berries based on external and internal quality, color, size and shape.

“It’s my family’s company. I’m fourth-generation. We’ve been in business for 103 years,” said Nick Wishnatzki, public relations director for Wish Farms. He said the company has berries coming in and out of Plant City year-round — strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and pineberries.

Wish Farms is in the thick of its Florida strawberry season, which runs from about Thanksgiving to Easter, Wishnatzki said.

“We’ve got some really great delicious berries coming out, and we have our pine berries variety of berry,” he said. “It’s a cross between a Japanese white and a Florida red strawberry. It’s a little less acidic than the red berries. You’re going to get more subtle tropical flavors. Sometimes people get tangerine, they get pear, pineapple hints of pineapple — it’s a really unique eating experience.”

Berries coming into holding rooms at the warehouse get pre-cooled and held until they’re shipped to grocery stores, Wishnatzki said.

“We typically don’t have anything staying here longer than 24 hours, so we’re getting them to the store as soon as possible, because they’re very perishable,” he said. “So, you get the freshest product at the store.”

Wish Farms’ quality control team checks pallets that are staged for shipping to make sure that it’s the best quality and that the grade is acceptable to the retailer accepting them, Wishnatzki said.

“Our company dates back to 1922. My great-grandfather Harris came over as an immigrant and he started selling fruits and vegetables for a push cart in lower Manhattan,” he said, adding that the company has evolved over the years from a brokerage to a farming operation, from Wishnatzki & Nathel Inc. to Wishnatzki Farms — and ultimately becoming what is is today.

The Fresh Market talks top produce trends for 2025

Wed, 19 Feb 2025 14:31:59 GMT

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla.— From the moment shoppers at The Fresh Market walk into the store, they know what season it is for the freshest produce. Whether that’s citrus, stone fruit, asparagus and more, the season’s bounty is on full display under the meticulous eye of Director of Produce and Floral Merchandising Dennis Payne and the entire team at The Fresh Market.

“Our teams excel at highlighting seasonality, ensuring our customers enjoy the freshest produce when it’s at its peak,” Payne told The Packer on a recent tour of one of the Greensboro, N.C.-based grocer’s new concept stores in South Florida.

“When seasonal items like Sumo citrus, domestic cherries, apples, stone fruits and locally grown peaches are available, our stores actively promote them,” Payne said. “Our team members share their knowledge and insights about these items to help guests make the most of their seasonal choices.”

Payne is hands-on as he walks through the produce department, stopping to make sure the Sumo oranges are all pointing in the right direction and chatting with shoppers as they place produce from the expertly merchandised aisle in their baskets.

“Our Palm Beach Gardens location was the first to feature our enhanced future amenities, designed to provide guests with the best possible shopping experience,” said Payne. “This store highlights exceptional selections and top-notch quality, making it the perfect destination whether you’re shopping for everyday meals or planning to entertain.

“We’re committed to offering everything you need to find exactly what you’re looking for, all in one place,” he added.

Artichokes are perfectly presented at The Fresh Market.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

And when Payne says, “everything you need,” he means it — right down to avocados at various stages of ripeness. Clearly marked signage lets shoppers know which avocados are ripe and ready to eat and which are one to two days away from the optimal eating experience.

Citrus season was in full swing on a recent visit to The Fresh Market.

(Photo courtesy of The Fresh Market)

While The Fresh Market’s customers are spoiled for choice when it comes to the freshest produce, The Packer asked Payne to name a few of the items his shoppers can’t live without.

“Our stores offer a wide variety of customer favorites all year round,” said Payne. “Some of our most popular items include Driscoll’s berries, Family Tree Jumbo Blueberries, our premium selection of bagged and clamshell salads, and our fresh squeezed juice.”

The Fresh Market also engages shoppers with sampling. On the day The Packer visited the Palm Beach Gardens store, the grocer sampled citrus fruit alongside fresh squeezed tangerine and orange juices.

The Fresh Market offers shoppers avocados at various stages of ripeness.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Top trends for 2025

What produce items does Payne see gaining traction in the year ahead?

“We anticipate significant growth across several categories in 2025 as more guests seek out food that support health and wellness,” he said. “Organically grown and locally sourced products will continue to thrive across all categories.”

