Pennsylvania

Excellent Start for Eastern Apple Season

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 20:57:13 GMT

Apple season will soon be underway in the East Coast, with varieties like ginger gold and paula reds beginning mid-August in the Hudson Valley of New York, followed soon after by orchards in central and western upstate New York and then the northeast.

Marketers say this looks to be a strong season for Eastern apples by all accounts. While rain and cooler temperatures hit the eastern part of the country this spring, it had an added benefit of a longer window for pollination and fruit set.

“This season started off with a cool and wet spring, which is great news for apple trees — they had a long time to set fruit, and there weren’t any major temperature swings that pushed blossoms ahead of schedule (or set them back, for that matter),” says Jessica Wells, executive director of the Lockport, N.Y.-based Crunch Time Apple Growers. “Like most of the East Coast, we’ve had quite a few hot days this summer, but we don’t expect that to impact the harvest.”

Brenda Briggs, vice president for sales and marketing at Rice Fruit Co. in Gardners, Pa., says the harvest of early gala and Honeycrisp began in early August and the crop looks good.

“Gala and Honeycrisp are coming off the trees with great size, strong internal pressures, and beautiful color,” Briggs says. “We’ve had warm temperatures and ample rainfall this summer — exactly what we hope for in terms of sugar development and sizing. It’s shaping up to be an excellent start.”

Jessica Wells, executive director of Crunch Time Apple Growers, says this year could have the largest crop of SnapDragon apples to date.

(Photo courtesy of Crunch Time Apple Growers)

Notable Varieties

Cornell University-developed SnapDragon and RubyFrost apples continue to gain traction, Wells says.

“SnapDragon is an emerging variety, nearing 10 years of production, it is becoming one of the favorites among consumers,” she says. “Even with distribution primarily in the East, it is among the top five premium varieties on the market. We hope to make it even more available to consumers this year.”

Cynthia Haskins, president and CEO of the New York Apple Association, says that the state’s growers produce about 250 different apple varieties, about 30 of which are available through wholesale and retail. She also says the association has seen growing interest in some of these newer varieties.

“The managed varieties like SnapDragon, RubyFrost and New York-grown SweeTango, and EverCrisp are gaining traction and a fan base,” she says.

Crop Size

Haskins says she expects New York growers will see a good range of sizes this season, noting the crop is also shaping up to have ample volume to promote.

“New York is expecting over 32 million bushels of apples this year and that is a million over last year,” she says.

Adding to that large crop size this year is what Wells says could be the largest crop of SnapDragon to date.

“Our main goal is to ensure that every single one makes it off to stores and into the homes of shoppers,” she says. “That means finding some new retail partners but also making sure we do everything possible to ensure the apples coming out of storage in April or May are as good as those that are packed in October. We’re always working with Cornell to address concerns of storage operators, packers and shippers related to issues that may reduce fruit quality and in turn, returns to growers.”

Industry Challenges

Briggs says growers are concerned about labor, especially as harvest has begun.

“We depend on skilled, reliable labor to harvest at the right time and deliver the quality our customers expect,” Briggs says. “We work closely with industry partners like the U.S. Apple Association to communicate with policymakers about how critical farm labor is to the produce industry.”

Wells says growers also face the challenge of rising production costs and relatively flat wholesale prices. She says the industry must work toward increasing apple consumption.

“Consumers are excited about our apples, SnapDragon in particular, which is what is needed to stimulate the industry as a whole,” she says. “We need people to eat more apples, and to do that we need to put great-tasting fruit in stores. There are varieties that fall short on taste that are taking up significant shelf space. If we want consumers to purchase apples on every trip, we have to give them something they want to come back for every time they shop.”

The New York Apple Association planned promotions include highlighting its “The Big Flavor” campaign with custom single-unit display shippers and signage for stores. “We have seen an increased interest in poly, paper and tote packaging, and the grab-and-go offerings are good way to attract a solid price point in just one ring up,” says Cynthia Haskins, the association’s president and CEO.

(Photo courtesy of the New York Apple Association)

Promotion Spotlight

The New York Apple Association will once again highlight its “The Big Flavor” campaign with custom single-unit display shippers and signage for stores.

“We have seen an increased interest in poly, paper and tote packaging, and the grab-and-go offerings are good way to attract a solid price point in just one ring up,” Haskins says.

The association also plans digital billboards in the heart of New York City’s financial district and digital panel billboards located throughout the city’s five boroughs to promote “The Big Flavor.”

Haskins says the association will also offer some digital coupons, which she says have been delivering results. Geotargeting digital advertising as well as targeted markets for social media have also seen success, she says.

Briggs encourages retailers to lean into the excitement of the start of apple season, adding that prominent displays, variety education and sampling opportunities of classic and emerging varieties help boost sales. She also says flexible pack styles from bulk, pouches to bags help tailor displays to shopper preferences and store layouts.

“When that first bite is exceptional, it sets the stage for the next purchase,” Briggs says. “Our goal is to ensure a consistently great eating experience — from the first gala in August to the last EverCrisp in summer.”

Wells, too, encourages retailers to think beyond traditional “apple season” months.

“September and October might be the prime time for buying apples, but they’re hardly the only window when apples are available,” she says. “In fact, we reliably have volumes of SnapDragon apples available from mid-September to mid-March and RubyFrost apples from mid-October through May. Retailers should promote apples as seasonal and available well into the winter months, too.”

Wells says that while the average shopper can only distinguish a small handful of apple varieties, that’s where retailers can step in and assist with signage on the apple display to help consumers understand the unique eating experiences of each variety.

“Calling out SnapDragon and RubyFrost apples by name and unique attributes, for example, helps to educate shoppers and encourage them to purchase products they may not be as familiar with,” she says.

And she encourages retailers to get creative with displays and signs to catch the shopper’s eye.

“We have hanging signs that some retailers use, and it’s a fun way to use the entire vertical display space without sacrificing square footage in the store,” she says. “It meets customers at their eye level, too.”

Haskins says retailers should always consider cross-promotion.

“NYAA recommends that retailers build large displays and include apple cider with the displays, as consumers want to enter the store and easily be able to find the flavor of the fall harvest,” she says. “Other ways to cross-merchandise are to set up displays for charcuterie boards, or the makings for apple pie or apple crisp. Be sure and give consumers recipes for new pie ideas.”

Wells, too, suggests retailers lean into consumers’ continued interest in locally grown produce.

“When possible, retailers should also promote produce that’s grown in the region — even if our apples are in stores in Omaha or Houston — they have traveled less miles to market than those grown on the West Coast,” she says.

Pennsylvania Governor Sues USDA Over Termination of Program That Supports Food Banks, Locally Grown

Fri, 06 Jun 2025 10:01:38 GMT

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said in a news release that his administration has filed a lawsuit against the USDA for unlawfully terminating the state’s Local Food Purchase Assistance program agreement — a $13 million commitment that directly supports 189 Pennsylvania farms and supplies 14 food banks with fresh, locally grown food.

The governor announced the legal action at the Share Food Program in Philadelphia, one of the state’s largest emergency food providers.

Shapiro said his administration had tried to appeal the termination of the LFPA program by filing an administrative appeal through the USDA, reaching out to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and through meetings with USDA leadership in Washington, D.C. When the USDA ignored Pennsylvania’s request to support farmers, the administration was left with no other choice but to sue, the governor said.

“Pennsylvania farmers do the noble work of putting food on our tables — and for the last three years, they’ve been paid to provide fresh, local food to food banks across our commonwealth as part of a successful federal initiative,” Shapiro said in the release. “When the USDA abruptly terminated our agreement without cause, they ripped away a reliable source of income for 189 Pennsylvania farms — and cut off funding that would have helped provide over 4.4 million meals to families across the commonwealth. That’s not just bad policy — it’s a broken promise. A deal is a deal, and I’ve taken legal action today to ensure the federal government honors its commitment to Pennsylvania.”

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has administered more than $28 million in federal LFPA funding since 2022. The state said the USDA canceled the most recent three-year contract in March, which was signed December 2024.

Pennsylvania rebuked USDA’s claims that the state was “sitting on tens of millions” in unspent LFPA funds, saying the state’s program operates on a reimbursement basis, paying vendors upfront and is reimbursed by the federal government once the state incurs expenses.

“The USDA’s decision was not just unexpected — it was unlawful, and it has already caused serious harm to Pennsylvania’s agriculture industry,” state Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said in the release. “This is about real people — the farmers, producers, and rural communities who are now facing uncertainty as a result. These are hardworking men and women who put food on our tables, support local economies, and preserve our farmland for future generations. Governor Shapiro is fighting for our farmers because the stakes are far too high.”