In addition to organic and local offerings, Payne sees berries and value-added produce continuing to resonate with shoppers.

“With their incredible health benefits, the berry category is expected to see a notable rise in demand,” said Payne. “And to offer greater convenience, we are expanding our in-house value-added section, featuring high-quality pre-cut fruits and expertly prepared vegetables for easy, fresh options.

“Our goal is to provide our guests with the best options for both health and convenience,” he added.

Your next read: Meet the 2024 Packer 25 — Dennis Payne

Seen and heard at Fruit Logistica 2025 — Part 1

Mon, 10 Feb 2025 18:03:06 GMT

BERLIN — Fruit Logistica 2025 brought together fresh produce industry professionals from around the globe to the Messe convention hall, where over 2,600 exhibitors from more than 90 countries featured the latest innovations in fresh produce. Organizers say the event, held Feb. 5-7, also included record-breaking participation from China, Turkey and Egypt.

One red-hot trend at this year’s Fruit Logistica was antioxidant-rich fruit in unexpected hues.

Patricia Sagarminaga, global director of marketing and communications for Amfresh Group, and David Alba, CEO of Genesis Fresh, showed off the new antioxidant-rich Onix orange.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Amfresh Spain showcased the Onix orange with a deep burgundy red rind and intensely flavorful flesh. Grown in Spain, Onix nabbed the 2025 Fruit Logistica Innovation Award.

“Onix is the supernatural fruit,” said Patricia Sagarminaga, global director of marketing and communications at Amfresh Group, who explained the unique orange variety was discovered by a blood orange grower in Spain. “It’s high in antioxidants with a flavor that is out of this world,” Sagarminaga added.

Currently sold in Europe, Sagarminaga says the orange will be available in the U.S. soon.

“We think this is going to revolutionize the citrus category,” said David Alba, CEO of Genesis Fresh.

Alba says the citrus is “also great for growers.”

“It’s very easy to grow and growers get really high yields. And it’s easy for packers, as the fruit is firm and travels well,” he said.

Zespri’s Darren LaMothe, regional market manager for North America, touted Zespri RubyRed at Fruit Logistica 2025.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

This year Zespri plans to introduce its RubyRed kiwifruit to the U.S. market for the first time, beginning with a spring trial on the West Coast, said Darren LaMothe, regional market manager for North America.

“Retailers are really excited,” said LaMothe about the new red kiwifruit, the flavor of which has “very distinct berry notes.”

Zespri says it is doubling the volume of its RubyRed kiwifruit compared with last season.

“We’re really focused on brand awareness in the U.S.,” said LaMothe, who says while the Zespri brand is well known in Europe and Asia, there’s an opportunity to develop the U.S. market further.

“We’re going after health-seekers in the U.S., said LaMothe. Zespri says its RubyRed Kiwifruit is high in vitamin C and antioxidants.

Zespri RubyRed kiwifruit is the latest variety to come through Zespri’s kiwifruit breeding program in partnership with Plant & Food Research. This year marks the fourth year of commercial production.

Fresh Del Monte’s Thierry Montange shows off the Rubyglow pineapple at Fruit Logistica 2025.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Fresh Del Monte featured its exclusive Rubyglow pineapple. The distinctive red pineapple with yellow flesh is a cross between an inedible Brazilian variety and a traditional pineapple. Only a few thousand of the pineapples are produced each year, said Fresh Del Monte’s Thierry Montange.

Fresh Del Monte launched the Rubyglow pineapple in time for last year’s Chinese New Year. Montange says the super-premium pineapples command a hefty price tag of between 250 and 300 euros each.

“There’s a waiting list of customers for the Rubyglow,” said Montange. “It proves to the industry that there’s room for super-premium produce.”

The dramatic packaging for Rubyglow pineapples is as striking as the fruit itself.

“The box is part of the ritual. It’s perfect for gifting,” Montange added.

Sun World’s Elena Hernandez and Dané Joubert presented an array of grapes including Ruby Rush, a crisp, seedless grape with subtle sweetness.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

“This is the first show we’ve promoted Ruby Rush,” said Elena Hernandez at the Sun World booth. “We’ve got a good, consistent supply going into 2025 and it’s been exciting to see how people have engaged with it at Fruit Logistica.”