The governor’s office said the Share Food Program distributed more than 30 million meals to individuals, families and food pantries in 2024. It also deliverd more than 83,000 senior food boxes through USDA programs, rescued nearly 6 million pounds of food and delivered more than 47,000 free home food packages to Philadelphia residents.

“Since 1986, our mission has been to feed the region’s most vulnerable families — and today, we’re serving nearly one million people each month, with more than half of them children,” said George Matysik, executive director of Share Food Program. “At Share, we believe food is a human right and hunger is a solvable problem — principles we live by every day. The LFPA program helped us source nutritious food from local farms — but now, with demand at record highs, this cut will hurt real people and damage trust. At a time when demand at our food bank has risen 120% in just three years, losing LFPA hurts real people — and breaks a promise that should have been kept.”

Shapiro’s office said the state is one of the only in the country that uses LFPA funding to support in-state farmers to ensure that federal dollars stay local and support the state’s agricultural economy.

“I started providing fresh fruits and vegetables to Pennsylvania food banks several years ago — from Share in Philadelphia to food banks in Pittsburgh, Mercer County and across central PA. That work gave me a deep appreciation for what food insecurity really looks like. Whether someone is going through a tough time or has long struggled to make ends meet, the need is real — and the people who dedicate their time to helping others are truly inspiring,” said Brian Campbell, owner and founder of Brian Campbell Farms. “It’s not just about putting food on the table — it’s about providing healthy, nutritious options that can change lives. Programs like LFPA made it possible for farmers to cover the basic costs of harvesting, packaging, and delivering fresh produce to food banks. It was enough support to make it doable, and that made all the difference for the people we serve.”

Bountiful apple crop brings opportunities — and a challenge to grow consumption

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 21:09:30 GMT

The U.S. Apple Association said inventories as of December 2023 were up about 33% over this same time last year. Buoyed by a supersized crop this year, marketers say this season promises to offer retailers ample opportunities to put the spotlight on apples.

To get a pulse on the apple industry, The Packer interviewed growers and packers in key apple-producing states — such as Pennsylvania — to learn about the opportunities available for retailers this season.

Related: Following another large crop, Michigan apple experts offer insight for retailers

Pennsylvania

Ryan Hess, owner of Lancaster, Pa.-based Hess Bros. Fruit, said it was a large crop for Pennsylvania growers. (Hess Bros. also works with New York-based growers.)

“From the beginning, they knew that they had a very large crop, and it picked longer than they even expected,” he said. “The fruit quality was good, not perfect.”

The Keystone State experienced frost, freeze, droughts and big rains. Growers saw cosmetic issues on certain varieties such as Honeycrisp and fuji.

“I would say growers are nervous because the process markets were very unsettled,” Hess said. “A lot of people didn’t pick their entire crop because they didn’t have a place to sell it all.”

Chris Sandwick, director of marketing at Hess Bros., said a large nationwide crop isn’t something new.

“We are all aware of the expansion that’s been happening in the industry,” Sandwick said. “We knew we were finally going to hit a season where everyone had a full crop with new production. It’s not to say that this year isn’t a little jarring, but it certainly shouldn’t come as a surprise.”

Related: Washington’s apple crop rebounds, giving retailers promotion opportunities aplenty

Variety report

Galas and Honeycrisp are the main staples for Hess Bros.

“We’re selling more than half of our day-to-day sales this time of the year in galas and Honeycrisp,” Hess said.

WildTwist, a cross of cripps pink and Honeycrisp, is a newer variety that continues to grow in popularity and demand, Sandwick said.

“We’re at the point where we’re starting to do more things in the market and build a national program,” he said. “That crop is also up. And in this case, we’re excited about that because we need more fruit to supply an excited and loyal customer base.”

Marketing

Sandwick said WildTwist will be a major focus of Hess Brother’s marketing efforts this year.

“We’ve really been able to shortcut consumer decision-making by letting them know that this is the product of two apples they already know and love,” he said. “That’s helped us move past some of the customer confusion that comes from introducing a new product.”

Sandwick said a strength in the marketing plan is a collaboration with Selah, Wash.-based Rainier Fruit, offering West Coast production and sales of WildTwist.

“The long-term vision is to have bi-coastal production so that we can offer a national supply to national retailers,” he said.

Increasing consumption

With a large crop and consumption that’s been relatively unchanged, apple marketers across the country said there is a strong need to boost the consumption of fresh apples in this country.

“Everyone’s focus is just finding homes for this mammoth crop,” said Rochelle Bohm, vice president of marketing with Wenatchee, Wash.-based CMI Orchards. “This could be a very real number that we see more often. We need to figure out ways to move this many apples through the pipeline.”

Sandwick agrees, noting a nationwide effort to increase consumption could pay big dividends for the apple industry.

“The ability of individual retailers and individual sellers to grow consumption is capped,” he said. “Where that push really needs to come from is from an industrywide standpoint. Not in a ‘one-to-one seller-to-retailer, can I get more shelf space’ conversation. If we truly are going to grow consumption in this country, we have to work together as an industry. And that will take some time and some effort.”

Don Roper, vice president of sales and marketing for Elgin, Minn.-based Wescott Agri Products, famous for Honeybear-brand apples, is optimistic about the new varieties offered by marketers, which will, in turn, create excitement and demand.

“We have to earn that square footage of retail deck in the grocery store by having really good products that drive consumption,” he said. “And the more we sell, the more money we make, the more willing the retailer is to give us square feet.”

WildTwist apple variety available through May from Hess Brothers

Thu, 06 Apr 2023 15:03:06 GMT

With demand snapping up available supply, the WildTwist apple is expected to be marketed through May this year, Chris Sandwick, director of marketing at Lancaster, Pa.-based Hess Brother’s Fruit Co. , said in a news release.

WildTwist, a blend of the Honeycrisp and cripps pink varieties, has been a project for Hess Brother’s Fruit Co. for more than a decade, the release said. The variety is a juicy sweet apple with a hint of tartness, according to the marketer.

The new variety is typically sold from January through June; however, this year’s supply is projected to sell out early due to a rapid rise in popularity, according to the release.

“The seasonality makes these apples a bit more special,” Sandwick said in the release. “Once customers discover them, they come back for more.”

Origin story

Second-generation company leaders Fred and Jerry Hess began developing the variety in 2011, and the current generation has carried their vision forward, according to the release.

“Our goal was to give apple lovers a great eating experience at a time of year when they may not expect it,” owner Ryan Hess said in the release. “We set out to grow an apple that tastes better and lasts longer, and we’ve done that with WildTwist.”

The company works with grower-partners in Pennsylvania, New York and Virginia to grow the apple commercially, and more than 400 acres of WildTwist are planted across dozens of Eastern U.S. farms, the release said.

Sandwick said the apple has already become a favorite of apple buyers across the country.

“For people to reach for an apple instead of processed, unhealthy snacks, it has to deliver an exceptional eating experience — and that’s exactly what they’ll get with WildTwist,” Sandwick said in the release.

Consumers can find where the variety is available at wildtwistapples.com , the release said.

Marketing opportunities abound with large apple crop this season

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 14:47:51 GMT

The U.S. Apple Association said inventories as of December 2023 were up about 33% over this same time last year. Buoyed by a supersized crop this year, marketers say this season promises to offer retailers ample opportunities to put the spotlight on apples.

To get a pulse on the apple industry, The Packer interviewed growers and packers in key apple-producing states — Washington, New York, Michigan and Pennsylvania — to learn about the opportunities available for retailers this season.

The industry as a whole

Don Roper, vice president of sales and marketing for Elgin, Minn.-based Wescott Agri Products, famous for Honeybear-brand apples, sees the big picture of the industry, working with growers in Washington, New York and the Midwest.

Roper said as more young orchards come into full production in the Midwest and mid-Atlantic, it adds to the already increasing production in Washington.

“If you look at the oversupply, it’s directly impacting pricing,” he said. “These growing regions of the Northeast, of the Midwest and even of Washington, their profile is to have big crops. We’re on a path where we could be looking at potentially oversupply for several years.”

Roper said prices haven’t helped move supply as much as is likely needed for the size of this crop.

“The reality is that we probably haven’t seen the price decreases at retail that the size of the crop would want,” he said. “Movement is average to maybe above average at best.”

An advantage the industry has is the number of varieties available, said Roper, likening it to the flavor profiles and styles of wine.

“The quality of new apple varieties out there, they are head and shoulders better,” he said.