Ruby Rush is an early season red grape that offers the additional advantage of not needing to be sprayed in order to color, said Dané Joubert.

“It all starts with genetics,” said Hernandez, who says Sun World takes a “very strategic and disciplined” approach to developing varieties that meet the highest flavor and quality standards, while also addressing gaps in the market.

Sun World also shared how its new partnership with Biogold will add citrus and tropicals to its portfolio, including new mango varieties with less strings and smaller pits.

Your next read: Seen and heard at Fruit Logistica — Part 2

Boosting sales with Super Bowl displays

Tue, 14 Jan 2025 12:48:23 GMT

Creative promoting and displaying of Super Bowl snack ingredients is key to boosting sales at retail as consumers gather to enjoy the game, fruit-and-vegetable suppliers say.

“Retailers should absolutely consider building a dedicated section to capitalize on consumer excitement for the Big Game,” said Manuel Michel, managing director of the Colombia Avocado Board.

He suggested that retailers prominently feature avocados in high-traffic areas, such as the front of the produce section or near store entrances.

“Cross-merchandising with complementary items like tortilla chips, dips and onions creates a convenient, one-stop shop for guacamole ingredients,” he added.

And including signage indicating avocado ripening levels can help less-experienced consumers choose the perfect fruit for their needs.

“Shoppers hit retail for their game-time spreads during the week leading up to the Big Game and the weekend of, so these are the key times to promote avocados,” said Brooke Becker, senior vice president of sales for Mission Produce Inc., Oxnard, Calif.

Mission Produce can help retailers take advantage of POS merchandising and promotions with campaigns tied to both college and professional football, she said.

Baskets jump by an average of $41 during college football season when avocados are on the list, Becker added.

Cross-merchandising avocados with complementary items like tortilla chips, dips and onions creates a convenient, one-stop shop for guacamole ingredients, says Manuel Michel, managing director of the Colombia Avocado Board. Pictured is a scene at Altomonte’s in Doylestown, Pa.

(Photo: Katie Fair, Four Seasons Produce)

Indio, Calif.-based Green Life Farms suggests retailers create a special Super Bowl section featuring the company’s products along with examples of dishes customers can make, such as guacamole and fresh salsa, said Jaime Torres, chief financial officer.

“Eye-catching displays with recipe cards and serving suggestions can inspire customers and boost sales,” he said.

The Benson-based North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission would like supermarkets to position sweetpotatoes as a healthful option.

“Creating in-store signage, handouts and recipes that frame sweetpotatoes as a healthy option will enable health-conscious consumers to add them into the grocery cart,” said Michelle Grainger, executive director. “Add callouts about the Super Bowl such as ‘Game-day MVP: Sweetpotato Fries & Snacks,’ ‘Score big’ or ‘Huddle Up with Sweetpotato Recipes,’ she suggested.

It’s also a good idea to create nutritious recipes that are game-day themed.

“Create recipe cards with guacamole, nachos and chips including ingredients and instructions to spark inspiration and creativity,” she said.

Gotham Greens, Little Leaf Farms make Instacart’s Fastest-Growing Brands list

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 21:30:56 GMT

Two fresh produce brands, Gotham Greens and Little Leaf Farms, made Instacart’s list of 75 brands that showed growth through the app in 2024.

Gotham Greens, which topped the fresh produce brands at No. 43, offers its full line of products, which includes a variety of leafy greens (such as Baby Butterhead, Romaine and Crunch), sauces (including Classic Pesto and Vegan Pesto), dressings (such as Green Goddess and Lemon Basil Vinaigrette), plant-based dips (including Spinach Artichoke Dip and Tzatziki Dip) and salad kits (Caesar, Southwest Ranch and Green Goddess) on the app.

“We’re proud that Gotham Greens is being recognized for our brand’s exceptional growth over the past year with our inclusion on Instacart’s Fastest Growing Emerging Brand List of 2024,” Viraj Puri, co-founder and CEO of Gotham Greens, told The Packer. “I’m especially proud of how we’ve navigated the evolving digital landscape thanks to online grocery platforms like Instacart. Consumers are increasingly purchasing fresh produce online, and Instacart provides a convenient way to shop our full line of Gotham Greens products at your favorite national and local retailers. We’re able to reach existing shoppers while attracting new consumers with our broad product assortment and distribution from coast to coast. We’re honored to make the list for a second time and look forward to even more growth together in 2025.”

Little Leaf Farms, No. 63 on the list, Offers Baby Crisp Green Leaf Lettuce, Red And Green Lettuce, Spring Mix and its Sweet Baby Butter Leaf lettuce through the app.

“We’re proud to be recognized for the second year in a row as one of the fastest-growing emerging brands on Instacart,” Lindsay Hardie, vice president of marketing for Little Leaf Farms, told The Packer. “This is one of many exciting achievements demonstrating Little Leaf Farms’ growth and success in bringing fresh, delicious, greenhouse-grown leafy greens to a mainstream audience. As we look ahead, we’re committed to delivering on the promise of the [controlled environment agriculture] industry and expanding our footprint to provide a more enjoyable lettuce-eating experience to more and more consumers, everywhere they shop.”

Bred for success: Inside the Bloom Fresh Fruitworks Discovery Center

Mon, 02 Dec 2024 14:00:13 GMT

When global fruit breeder Bloom Fresh develops a new table grape, cherry or blueberry variety, there’s exhaustive science behind it, but also a keen eye to what three core demographics — growers, retailers and consumers — want most.

Helping to bring these fruits to fruition, in August, Bloom Fresh opened the doors to its new $14 million Fruitworks Discovery Center, in McFarland, Calif. The sprawling campus is equipped with specialized labs and research areas, 150 acres of test vineyards, 25,000 square feet of greenhouses and more — all designed to elevate natural fruit breeding.

“We’re moving from a very old, very small lab space — and so our new space is allowing us to really expand the types of activities we can do in-house,” Chris Owens, Bloom Fresh head of plant breeding, told The Packer on a recent tour of Fruitworks.

The new lab space is also expediting the development of new varieties with desirable characteristics that “tick all the boxes” for growers, retailers and consumers alike, the company says.

The new Bloom Fresh Fruitworks Discovery Center includes 150 acres of test vineyards.

(Photo courtesy of Bloom Fresh)

“There’s a lot of different traits and characteristics we care about as we’re trying to develop a new variety of a grape or a cherry, and then what we’re trying to do is harness the genetic tools that exist to essentially be faster at what we’re doing,” Owens said.

He says breeding woody plants like grapes and cherries is a slower process than developing a new corn or tomato variety, which are quick-cycling plants.

“Grapes and cherries are slow growing. They take a long time to go through a cycle,” Owens said. “So, any place along that process where we can cut off some of the time really adds up, because the cycle of the breeding typically has multiple generations.

“If you can shave some time off with each one of those cycles, it multiplies, and you can reduce the overall development time of a new variety — that’s one of the biggest reasons we’ve expanded,” he added.

Bloom Fresh’s new $14 million Fruitworks Discovery Center in McFarland, Calif., is equipped with specialized labs and research areas.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

More than satisfying the need for speed, the discovery center also allows Bloom Fresh to more efficiently develop fruit with the flavor and texture characteristics consumers crave most as well as plants with the disease resistance and climate resilience growers seek, says Owens.

“I think it’s possible to always be improving the varieties that exist,” he said. “There are generally always some flaws in what currently is out there, and there are improvements that can be made.

“As a company, I think we’ve been very successful in terms of developing things that are improved and what people want,” Owens continued. “It’s about making improvements for the grower, but also trying to make improvements that consumers are excited about — that’s what we want. We want excitement from the consumer.”

Each year, Bloom Fresh works with new seedlings to identify the “very small percentage” that have the most desirable characteristics, says Chris Owens, Bloom Fresh head of plant breeding.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

A world of fruit breeding

As a global company, Bloom Fresh isn’t just testing and trialing in California. The fruit breeder has test blocks in many countries, so it can select varieties based on performance in each of a dozen unique climates in which it grows.

“We might be working on a variety for years — probably six to eight years, once it’s selected and before it gets released commercially — just to make sure that it works in a particular location and that it ticks all of the boxes for the growers, for the marketers, for the retailers and for the consumers,” said Elena Aguaron, Bloom Fresh commercial lead for table grapes, U.S. and Canada. “So, it is not a fast process. It’s very slow.”