Honeybear offers two notable varieties — Pazzaz and Honey Moon — which he said will play into Honeybear’s marketing efforts this year.

“We believe we have to create new flavors to create demand to help drive consumption,” he said. “We’ve been increasing production and increasing distribution across the U.S. A bunch of programs are kicking off here in the new year — regional programs that are kicking off from coast to coast.”

A look at key apple-producing states

Washington

After a year of extremes for growers with snow and frost in late spring, poor pollination and hail and weather events, Washington rebounded in 2023, increasing production by about 38% year over year, according to figures from the U.S. Apple Association. Read the full story here: Washington’s apple crop rebounds, giving retailers promotion opportunities aplenty .

Michigan

Michigan apple growers experienced some localized frost damage in the spring but still had a great growing year. Read the full story here: Following another large crop, Michigan apple experts offer insight for retailers .

New York

Despite weather challenges this season, growers “look hopeful for ’24,” said Cynthia Haskins, president and CEO of New York Apples. “We have a good mix of different apple varieties that are out there ...” Read the full story here: Focus on flavor profiles, health benefits key for New York apple marketing efforts .

Pennsylvania

The Keystone State experienced frost, freeze, droughts and big rains. Growers saw cosmetic issues on certain varieties such as Honeycrisp and fuji. With a large crop and consumption that’s been relatively unchanged, apple marketers across the country said there is a need to boost fresh apple consumption domestically. Read the full story here: Bountiful apple crop brings opportunities — and a challenge to grow consumption .

Crop art featuring conservation message revealed at Ag Progress Days

Tue, 13 Aug 2024 20:01:46 GMT

Pennsylvania outdoor agricultural expo Ag Progress Days and farm advocacy organization Invest in Our Land are working with Kansas resident and renowned crop artist Stan Herd to bring his artistry to the event, set for Aug. 13-15.

Herd unveiled a 2-acre crop art installation, inspired by Wendell Berry’s poignant poem “Below.” Featuring the words “We stand for what we stand on,” the art is intended serve as a visual testament to the unity and resilience of farmers in their fight for sustainable agriculture, according to a news release.

The artwork emphasizes a message about the need for continued support for climate-smart farming practices. The art encourages farmers of all ages to align their lifestyle and advocacy with environmental stewardship and highlights Berry’s legacy of support for farmers and sustainable practices, according to the release.

“When I began to think about what words could convey a message as important as preserving conservation funding, and specifically climate smart funding, in America’s heartland, I found myself turning to Wendell Berry, whose teachings have been a guide for me throughout my career on the land,” Herd said in the release. “The words in this artwork came to me like lightning: ‘We stand for what we stand on.’ It’s just good business and important to protect our climate for future generations of farmers.”

All event attendees will have the opportunity to catch a bird’s-eye view of the installation from a hot air balloon, the release said. The expo will take place Aug. 13-15 at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs in Ferguson Township, Centre County. The balloon will run throughout the show, weather permitting.

Attendees also will have the opportunity to learn more about the importance of conservation funding. Educational events include:

Farmer and legislative reception — The private morning reception will bring together farmers, policymakers and conservation agriculture advocates. The event, set for 10 a.m. to noon Aug. 14 at the Invest in Our Land tent (W106), also will feature attendees from Farm Journal, offering a unique opportunity to connect and strategize for climate-smart agriculture in Pennsylvania and beyond. Officials confirmed to attend include Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.; Xochitl Torres Small, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Agriculture; Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding; and U.S. Rep. Glen Thompson, D-Pa.
Panels and discussions on climate-smart farming, farm bill — “Farmers’ Insight: Adapting and Thriving with Climate-Smart Practices in Agriculture” will follow the morning reception with a panel centering climate-smart practices in the final negotiations of the farm bill. Farmers will discuss the practical applications of climate-smart practices on their operations, showing the value of maintaining climate guardrails and demonstrating the demand for funding. Set for 1-2 p.m. Aug. 14 at the Farm Family Learning Center’s main campus, Rebecca Bartels, vice president for Trust In Food and Farm Journal Intelligence, will moderate the session featuring the following speakers: Lindsey Shapiro, farm bill campaign organizer for Pasa Sustainable Agriculture; and Pennsylvania farmers John Painter of Painterland Farms, Hayley Painter of Painterland Sisters Yogurt, Jeff Frey of Future View Farms, and Tom Croner of T. Rich Farms Inc.

Ag Progress Days is one of the largest agricultural expos in the eastern U.S., featuring nearly 500 commercial and educational exhibits, crop displays, machinery demonstrations, guided research tours, family and youth activities, horse exhibitions, workshops and the Pasto Agricultural Museum, the release said. The event typically attracts as many as 45,000 visitors from across Pennsylvania and beyond to immerse themselves in the science and business of agriculture.

Invest in Our Land is an organization dedicated to elevating the voices of farmers and ranchers nationwide about the importance of conservation practices and climate smart funding, according to the release.

Business rebounds at Basciani

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 06:42:37 GMT

Basciani Mushroom Farms, Avondale, Pa., is almost back to full production after disruption by the new coronavirus , said Michael Basciani, CEO.

The foodservice side was especially hard hit, since about 75% of the company’s business is with restaurants, ballparks and office buildings, he said.

“On March 12, our phones literally stopped ringing,” he said. “We didn’t see any substantial orders for about two weeks.”

Things began to improve when takeout business picked up and restaurants were able to open for outdoor dining.

The experience brought the company’s sales team closer to its customers, he said.

“You’re really a team because you’re both going through the same thing,’ Basciani said. The company markets about 30 varieties of mushroom all across North America and offers about 800 stock-keeping units.

“We’ll do any size, pack or cut,” he said. During the coronavirus pandemic, movement on the basic mushroom varieties has been stronger than the specialties, especially when the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm to Families Food Box Program started, said Fred Recchiuti, the company’s general manager.

“If anybody ever needed an immunity boost from mushrooms, it’s the millions of great Americans who lost their jobs through no fault of their own, to this invisible enemy.”

The company also has added another Basciani to the team.

Joseph Basciani graduated from the University of Georgia last year majoring in finance and real estate and has been named the firm’s chief financial officer.

“(Joe Basciani) is a great addition to the team,” Michael Basciani said. “He fits perfectly with his siblings and cousins in this fast-paced business,” he said. “I am excited that he has the same passion and drive for this business as I do.”

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Pennsylvania Produce Month celebrated at produce auction

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 06:10:22 GMT

Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding visited Buffalo Valley Produce Auction in Mifflinburg, Pa., to present the governor’s Pennsylvania Produce Month proclamation to auction manager Neil Courtney and others.

The month-long celebration of locally grown vegetables is sponsored by the Pennsylvania Vegetable Marketing and Research Program to recognize the 101,000 tons of fresh and processed vegetables worth more than $60 million that are grown by more than 4,000 Pennsylvania farmers on 45,700 acres, according to a news release.

August is peak season for the state’s fresh vegetables.

In the U.S., Pennsylvania ranks ninth in production for sweet corn, 11th for tomatoes and 12th for cabbage grown for the fresh market, according to the release.

Buffalo Valley Produce Auction was established in 1987. Today’s buildings take up 128,000 square feet and include more than 180 dock spaces. The auction is one of the three largest produce auctions in the U.S., selling millions of dollars of Pennsylvania produce annually and holding the largest pumpkin auction in the world, according to the release.

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John Vena Specialty Produce introduces new logo on 100th anniversary

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 21:37:36 GMT

Philadelphia-based John Vena Specialty Produce is making this year count — after all, it’s the company’s 100th anniversary year.

Founded in 1919, the family-owned wholesaler, importer and distributor unveiled a new logo and plans to present a new website this fall, according to a news release.

This is the sixth logo as the company has evolved over the last century.

Also, staff members have been strategizing about how to retool the company mission, updating it to better reflect today’s needs without losing the core values put in place from the start.

From its home at the Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market , John Vena offers services including split-case programs, custom packing, private label, custom ripening, logistics and FOB sales.

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Rice Fruit’s sustainable efforts add up over time

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:36:18 GMT

Looking to learn more about sustainable practices throughout the fresh produce supply chain? Register now to hear from industry leaders at The Packer’s Sustainable Produce Summit, a free virtual event Sept. 22-24.

Many sustainable changes and choices save businesses money.

Other changes require an upfront investment that may be hard to swallow, especially during this economic crisis and the coronavirus pandemic .

But often the costs will decrease or your business can reap financial savings in the long term, said Brenda Briggs, vice president of sales and marketing at Rice Fruit Co. , Gardners, Pa.

Other times, you do it because it’s the right thing to do, she said.

“Rice Fruit is adding sustainable packaging options that are available and new today, which often are more costly to implement, but in time, as the industry makes moves and more people make these packaging choices, the costs will come down. That’s the normal cycle of how things work,” Briggs said.

As the fall apple season ramps up, Rice Fruit will have a new tote bag for retail and farmers markets, which is 100% recyclable as always, but there’s now a label made of the same material as the bag.

“Matching up the materials of like product simplifies the process. You don’t have to separate them to remove the label or do extra steps at the recycling center that consumers might or might not be aware of,” Briggs said.

“Of course, it comes at a cost, but we think it is worthwhile.”

Also, the company has taken several actions the past couple of years at its facility to reduce its carbon footprint.

Rice Fruit has made huge strides.

In 2018, the company installed on the roof of a controlled atmosphere storage building a 130-kilowatt DC solar array.

A solar array is a collection of multiple solar panels that generate electricity in DC form, converting it to AC form, which makes it usable for a building’s electrical outlets. For perspective, a 5-kilowatt array can power a typical household for a day.

Also, the company signed up for a Green/Renewable Energy Initiative addendum with its electricity supplier, which ensures that a 100% equivalent of its annual consumption is renewably generated.

That contract costs more than the standard electrical rate, Briggs said.

However, the company gets a break: Almost half of the cost of the solar array was covered by a grant of $140,000 from the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Financing Authority and Pennsylvania Office of Economic and Community Development.

Rice Fruit also has reduced its average electric lighting consumption annually by 75%, she said, by transitioning all facilities to LED lighting.

“We’ve been working on this several years. Each year we convert or upgrade several 100 fixtures,” Briggs said.

The company continues to install variable frequency drives that reduce the average consumption of packing machinery.

In 2020, the company deployed more than 40 drives over packing lines and machinery to help drive down electrical consumption.

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To-Jo offers range of varieties

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:36:26 GMT

To-Jo Mushrooms , Avondale, Pa., offers a full range of mushroom varieties, said Kevin Delaney, vice president of sales and marketing.

“In addition to growing the core conventional and organic mushrooms , we work with foragers throughout the country to offer unique specialty and wild mushrooms,” he said.

Baby bellas gradually are overtaking white mushrooms to become the category leader, he said.

“And today, consumers have greater access to organic mushrooms, which is helping lift the entire organic category up.”

Consumers look for freshness when shopping for mushrooms, he said.

Mushrooms are delicate and have a short shelf life.

“The faster we get mushrooms from our growing beds to the shopper’s cart, the better,” Delaney said.

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Phillips updates packaging

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:36:28 GMT

The Packer’s Sustainable Produce Summit will empower, enable and equip the fresh produce industry to grow fresh produce that cares for the life and planet. Click here to register for our free virtual event, September 2020.

Phillips Mushroom Farms , Kennett Square, Pa., has updated the packaging for its popular Gourmet Blend, which contains baby bella, oyster and shiitake mushrooms , said Sean Steller, director of business development.

“This packaging change improved the visual appearance of the product while also reducing plastic use by 21% and shipping space by 50%,” he said.

“These are great improvements to the sustainability side, as we constantly look for areas of opportunity,” he said.

Phillips also is promoting its new blend-ready mushroom product, which is a ready-to-use diced and roasted mushroom that can easily be mixed with any protein to create a healthy and delicious meal, said Rick Angelucci, general manager at Phillips Gourmet Inc., the company’s processing division.

The product comes frozen in a 2-pound bag packed 10 per case or in a bulk 20-pound case.

“We also have a 10-ounce retail package that the consumer can mix with a pound of ground protein to make burgers, meatloaf, tacos, chili and more without the hassle of all the work in the kitchen,” he said.

The company hopes to have this product on the shelf in the fall.

Related Content:

Sustainability comes naturally for mushroom growers

Rice Fruit focuses on COVID-19 safety

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 18:06:41 GMT

Worker safety continues to be the top focus as the packing and shipping of early-ripening Premier Honeycrisp apples is gearing up at Gardners, Pa.-based Rice Fruit Co .

As Labor Day arrives (Sept. 7), the company will have 200 workers receiving, storing, packing and shipping the 2020 apple crop, according to a news release. Safeguards are in place to protect workers from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among the worker safety precautions employed, the release said all onsite employees complete a health questionnaire before they start their shifts.

Forklift drivers have assigned equipment and the shipping and receiving office has plexiglass barriers.

On the packinghouse floor, at least six feet separates work stations and workers have staggered arrivals, departures and breaks.

Masks and other protective equipment are supplied by the company, and common touch areas are sanitized regularly. Hand sanitizer dispensers are placed throughout the facility, and additional wash stations were installed to prevent crowding and improve hand washing processes, according to the release.

While many office workers have been able to work remotely, those who do come to the office are protected by barriers and air purifiers. All employees must wear masks except when eating or drinking. An “essential business bonus” was added for all employees for onsite hours worked, according to the release.

The precautions have been part of doing business since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It was a never a question as to how seriously, or how rigorously, we would work to protect the health and safety of all our employees and their families throughout this pandemic,” Ben Rice, president of the company, said in the release. “We knew it was something we needed to get right from day one, and then continue to improve from there.”

Rice Fruit Co.'s sustainability efforts add up over time

The Packer’s Apple Coverage

The Packer’s COVID-19 Coverage

More local vegetables and a new directory coming to Pennsylvania

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 06:13:03 GMT

By late September, PA Veggies, the Pennsylvania Vegetable Marketing and Research Program, will debut a new directory that services farmers, consumers and wholesale buyers in a new way.

The directory enhances long-standing listings at paveggies.org that enable site visitors to locate retail farm markets, community farmers markets, produce auctions, community supported agriculture and wholesale growers within Pennsylvania.

Enhancements will include a responsive map and filters to enable users to pinpoint the best methods for connecting them to Pennsylvania vegetables according to their chosen criteria.

During PA Produce Month, operations and individuals took over the Instagram account to tell their stories. As fall approaches, promoters will reshare relevant content, schedule more story takeovers, encouraging people to tag #paveggies, submit a request on the website, follow @paveggies on Instagram and Facebook, and peruse paveggies.org for ideas and inspiration.

The program is a statewide marketing order established by a grower referendum, governed by a grower board and funded by grower assessments to serve the state’s vegetable growers by promoting state-grown vegetables and funding vegetable production research.

Related news:

South Mill Champs introduces more Shrooms snacks, plus coffee, tea

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:41:53 GMT

NEW YORK — You’ve seen mushrooms transform into chewy jerky and blend with ground beef into burgers.

Now, they’re morphing into crispy chips and liquifying into tea and coffee. Guests tasted it all at a private reception hosted by Shrooms Snacks, the snacking brand of fresh mushroom grower and sales company South Mill Champs , which farms in Kennett Square, Pa.

The company’s rooftop party overlooking the Manhattan skyline introduced the innovators who made the new products that could be available as soon as late August at the company’s contracted retailers nationwide, expanding to more locations by the end of 2019 in the U.S. and Canada as demand increases.

David Eberwein, director of innovation and business development, and Chip Chalupa, director of food science and research and development, were on hand to share about the products.

“I think the great thing about it is it’s a real, sliced mushroom , not extruded or formed. And they’re portable, don’t have to be refrigerated and you can take them anywhere,” Eberwein said about the Crispy Mushroom chips, which are non-GMO, soy-free, gluten-free and vegan.

The mushroom extracts used in the teas and coffees have funky-sounding names and associated health characteristics that capitalize on consumer demand for functional foods that offer benefits such as calm, focus and immunity support.

The snack brand additions include:

Two new varieties of Shrooms Crispy Mushrooms: Sea Salt King Oyster and Smoky Bacon Shiitake are both made from whole mushrooms that are minimally processed. The first has sunflower oil and sea salt. Each 2-ounce bag is made from 1 pound of fresh mushrooms. Oyster mushrooms have anti-inflammatory properties and antioxidants, and shiitake mushrooms have fiber, B vitamins and may boost heart health and the immune system.
Shrooms Cold Brew Mushroom Coffees: Three ready-to-drink varieties have smooth Arabica coffee that’s each brewed with superfood mushrooms boasting different health benefits and functions: Chill with Reishi, Be Well with Chaga and Focus with Lion’s Mane.
Shrooms Cold Brew Mushroom Teas: Three tea varieties are each brewed with different superfood mushrooms: Chill with Reishi blends with passionfruit and papaya black tea, Be Well with Chaga in plum ginger black tea, and Focus with Lion’s Mane in dragonfruit black tea.