Bloom Fresh says it works to create excitement in the grape category in both its labs and out in its test vineyards.

(Photo courtesy of Bloom Fresh)

Experimentation and excitement

Bloom Fresh says it works to create excitement in the grape category in both its labs and out in its test vineyards.

“We’ve introduced some novel flavors — new things like Cotton Candy — which we’re also trying to make some improvements in,” Owens said. “Then we’re also always trying to introduce new things, like some red-flesh varieties with higher health benefits.”

Meanwhile, the cherry and blueberry program at Bloom Fresh is focused on low-chill varieties that can be grown in warmer climates and new growing regions.

“Traditionally, cherries need a long, cold winter for the buds to develop normally — to break — so we’re trying to reduce how much chilling they need in the wintertime,” Owens said.

“We’re trying to push the limits,” Aguaron added.

“For Bloom Fresh, customer service is very important,” Owens said. “We develop strong, long-term relationships with our partners. We have a large international team that’s trying to support the successful introduction and then production of these new varieties. It’s very important to us.”

Inside the ‘Disney World of fruit stands’

Tue, 28 Jan 2025 14:06:29 GMT

Dubbed the “Disney World of fruit stands,” Robert is Here in Homestead, Fla., draws scores of area locals and tourists from far and wide to this family farm stand unlike any other.

And the name of this one-of-a-kind produce market is as curious as its incredible selection of exotic and tropical fruits.

“I am Robert, the little kid that opened a farm market in1959, and that is Robert is Here,” Robert Moehling told The Packer.

Moehling was just 6 years old when his father asked him to sell some cucumbers by the side of the road.

“I sat here all day long with no customers,” recalled Moehling.

“The next day my dad was told by my mom to make me more visible. So, he put up a big sign: ‘Robert is here.’ I sold out and walked home,” he said.

The next weekend Moehling returned to his well-signed roadside post and sold out of produce right away. And he’s been selling out of locally grown and imported fruits and vegetables ever since.

“Most of it comes from here in South Florida, we grow most of it, and we get from other growers some of the same things that we grow because we might not have enough,” he said.

“We sell mangoes … and I probably sell as many or more imports than I do my own, even though I grow 20 acres of them,” he added.

Moehling is not only a knowledgeable produce salesman, he’s also a farmer who bought his first 10 acres when he was just 14 years old and grew the family business from there.

“Back in the day, citrus used to be my business. Eighty-five to 90% of what I sold was citrus,” said Moehling. “And I got the real bug of doing tropical fruit, and we started growing tropical fruit and it’s been catching on.”

“I got tamarindo, I got sapodilla, I got passion fruit, I got chocolate fruit — canistel. I got the most gorgeous avocados you’ve ever eaten — guanas,” said Moehling, who hand-sells this vast array of tropical treats to customers hungry for more than dragon fruit and papaya.

“Tropicals have just gone crazy and people don’t know anything about them,” said Moehling. “So, we’re the mass educator of people. Every customer comes in, I have to educate them on each individual piece of fruit, and sometimes I lose my voice.”

Moehling says people are interested in something different, especially when it’s fresh fruit that tastes like ice cream, custard or chocolate.

“Sugar apples don’t normally come in this time of the year. They look prettier when they’re in season,” he said. “The cool weather makes the skin turn dark in places, but it’s like ice cream grown on a tree.”

And when it comes to canistel — a yellow fruit shaped like a Hershey’s kiss — Moehling tells his customers there’s no such thing as too ripe.

“You always approach the canistel with the thought that me, Robert, has never seen one overripe, so you’re not going to worry about it getting it too ripe. You’re only worried about eating it ripe enough,” he said.

Robert is Here is a family enterprise. Today, Moehling’s four children, including his son, Robert Kade Moehling, work alongside their father at the fruit stand.

“I love that I get to work side by side with my family, and I’m not stuck in a cubicle,” said Robert Kade Moehling. “And we live in such a unique area where we can grow damn near anything. You know, Christmas to Easter is our vegetable season. So, when the rest of the country is frozen over, South Florida is still providing and doing squash and tomatoes and green beans and zucchini and all these things. But then we also have the canna styles and the sapodilla and the chocolate fruit and all the unique things.”