The brand already introduced its line of other mushroom chips, plus mushroom jerky, mushroom snack bars and mushroom jerky split with dried fruit or meat.

“2019 is the year of the functional mushroom. Let’s hope it extends beyond its peak,” Chalupa said.

Part of the appeal of mushrooms is not necessarily just about its plant-protein benefits, something for only vegans or vegetarians, Chalupa said. “It’s about sustainability,” he said.

Mushroom farms can grow in a closed-loop system, using byproducts of other farms for the compost and substrate material, as well as recycled water. The resulting post-harvest waste is then used as compost at other farms, making mushrooms a crop with one of the lowest energy outputs in fresh produce, he said.

“Everything we’re selling is mushroom-based, and we’re growing it in Pennsylvania,” Eberwein said. “We even grow our own hay for our own compost, do our own processing and packaging, so we’re vertically integrated. Shrooms is our functional, ready-to-eat, snacking, making-mushrooms-easier-to-enjoy brand.”

Related news:

What customers want at Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 21:37:45 GMT

Customers who walk the all-indoor, temperature-controlled center aisle and vendor shops at the Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market find 20 businesses to choose from — but it’s more than that.

They find increasingly more variety and attention to the small details of each item, say wholesalers, such as Tom M. Kovacevich, president and chief operating officer of T.M. Kovacevich-Philadelphia.

The customers may not know what the exact variety name is of the product they enjoy, but the buyers know, he said.

Jump on this tour with The Packer’s Northeast editor, Amy Sowder, and look for the coming Philadelphia: Know Your Market articles .

Related news:

Produce from the sky drops to celebrate the new year

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 06:22:40 GMT

Boise has the Idaho Potato Drop, Vincennes, Ind., has a watermelon drop, Kennett Square, Pa., drops a giant mushroom and now Yuma, Ariz., has a unique way to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

The second annual Iceberg Drop in Yuma features a giant illuminated head of iceberg lettuce , a fitting way to celebrate the area’s status as the U.S. winter production capital of leafy greens and vegetables.

The Iceberg Drop, with the tagline “Lettuce Celebrate,” received some media attention, appearing on a USA Today list of five “most surprising drops” this New Year’s Eve.

In Boise, revelers will be celebrating the seventh annual Idaho Potato Drop , with a giant spud lowered by a crane. Vincennes will have its 12th annual celebration by dropping 20 watermelons onto a “splatform” to welcome the new year. This will be the seventh year for Kennett Square, Pa., to drop its giant mushroom .

Related story:

Naturipe rings in Year of the Blueberry

PhilaPort opens new near-dock warehouse

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 20:50:53 GMT

A new PhilaPort distribution center will add more than 200,000 square feet of flexible, food-grade storage within one mile of the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and senior PhilaPort leadership joined a groundbreaking ceremony March 4 for the new near-dock warehouse, according to a news release.

“In the plan to grow The Port of Philadelphia as rapidly as possible, this new warehouse is a critical component,” Wolf said in the release. “As a result of our infrastructure improvements, the same large ships that have been calling neighboring ports can now call The Port of Philadelphia.”

In 2020, the port moved a record 640,000 units of 20-foot-long containers and achieved 7% growth during a difficult global economic environment, according to the release. Compound annual growth over the past 10 years has been 10%.

The $42 million, 201,621-square-foot building is a critical step in the development the region’s main container terminal, helping attract new shippers and ocean lines.

Holt Logistics Corp. will be the operator of the new building, which will serve as a major adjunct to the container operations at Packer Avenue Marine Terminal.

This new warehouse will allow the Holt organization to get containers off the terminal and rapidly unloaded into the facility. Containers can then be returned directly to the marine terminal or moved to a Pennsylvania factory to be loaded with exports, further expanding opportunities for local and regional commerce.

“As a marine terminal operator, one of the main pillars of our service profile is velocity. Today’s shippers demand it. It is essential to our aspirations to grow The Port of Philadelphia’s throughput by 100%,” Leo Holt, president of Holt Logistics, said in the release.

A planned second development phase includes a 217,000-square-foot refrigerated building. The Port Authority is also planning road and rail improvements to also increase cargo velocity to the final customer.

Finally, PhilaPort is planning terminal reconfigurations to allow more container moves per acre, per year.

WildTwist apples star in rockin' nutrition program in Pennsylvania schools

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:29:18 GMT

Introducing fresh produce to young school children has benefits for everyone, from growers to retailers to children and their families — and programs that do this work have struggled to continue this mission while schooling was remote-based.

Thanks to a partnership with Lancaster, Pa.-based Hess Bros. Fruit Co. and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Farm to School Grant Program, the nutrition education program Jump with Jill is rocking school across the Keystone State, according to a news release.

Debuting the new apple , WildTwist, Jump with Jill is touring 10 school districts throughout the state this spring with a new virtual program.

Called “WildTwist Jump with Jill Digital Tour,” the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Farm to School Grant Program helps schools empower the next generation with messages of healthy eating and exercising.

The Farm to School Grant Program is designed to increase the amount of healthy, local foods served in schools and create economic opportunities for nearby farmers.

“Everybody wins with Farm to School.,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said in the release. “USDA is proud to help the next generation better understand where its food comes from, while strengthening local economies.”

The following Pennsylvania districts are scheduled to participate:

Woodland Hills (2 schools)
West Shore (3 schools)
Salisbury (1 school)
Chambersburg (3 schools)
McKeesport (2 schools)
East Allegheny (1 school)
South Allegheny (1 schools)
Spring-Ford Area (3 schools)
Laurel Highlands (2 schools)
North East (2 schools)

Hess Bros. Fruit Co. new WildTwist apple comes from a heritage of Honeycrisp and Cripps Pink. The apple company’s goal, besides promoting this new apple variety, is to remind students that eating healthy food rocks.

“We’ve been a longtime fan of Jump with Jill,” Chris Sandwick, Hess director of marketing, said in the release. “We know kids will eat healthier food when they realize it tastes great. The timing of this apple’s release allowed us to help Pennsylvania schools show their students that apples can and do taste great!”

WildTwist apples will be donated to schools for an apple party. The apple is available at Giant, Giant-Eagle, Costco, Stauffers, Lancaster Central Market and Meck’s.

Jump with Jill is the brainchild of registered dietitian and musician Jill Jayne.

We are so excited to share the spotlight with local growers and serve the need that schools have for high-quality nutrition education,”Jayne said said in the release. “This partnership represents all the cooks in the kitchen getting together to address a deficit: local growers, retailers and educators. We know this will be a model for the future.”

As part of the partnership, schools receive a premiere release of Jump with Jill: The Movie!, an apple party and a treasure trove of sweet and savory content for teachers to follow-up the lessons from the show in the classroom.

The Pennsylvania Farm Bill Farm to School Grant Program aims to enrich the connection communities have with fresh, healthy food and local producers by changing food purchasing and education practices at schools and early childhood education sites. Learn more at www.agriculture.pa.gov/Pages/PA-Farm-Bill.aspx

Pa. mushroom industry awarded grant to study environmental use of compost

Wed, 03 Feb 2021 22:08:52 GMT

The Pennsylvania mushroom industry won a grant from Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration to study how to better use the spent compost from growing mushrooms .

The research would focus on the carbon sequestration gleaned from applying spent mushroom compost, part of a larger spate of grants to state agriculture groups, totaling almost $1.3 million, according to a news release.

The grants are designed to spur innovation to increase productivity, advance human and animal science, and support cleaner water, healthier soil and a safer food supply.

This grant aligns with the Climate Goal for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which strives to achieve a 26% reduction of net greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 from 2005 levels.

For the Pennsylvania mushroom industry, $43,000 grant means an increased focus on environmentally friendly practices of mushroom compost.

“Mushroom compost, long regarded for its horticultural and agricultural benefits, is only scratching the surface of the opportunities available for its environmental superpowers,” American Mushroom Institute president Rachel Roberts said in the release.

Mushroom compost is known as “black gold” for its ability to speed up re-vegetation, mine reclamation, agricultural soil health and carbon sequestration.

Besides farm and garden use, spent mushroom compost is used for stormwater management.

Rather than build more costly sewer plants to handle the larger and more frequent rainstorms, the Philadelphia Water Department developed methods to divert and slow down the flow of the water. One method is using compost-enriched soil blends to create basins, swales and rain gardens.

How Four Seasons expansion relates to higher wages for employees

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:29:27 GMT

The Four Seasons Family of Cos., Ephrata, Pa., has experienced consistent double-digit growth the past several years, and many of those customer partnerships are broadening.