“And because of that uniqueness, that’s what draws my interest. You know, you can get normal anywhere. Sell the unusual. Do something different and you’ll be successful,” he said.

What’s the Moehling family’s favorite produce item?

“I really love guana. My dad’s the same way,” says the younger Moehling. “But we hang our hats on mangoes. If you come here at the end of May, June, July and August, all these displays where you see papayas, avocados, chocolate fruit and passion fruit are filled with mountains and mountains of mangoes — valencia prides, kents, keitts, rosigolds, pickerings, edwards, glenns. You know, mango is the most consumed fruit in the whole world.”

But offering shoppers an adventure in produce is just part of the Robert is Here success story — a farm stand that recently celebrated 65 years in business.

“My father always says this is a job that he can’t retire from because people have shown so much love and so much support,” says Robert Kade Moehling. “It’s more than just somewhere you come and shop and buy a couple of things; it has a pulse.”

At Hunts Point Produce Market, change has been a constant

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 18:46:06 GMT

Change has been a constant since New York’s Hunts Point Produce Market opened at its present location in Bronx, N.Y., in 1967, and a lot of those changes have occurred within the past decade or so.

A shifting customer base, rampant consolidation and a new role for produce salesmen are some of the changes observed or predicted by Hunts Point distributors.

The time when major supermarket chains did their produce shopping at the market is long gone, said Bert Bifulco, head salesman for Rubin Bros. Produce Corp. and a 30-year veteran of the company.

“Now, the only time the market really hears from the chains is when there are shorts,” he said.

From left, Bert Bifulco, head salesman for Rubin Bros. Produce on New York’s Hunts Point Produce Market, shows some Dole brand cauliflower to Joe Verrico, a buyer from SV Produce Inc. on the market. Rubin Bros. specializes in Dole salads and vegetable items and handles a variety of other products from growing areas in places like Mexico and the U.S. East Coast, Bifulco says.

(Photo courtesy of Rubin Bros. Produce)

Rubin Bros. serves some retail stores and small wholesalers, while many restaurants buy from the firm’s wholesaler customers.

Some restaurant owners come in every day or every three days or so to pick up some mushrooms or a box or two or lettuce or mesclun, he said. It doesn’t pay for a distributor to deliver a few boxes of vegetables to a restaurant.

But the business is not what it was 10 or 15 years ago, Bifulco said, since more options exist for produce buyers.

Joel Fierman, president of Fierman Produce Exchange Inc., a full-service house that specializes in potatoes and onions, made a similar observation.

“There are so many avenues for these merchants to go down now.”

But Fierman, who has worked on the market for 50 years, said he’s not complaining.

“We still move plenty of product,” he said.

“The customer base is always changing a little bit,” said Mike Cochran, vice president at Robert T. Cochran & Co. Inc. and a 23-year veteran of the market.

Some of the ethnic-owned stores are disappearing because members of the new generation are reluctant to take over the family business. Some owners abandoned their businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, Cochran said.

His own father, Richard, retired during the pandemic after 43 years at the company.

Produce houses also are diversifying by taking on additional functions, such as deliveries, Bifulco said.

Houses have acquired fleets of trucks, since many of their customers now prefer to call in their orders for delivery rather than drive to the market to pick them up, he said.

“The distribution channel has changed,” Fierman said in agreement.

“We’ve become more of a delivery company, where our customers used to come in and buy their stuff,” he said.

Fierman Produce Exchange on New York’s Hunts Point Produce Market is a full-service produce house but specializes in potatoes and onions as their core business, said Joel Fierman, president. “We pack our renowned Marc & Bill potato product line as well as private label for local grocery and big box stores,” he says.

(Photo courtesy of Fierman Produce Exchange)

Technological advances already have had an impact on the industry and likely will be one of the biggest changes in the coming years.

Five years ago, Robert T. Cochran & Co. installed Produce Pro software that the provider says “helps to streamline operations, increase profitability and deliver results you can see.”

“With a couple of keystrokes you can get a report that it would take most of the day to complete,” Cochran said.