A major distribution center expansion project began earlier in May in Ephrata, including a 131,000-square-foot addition to the warehouse, according to a news release. There will be a second dock, more multi-temperature cold storage rooms and more ripening rooms for bananas and avocados. Completion is set for spring 2022.

The Four Seasons group includes four units: wholesaler Four Seasons Produce, third-party logistics and freight provider Sunrise Logistics, importer Earth Source, and the Sunrise Transport truck fleet.

This warehouse addition will enable Four Seasons Produce, the wholesale distribution business, to meet the future needs of independent retailers, natural food stores, food cooperatives, e-commerce and other professional buyers in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

Also, Sunrise Logistics, the logistics and freight business, and Earth Source, the importer, will gain more cold storage space including 10 temperature zones. Sunrise Logistics will be able to offer cross-dock and storage customers a better inbound and outbound delivery network with full-load and less-than-load capabilities throughout the East.

“Food distribution is a tight timeline, 24-hour business,” CEO Jason Hollinger said in the release. “One of the goals of this expansion project is to be able to ship and receive simultaneously using a second dock. This will allow us to bring a higher portion of work to daytime hours for our associates.”

Four Seasons is investing more than $3 million into higher wages for its operations associates and professional drivers in 2021 and is actively hiring to meet the increased demand from customers and prepare for the expansion.

“We are so grateful for our front-line associates who put forth so much effort all through 2020’s pandemic challenges and now through 2021’s labor crunch,” Hollinger said in the release.

In 2020, the family of companies invested more than $1 million in “on-site-required appreciation pay” and other benefits to employees, he said. Leadership distributed profit-sharing to all associates in every area of the company.

“It is our associates’ commitment to excellent service and innovation that drives our business success and growth, which then enables us to reinvest in our people,” he said.

The expansion will include:

48,000-square-foot multi-temperature receiving dock with 39 added doors;
72,000-square-feet of cold storage with four-high racking with more than 6,000 more pallet spaces;
10 unique temperature zones, plus flex-temperature rooms for seasonal peaks; and
28-degree Fahrenheit chill zone for the growing organic and natural meat and poultry category.

The structure is designed with sustainability in mind, such as:

3,900-panel solar array on its current building, and the roof on the expansion is being prepped for future solar panels;
Updated to energy-efficient lithium-ion electric material handling equipment;
Environmental Protection Agency-certified electric generator for demand-response and total power backup;
Energy-efficient refrigeration system will cool the expansion space; and
Full LED lighting with motion sensors will be installed, with a total facility energy-monitoring system.

Next Mid-Atlantic Convention should be mostly in-person

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:29:10 GMT

The education sessions at the February 2021 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention were so well-attended that in some cases, attendance was like the in-person sessions of previous years.

Even so, organizers say regular attendees are looking forward to a return to real-life learning and networking Feb. 1-3 in Hershey, Pa., for the 2022 Mid-Atlantic Convention.

“From a trade-show perspective, it wasn’t near as satisfying to growers and exhibitors as an in-person experience,” said Bill Troxell, publicity coordinator. “We did a survey of people who attended the convention, and they were very appreciative of the virtual format to the point that most of them had a lot of interest in having a virtual aspect to future occasions, even if they are in person.”

Attendees liked the opportunity to watch a session afterward when they have time, or to go back and listen again.

The other consideration is that in Pennsylvania, nearly 30% of the growers are Plain or Mennonite. Because of their beliefs and culture, they don’t have access to virtual technology, “so unfortunately we weren’t able to serve them last year,” he said.

Next year’s program outline is set, with program chairpersons tasked with finding speakers. Besides the trade show, there are morning and afternoon time slots, with 6-8 sessions in each slot for a total of 40-plus sessions.

The virtual convention demarcated fruit, vegetable, small fruit and marketing tracks, but it’s usually not divided formally when in person.

The convention has been jointly sponsored by the State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Vegetable Growers Association, the Maryland State Horticultural Society and the New Jersey State Horticultural Society for the past 43 years. The Virginia State Horticultural Society joined the convention in 2014. Penn State Extension, University of Maryland Extension, Rutgers Cooperative Extension and Virginia Cooperative Extension all assist in organizing the educational sessions.

For general information on the convention program, contact Troxell at 717-694-3596 or pvga@pvga.org. For information on exhibiting at future conventions, contact Maureen Irvin, convention coordinator, at 717-677-4184 or shap@embarqmail.com.

The dates for the Mid-Atlantic Convention at the Hershey Lodge are set for the next several years:

Feb. 1-3, 2022;
Jan. 31 to Feb. 2, 2023;
Jan. 30 to Feb. 1, 2024; and
Jan. 28-30, 2025.

Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention packs its virtual sessions

Fri, 12 Feb 2021 15:57:28 GMT

During the virtual Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention, Annie Miller noticed her young neighbors had food delivered daily amid the winter snowfall in Mechanicsburg, Pa.

Miller, an agent with the Penn State University Cooperative Extension, was one of almost 900 attendees at the event held on their computers in their homes or offices for the first time, instead of in Hershey, Pa.

The live, online Feb. 8-11 show — and what working-from-home industry professionals saw out their windows — further solidified the digital, delivery-focused theme of the popular marketing track of education sessions at the convention.

“I don’t think they’ve left the house since the snow started to fall. They have had every meal and, crucially, groceries delivered to them,” Miller said. “And people are getting used to buying something on their phone, driving up and picking it up. I like it myself as a busy mom.”

That means every company needs to maintain some sort of web presence with at least one e-commerce channel, such as website ordering, apps, social media shops and email marketing.

Besides wholesale and retail marketing, other education session tracks focused on tree fruit, vegetable, small fruit and potato production. Many sessions had 70-80 attendees, and several had more than 100.

The convention’s registration total was about half of what it normally is, and none of the Amish and Mennonite growers could attend, said William “Bill” Troxell, who coordinated the convention’s vegetable and marketing programs while handling publicity. At the ice cream socials for each track, some people said they can’t wait to see everyone in person.

Even so, that snowy weather and time-consuming, expensive travel might’ve hindered some of the speakers and attendees from arriving at the show if it were in-person, and growers told Troxell they were looking forward to watching the recorded sessions they couldn’t watch live.

“In some cases, I believe the ability of attendees to ask questions via the chat function has prompted more questions than we would get verbally in-person,” Troxell said.

Even though the 76 virtual exhibitors were much fewer than at in-person conventions, many companies who usually buy a booth chose to do a sponsorship or advertisement on the event website, Troxell said.

For Spanish-speaking attendees, Mario Miranda Sazo of Cornell Cooperative Extension and Sergio Rosario and Silvia Rosario, cofounders and co-owners of Albion, N.Y.-based Rosario Bros., led a session focused on tree fruit.

The final day’s marketing track focused on social media.

“I find that my customers and clients get overwhelmed with what to use and how to spend their time,” said Ginger S. Myers, University of Maryland Extension marketing specialist for agriculture and food systems. “Return on investment from email marketing is double that of any other digital channel. Email is the king of social media.”

Philadelphia feeds more, delivers more, wastes less

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:28:49 GMT

Regardless of a muggy August, every day inside the quarter-mile-long Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market is like a chilly October stroll, but you’ll need to keep an eye out for hand truck drivers weaving around with cartons of product for retailers or restaurants.

The difference this year?

The market and its firms are experiencing a new partnership in sustainability, more deliveries and increasing use of imports.

Gate traffic and floor traffic has been heavy, a good sign of overall business, Mark Smith, president and general manager of the market.

“Everyone is just trying to find good labor and good help. That’s probably one of our biggest challenges as far as the market and businesses,” he said. “Obviously there was challenge getting pallets for a while, but internally we have a process in place for people who need them to get them. It seems to have worked out OK.”

Shop Rite is the No. 1 retailer so far in 2021, with a market share of 17.44% in the eastern Pennsylvania region, including Philadelphia and parts of New Jersey and Delaware, according to Shelby market data.

Acme had 14.05% market share; Giant Food Stores, 13.88%; Walmart, 11.01%; and Weis Markets, 7.05%.

Wasting less, feeding more

Reducing waste continues to be a top priority, but now a new partnership with nonprofit Sharing Excess is streamlining the process, Smith said.

“We’re trying to get every edible piece of produce out to people who need it. That’s one of our biggest efforts this year, trying to get that organized. That really helps the community and helps our waste stream as well,” Smith said.

Since Sharing Excess established its spot in Breezeway I, there’s an even more refined sorting and distribution system for that tiny bit of edible food that typically goes to waste when not sold for whatever reason.