The company was able to reduce its staff from 12 a few years ago to three today.

“It’s probably in better shape than it was then,” he said.

New digital ordering systems are the future of the industry but could result in fewer new sales jobs or a new role for current salesmen if the technology does away with personal contact and eliminates an opportunity to sell additional product when a buyer calls in an order, Fierman said.

“The salesman is actually going to have to go out and sell,” he said. “It could be the next evolution of this business.”

“The market became very modernized,” Bifulco said.

Rubin Bros. is “all computerized — upstairs and downstairs,” he said.

Bifulco agreed that texting an order or ordering online can eliminate some sales opportunities.

“When a guy sends you a text or sends you something over the internet, you don’t have a shot at selling him anything else,” he said. “You’re only giving him what he wants.”

Seen and heard at Potato Expo 2025

Fri, 17 Jan 2025 19:10:34 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. — The National Potato Council’s recent Potato Expo 2025, held Jan. 9-10 at the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort and Convention Center, drew more than 2,000 attendees and over 200 exhibitors, making it the second-biggest potato event in the expo’s 17-year history.

“It’s really exciting when you think of the U.S. potato industry,” Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council, told The Packer. “It generates about $100 million a year for the U.S. economy, and over 700,000 jobs are in some way dependent on what begins here on America’s family potato farms.”

Bob Mattive, current president of the National Potato Council, says Potato Expo is the ultimate networking event for the potato industry.

“This is the premier event for the potato industry,” said Bob Mattive, current president of the National Potato Council.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

“This is the premier event for the potato industry,” said Mattive, who is also a potato farmer in Colorado’s San Luis Valley. “It attracts growers and industry people from all over North America and beyond, and it’s a great opportunity for vendors to showcase their products and for growers to network. So, it’s just a great opportunity for everybody to come together in one big place.”

Out on the expo floor, labor and automation were hot topics as were disease resistance and sustainability.

“Labor and automation go hand in hand,” said Mattive. “The labor shortage affects everyone on the farm, in the packing shed, processors and retailers, so the industry is looking at the benefits technology can bring to ag and across the supply chain.”

Fox Packaging’s Rob Highfield and Victoria Lopez talked labor-saving efficiencies.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Fox Packaging showcased its Haith EvenFlow Hopper that helps distribute the potato feed into bins and boxes, improves efficiencies, reduces bottlenecks and requires fewer people to run it.

The company also touted its optical sorter that identifies up to 13 different categories of defects as well as sorts and grades potatoes, said Rob Highfield.

“Potato Expo makes you realize how much goes into potatoes from the field to the potato on the plate — and we can go from that field level to the package,” he said.

Tomra’s David Serrato and Juliana Bonilla are shown at Potato Expo 2025.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Tomra spotlighted its 3A Series Premium Optical Sorter with artificial intelligence-enhanced features that it says offers superior foreign material removal, green potato removal, high capacity for a quicker harvest, a significant labor reduction and more.

“The machine is now able to see defects and abnormalities,” said Tomra’s David Serrato. “It takes pictures and then classifies defects in the potatoes.”

Overtime, through AI machine-learning, its sorting abilities improve, reducing the need for hand-sorting, Serrato added.

Volm’s Daniel Mueller and Marsha Pozza talked automation and smaller pack sizes at Potato Expo 2025.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Automation was also in the spotlight at the Volm booth.

“Automation is key today,” said Volm’s Marsha Pozza. “A lot of new equipment and product introductions are designed to help to reduce labor. If you used to have 15 bodies on a line, now you can get that down to five.”

Volm featured two different solutions for optical grading in the booth. “With optical grading, you might only need two people on quality control,” said Daniel Mueller.

And it’s not about replacing humans with machines, Mueller added. It’s about providing solutions that allow businesses to reallocate labor to optimize resources and keep people on tasks that require a level of skill.

Jon Hathaway and Lyla Hathaway of Colorado Certified Potato Growers discussed the “up-and-coming” potato varieties from the country’s second-largest producer of the vegetable.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Everyone knows Idaho is the No. 1 producer of potatoes in the U.S., but consumers may not know that Colorado is No. 2.