“We sort it, track it for deduction purposes, and we distribute it with the major food banks that already were picking up here, and for others, we’ll deliver it if they need us to,” said Evan Ehlers, founder of Sharing Excess. He launched the program in 2018 with college student volunteers, first as a way to use unspent meal cards at Drexel University.

The nonprofit group’s first retail partner was Trader Joe’s and has since grown to about 40 retail stores and restaurants, and since June, the market’s wholesalers too.

By the first week of August, Sharing Excess had delivered 3.2 million pounds of food to local hunger organizations since its founding, and 2.4 million pounds of that was in 2021 alone, Ehlers said. In less than two months, the organization has donated more than 350,000 pounds of food from the wholesale market.

Wasting edible food is a logistical problem.

“It’s the inevitable nature of inventory and unpredictability of sales. It’s this never-ending biological clock, and it will perish whether it’s sold or not, and we’re happy to place that small percentage that doesn’t get sold. Of course, most vendors do sell most of their product,” Ehlers said.

With this onsite system, the excess food can be turned around fast: in 12 to 24 hours, that unsellable carrot bunch can be in the refrigerator of someone who really needs it but can’t afford it.

Philadelphia is one of the biggest, poorest cities in the U.S., where one in five people face food insecurity, he said.

“When you have a dependable source for food from one place like this wholesale market, it’s such a community benefit,” Ehlers said. “They’re doing something that if every wholesale market did this in the country, the world would be a better place.”

Delivering

COVID-19 or not, Philadelphia needs the same amount of food whether it comes from retail or foodservice sources, said Filindo Colace, vice president of operations at Ryeco at the market.

“But what we do know for certain is that amount of customers wanting deliveries has increased, whether it’s wholesale or retail. People want to stay in their buildings,” Colace said.

“It costs us more, but that’s OK, we’ll give up a little margin to keep selling the produce.”

Fewer people want to physically go to the market themselves.

When Colace started working at Ryeco six years ago, the company had no delivery trucks. Now, Ryeco has 21 trucks, and with outsourcing, there are about 25 trucks out on the road daily, he said.

The younger generation leading these buyer decisions doesn’t want to spend four hours at the market plus 10 hours back at the store each day like their parents and grandparents did, he said. But also, they want to be on hand at their own businesses, to manage employees and customers and maximize their own customer service.

“We have to adapt to what the market wants,” Colace said. “I don’t think COVID changed the trajectory. I just think it made it go faster for some people.”

Companies have been adjusting however they can, while supplies are unpredictable and demand fluctuates wildly.

“Our buyers and sales team are on overdrive to serve our customers as best we can – but we expect this instability to continue well into 2022, at least,” said John Vena, president, and Emily Kohlhas, director of marketing, at John Vena Inc., based at the market. “The best we can hope for right now is that we all continue to face to unanticipated gaps and gluts with equanimity.”

Imports

John Vena is seeing a lot of growth in its imports division.

“Currently all units on the market are occupied, which is a great thing, but the growth of JVI Repacking and JVI Imports, our import division, is putting pressure on our capacity, and we are beginning to look forward to what might be down the pike,” Vena said.

The company’s ongoing program of directly importing Israeli citrus during the winter and spring season will continue with Sunrise grapefruits, Sweeties and Orri mandarins.

Those imported grapefruits and Sweeties will be packed with GS1 DataBar stickers, an enhancement for traceability, said Dan Vena, director of sales.

The DataBar is a stacked omnidirectional barcode created by the global standards organization GS1, designed to fit on small, loose produce items too small for a UPC barcode, according to Produce Marketing Association.

While those import volumes look promising, Orri production is expected to be lower in 2022 compared to 2021, “due to excessive heat that the growing region has been experiencing,” Dan Vena said.

Ryeco is also doing a lot more direct importing than it used to do. The company received its import license and started this program in a small way in 2019.

“And it’s really picked up in the last year — especially pineapples, clementines, mandarins, lemons, dragon fruit, oranges, pears and apples,” Colace said. “There’s just demand for it.”

Besides the fact that some of those items — like pineapples and bananas — aren’t grown commercially in a big way within the U.S., the cost of shipping produce from the West Coast has skyrocketed.

“We’re getting it from the port in Philly, and we can pick it up with our own truck, and often at a better price. But not always.”

Child nutrition results good for Jump with Jill’s digital education program

Mon, 04 Oct 2021 19:18:54 GMT

PITTSBURGH – The debut Jump with Jill Digital Tour ran from April 26 to June 10, 2021, in 48 Pennsylvania and Texas schools. The pilot was supported by the National Watermelon Promotion Board, the Texas Department of Agriculture, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture in collaboration with Hess Brothers Fruit Company.

Armed with catchy songs, upbeat dance moves and a hip wardrobe, the world’s only rock & roll nutrition program, Jump with Jill, uses the same tools normally used to sell junk food and inactivity to empower kids to make healthy choices. Jump with Jill is the brainchild of Registered Dietitian and musician, Jill Jayne, MS, RD who specializes in making learning about nutrition an engaging and entertaining educational experience.

Since its inception in 2008, over 1.3 million kids have enjoyed Jump with Jill’s unmatchable rock & roll nutrition show. In the previous live tour model, students would attend an in-school assembly to dance and sing behaviorally-focused songs that get kids excited about healthy foods and exercise. The Jump with Jill touring cast brought all the technical production to convert spaces used for gym class into a performance venue for large, enthusiastic audiences. When this was no longer an option, the Jump with Jill team underwent an innovative pandemic pivot, utilizing skills in video production and content creation to reimagine the signature nutrition education show for the screen.

In the spring of 2021, an exclusive virtual portal welcomed 509 highly engaged educators who spent 1,027 collective hours over six weeks with unlimited access to:

A 50-minute recording of Jump with Jill: THE MOVIE! ;
A treasure trove of shorter follow-up content;
Standards-matched lesson plans;
Emails with tips on how to integrate messages into the classroom; and
And for Pennsylvania schools, a mailer of physical materials to the school contact and an Apple Party!

This impactful pandemic programming reached 23,059 students and was mainly implemented asynchronously in PE classes and individual classrooms. As expected, The Movie! was the most utilized tool. Testimonials from educators praised the quick creativity of the Jump with Jill team to respond to the new learning environment.

This impactful pandemic programming reached 23,059 students and was mainly implemented in PE classes and individual classrooms. Testimonials from educators praised the responsiveness of the Jump with Jill team to adapt to the new learning environment. Exit survey data shows that Jump with Jill attracts highly engaged educators and continues to motivate teachers to incorporate nutrition and movement into the classroom. Metrics on the digital platform demonstrated high use of coaching emails and follow-up materials.

In conclusion, the digital adaptation of Jump with Jill:

Empowered school leaders to asynchronously implement an effective movement-based nutrition program;
Increased engagement with follow-up content;
Expanded accessibility for a wider range of locations, abilities, and teaching environments; and
Enabled real-time adjustments to the program based on user behavior.

Read the full report.

About Jump with Jill

As a leader in interactive educational experiences since 2008, the music-based nutrition education program, Jump with Jill, makes healthy rock. Created by a singing Registered Dietitian & her band of extraordinary educators, Jump with Jill’s memorable anthems celebrate the power of healthy eating and exercise. The evidence-based content of this award-winning production company has melted the faces of millions of kids around the world. Dare you not to move at www.jumpwithjill.com .

2022 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention Set for February 1 to 3

Fri, 22 Oct 2021 17:58:03 GMT

The 2022 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention will be held in-person at the Hershey Lodge on February 1 to 3, 2022.

Dr. David Kohl, noted agricultural economist and speaker, will be the keynote speaker. A farm market bus tour and several pre-convention workshops will be offered on January 31, 2022.

Normally over 2,400 fruit, vegetable, and berry growers and other industry personnel from throughout the mid-Atlantic region and beyond gather in Hershey each year for what has become one of the premier grower meetings on the East Coast. As with most similar events, last year’s Convention was held virtually. While the virtual event was successful in providing a meaningful educational event for growers, the overwhelming sentiment was that it could not replace the in-person interaction between fellow growers and exhibitors that growers value at an in-person event. Thus, the 45th annual edition of the Mid-Atlantic Convention will return to the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Plans are being made to offer exceptional educational sessions on a full-range of topics in tree fruit, vegetable, small fruit, and potato production plus retail and wholesale marketing. Greenhouse ornamental and cut flower sessions will also be offered along with a special session presented in Spanish for Spanish-speaking industry members. A schedule of planned sessions is shown below. A more detailed schedule with topics and speakers will be announced in the coming weeks.

The day before the main Convention opens, growers can choose between a bus tour of farm markets or several different workshops. The workshops include FSMA Grower Training, Basic Greenhouse Floriculture School, Conducting and Analyzing On-Farm Research, New Technology in Agriculture, Hemp Production, Farm Transition and Pennsylvania Pesticide Applicator License Training.

The Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention is honored to have Dr. David Kohl as the keynote speaker for the 2022 Convention. Dr. Kohl is a noted agricultural economist and farm management speaker from Virginia Tech University who regularly speaks to over 20 young farmer programs annually. Kohl is Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Finance and Small Business Management and Entrepreneurship in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia. He was on special leave with the Royal Bank of Canada working on advanced initiatives for two years, and also assisted in the launch of the successful entrepreneurship program at Cornell University. Kohl has traveled over 10 million miles throughout his professional career! He has conducted more than 7,000 seminars and webinars for agricultural groups such as bankers, Farm Credit, FSA, and regulators, as well as producer and agribusiness groups.
On the opening day of the Convention, besides Dr. Kohl’s keynote presentation, there will be production sessions on Vine Crops, Pumpkins/Winter Squash, Tree Fruit, General Vegetables, Peppers/Eggplant, Asparagus, Soil Heath/Cover Crops, Snap Beans, Alliums, and Controlled Environment Ag plus marketing sessions on What is the Return on Your Marketing Dollars, Comparing POS and Reservation Systems, and Wholesale Marketing.

Sessions on the second day include Tomatoes, Tree Fruit, Stone Fruit, Sweet Corn, General Vegetables, Greenhouse Ornamentals, Small Fruit, and Organic Vegetable Production plus Marketing 101 and Agritourism marketing sessions and two Labor/Farm Management sessions. Also offered will be the session “Técnicas de Producción de Frutas y Hortalizas” especially for Spanish speaking workers in the fruit and vegetable industries. It will feature various relevant production presentations in Spanish.

On the final day of the Convention, sessions on Tree Fruit, Small Fruit, High Tunnels, Year Round High Tunnel Production, Potatoes, Winter Storage Vegetables, General Vegetables, Cut Flowers, Innovative Crops for Small Farms, Retail Marketing, Digital/Social Media will be featured.

The Mid-Atlantic Convention has been jointly sponsored by the State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Vegetable Growers Association, the Maryland State Horticultural Society and the New Jersey State Horticultural Society for the past 44 years making this year’s Convention the 45th meeting. In 2014, the Virginia State Horticultural Society also began meeting at the Convention. The Pennsylvania State University, University of Maryland, Rutgers University Cooperative Extension and Virginia Tech University all assist in organizing the three days of educational sessions.

The Convention has become one of the premier grower meetings in the Northeast. The Great American Hall and the Aztec Room at the Hershey Lodge will host most of the Trade Show with several additional booths being located in the Confection Level Lobby. Specialized horticultural equipment, farm market merchandise, and packaging will all be on display along with information on the latest seed varieties, fruit varieties, pesticides and other supplies and services for the commercial grower.

Many pesticide applicator update training credits will be available to Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia growers attending the sessions. The program covers nearly every aspect of fruit, vegetable, potato and berry production. Commercial growers should not pass up this terrific educational opportunity.

The fourteenth annual Mid-Atlantic Cider Contest will be conducted during the Convention to determine the best tasting cider produced in the region. On February 1, fruit and vegetable growers will gather for the annual Fruit and Vegetable Growers Banquet which will include awards and recognitions. On February 2, there will be an Ice Cream Social for all in the evening plus a reception for apple growers. This year’s Ice Cream Social will feature research posters and the opportunity to visit with the researchers presenting the posters.
Registration is required for all persons attending the Convention trade show or educational sessions. Registration with any of the five sponsoring organizations allows one to attend any of the sessions although there are additional charges for workshops and meals. For further information, go to www.mafvc.org or call 717-677-4184 or 717-694-3596.

Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association awards 22 scholarships

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:28:58 GMT

Almost two dozen students won a little more help with college expenses from a food organization scholarship.

The Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association has chosen 22 winners of its 2021 Thomas R. and Laura Ridge Scholarship, according to a news release.

The students earned the scholarships based on their academic record, school and community involvement, a submitted essay and required recommendations.

“Congratulations to these deserving students on all of their hard work. We’re thrilled to provide these scholarships to help them in their college pursuits,” Alex Baloga, president and CEO, said in the release.

This spring, an independent judging panel evaluated scholarship applications to choose winners. Recipients must work for an association member or be the child of an employee or company owner who is a member. Each student received between $2,000 and $2,500, with a total of $45,000 awarded in 2021, according to the release.

Recipients are sponsored by members who contribute to the Ridge Fund Endowment, including Giant/Martin’s, Karns Quality Foods, Rutter’s, Sheetz and Wawa.

This year’s recipients are listed below with their goals in higher education, and the scholarship amount and sponsoring business are listed in parentheses:

Kiersten Barr of Havertown, Pa., plans to attend Clemson University and major in microbiology, with a concentration in biomedicine. ($2,000; Wawa);
Katherine Calderone of Camp Hill, Pa., plans to attend West Chester University of Pennsylvania and major in chemistry. ($2,000; PFMA);
Ethan Cramer of York, Pa, plans to attend Penn State York and major in architectural engineering. ($2,500; Rutter’s);
Saidy Marisol Cruz Martinez of Elkin, N.C., plans to attend Appalachian State University and major in building sciences, architectural technology and design, with a minor in sustainable design. ($2,000; Sheetz);
Holly Deemer of DuBois, Pa., plans to attend Penn State University and major in supply chain and information systems, with a minor in information sciences and technology. ($2,000; PFMA);
Michael Engles of Sykesville, Md., plans to attend Salisbury University and major in marketing. ($2,000; PFMA);
Molly Gill of Lewisburg, Pa., plans to attend Penn State University and major in computer science, with a minor in mathematics. ($2,000; PFMA);
Kylee Harvey of Kennett Square, Pa., plans to attend Sacred Heart University and earn her master’s in criminal justice. ($2,000; Wawa);
Norah Kelly of Scranton, Pa., plans to attend the University of Notre Dame as an undecided student. ($2,000; PFMA);
Erin Kiple of Burlington, N.J., plans to attend Stockton University to major in nursing. ($2,000; Wawa);
Delia Morchesky of Carrolltown, Pa., plans to attend Savannah College of Art and Design to major in animation. ($2,000; PFMA);
Peter Murnane of West Chester, Pa., plans to attend Penn State University and major in mechanical engineering. ($2,000; Giant/Martin’s);
Caroline Nagle of Altoona, Pa., plans to attend Lock Haven University to study as a pre-physician assistant and minor Spanish. ($2,000; Sheetz);
Shannon O’Malley of Fairless Hills, Pa., plans to attend The University of Alabama and major in anthropology, with a minor in liberal arts. ($2,000; Wawa);
Riya Patel of Coatesville, Pa., plans to attend Rutgers University and major in cognitive science, with minors in biological sciences and health and society. ($2,000; Giant/Martin’s);
Hayden Perrone of Phoenixville, Pa., plans to attend Penn State Berks and major in biology. ($2,000; Giant/Martin’s);
Mark Pottman of York, Pa., plans to attend Kutztown University and major in cinema, television and media production. ($2,500; Rutter’s);
Nolan Pye of Doylestown, Pa., plans to attend Penn State University and major in chemical engineering. ($2,000; Giant/Martin’s);
Kaitlyn Sheriff of Landisburg, Pa., plans to attend Lycoming College and major in astrophysics, with minors in computer science and mathematics. ($2,000; Karns Quality Foods);
Sandya Subramanian of Bridgewater, N.J., plans to attend Boston University and major in medical science, with a minor in Latin. ($2,000; PFMA);
Garrit Witters of Elizabethtown, Pa., plans to attend Rochester Institute of Technology and major in computing security. ($2,000; Giant/Martin’s); and
Donald Yealy of New Oxford, Pa., plans to attend Penn State University and major in forest ecosystem management. ($2,000; PFMA).

Established in 1996, the Ridge Scholarship honors the parents of former Gov. Tom Ridge. Thomas R. Ridge was a member of the food industry for 25 years, and his wife, Laura, was a strong advocate of education for their three children: Tom, David and Vikki. To date, 600 students have earned Ridge Scholarships, and more than $1.1 million has been awarded.

The statewide trade association advocates the views of more than 800 convenience stores, supermarkets, independent grocers, wholesalers and consumer product vendors. Members operate more than 4,000 stores and employ more than 250,000 Pennsylvanians.