At the Colorado Certified Potato Growers’ booth, Jon and Lyla Hathaway showcased “up-and-coming potato varieties” bred by Colorado State University.

While these spuds are in testing now, the goal is to offer the “next greatest thing,” said Lyla Hathaway, who added the industry is most hopeful about the CO15016-1RUsto with a Pomerelle russet parentage. The variety is resistant to multiple diseases including the PVY potato virus and powdery scab and is also tobacco rattle virus, or TRV, tolerant.

John Deere’s Jeff Holmes talked tractors and harvesting solutions.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

John Deere showed off its 8RX tractor options in 132-inch, 136-inch, 144-inch and 152-inch options, all of which can be used in conjunction with Spudnik potato harvesters.

“This is an industry of inches,” said John Deere’s Jeff Holmes, who highlighted the many ways the 8RX tractor offers potato growers ease of use, more power, greater traction, versatility and more.

Kroeker Farms’ Al Giesbrecht and Wayne Rempel discussed making potato connections at Potato Expo 2025.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

“This is a great show to connect with people around potatoes,” said Al Giesbrecht of Canadian organic potato company Kroeker Farms.

Mitch Bauske and Josh VanDeWalle of Bayer discussed the company’s offerings at Potato Expo 2025.

(Photo: Jennifer Strailey)

Bayer’s Josh VanDeWalle gave a presentation on “Working Towards Regenerative Potatoes” on Jan. 9, in which he helped define regenerative agriculture.

The need for education around regenerative ag is real, VanDeWalle noted, pointing to a recent Purdue University study that found 71% of consumers are unfamiliar or only slightly familiar with the term.

So what does it mean?

“For me, it starts with the soil,” he said. “Soil health and yield in productivity is what is most important to farmers.”

VanDeWalle concluded that regenerative farming offers a “great opportunity” in agriculture in general and potatoes, specifically.

Your next read: Potato industry eyes potential tariffs, trade opportunities

Equifruit aims to ‘Make it Rain’ for banana farmers

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 13:15:48 GMT

Equifruit, a Canadian-based importer and marketer of fair trade bananas is on a mission to ensure farmers are paid fairly.

“We want to drive home to people that making an ethical choice, making a sustainable choice for bananas doesn’t cost very much money,” said Equifruit President Jennie Coleman. “The average American eats 27 pounds of bananas a year. We estimate that retailers will increase price per pound of bananas by 20 cents, which, if you do the math, is just a shade over $5 a year.”

To underscore the power of just $5 a year, Equifruit engages retailers and consumers with clever marketing campaigns.

“Our marketing is based on starting with something absurd and humorous and always bringing the message back to our famous hashtag: ‘farmers gotta get paid,’” said Coleman. “We have some really creative ways of reaching retailers and convincing them to list Equifruit fair trade bananas, even though it might cost a little bit more to consumers.”

At a recent trade show, Equifruit featured its “Make it Rain” for banana farmers campaign.

“We have this money gun that shoots out $5 U.S. Equi-bucks as an expression that it would cost the average consumer only $5 more per year, and in so doing, you can really make a difference in the life of banana growers,” Coleman said.

“Changing global trade, changing the retail golden rule that you can’t increase the price on bananas is not for the weak of heart. And so the people who are with us, who understand that hashtag farmers gotta get paid, we call them Banana Badasses,” she said.

While $5 more a year for bananas doesn’t sound like much, as Equifruit has found, the long history of low-priced bananas at retail can be challenging to disrupt.

“Basically, it’s really tough to change streams if you’ve had the same communication about low price bananas for 100 years,” she said. “It’s very tough for retailers now to face their consumers and say we had a great run of low price, but now we’re going to raise our prices in order to make banana supply chains more sustainable.

“The ask to consumers through retailers to spend just 20 cents more on bananas still leaves them as the cheapest fruit in your basket, just a little less cheap,” Coleman continued. “Bananas have not grown with inflation the way all other commodities, all other produce items have, and it’s just kind of a reset in order to right the ship.”

Equifruit says fair trade bananas are a purchase consumers can feel good about.

“The beautiful thing about fair trade is that it’s a way for consumers to participate in sustainability at a very accessible and easy way, if you are looking to leave the world a better place than where you found it,” she said.