Page 88 - Roduce Editorials News Today

While Mother Nature came through spectacularly in southwest Idaho with beautiful valley terrain, temperate climate, rich soil and abundant water to create uniquely suited growing conditions, generations of experience and the equally important human element of land stewardship have definitely enhanced her efforts. The result of that teamwork can be found in Idaho apples, both hallmark and varietals, which have become famous for their exceptional flavor.

Weather conditions are not getting any better. After the extreme heat experienced on farms across the U.S. and rains from Hurricane Kay up along the California coast, we now have Hurricane Ian ravaging some of the Florida growing areas. We have always met with weather-related challenges in the produce business and eventually get through it.

Due to their sweetness and pleasant texture, sweet potatoes are a multipurpose vegetable that more consumers are starting to add to their grocery carts regularly—especially in the fall, when sweet potatoes’ scrumptious taste and vivid coloring perfectly represent the season when leaves drop to the ground. And while sweet potatoes have been historically known as a dish served for Thanksgiving and Christmas, with increased consumer demand of healthy eating habits, sweet potatoes are no longer ...

The people at the Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission are always hard at work promoting the growers and produce professionals who provide people with delicious and nutritious sweet potatoes. But 2022 is a particularly special year for the commission as it is celebrating its 70th anniversary. “We’ve had a good year, we’ve promoted that, and we’ve done some new ads that really feature our farmers,” said René Simon, director of the Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission.

World Fresh Produce, an importer and marketer of high-quality produce from around the globe, has formed an alliance with Montreal-based produce distributor Fruits et Legumes Gaetan Bono that will create new opportunities for each company. The alliance joins two like-minded companies that complement each other, according to Michel Matouk, president of World Fresh, and Salvatore Lavorato, vice president of Bono.

The president of The Chilean Fruit Exporters Association, Iván Marambio, together with Ignacio Caballero, coordinator of the Table Grape Committee and director of marketing of ASOEX, announced a strategic plan for the newly formed grape committee.  This is an important step in enhancing the competitiveness of Chile’s grape industry in international markets.

Monterey Mushrooms has revealed the recent expansion of its executive team. As the company continues to grow, it has appointed Mike Stephan to senior director of business development, a role that spans the entire US sales team from California to Florida. 

Over the years, Farm Fresh Produce has established an outstanding reputation for providing its customers with excellent produce, and sweet potatoes are one of the key products that has made the company a success. “We plan on growing and marketing 4,000 acres of sweet potatoes this year, which includes 2,000 acres of our own product,” said Steven Ceccarelli, president of Farm Fresh Produce, headquartered in Faison, NC.

Hy-Vee, Inc. deployed its disaster relief fleet to locations in Florida impacted by Hurricane Ian. Hy-Vee employees departed from the Hy-Vee Fresh Commissary in Ankeny, IA, in several of the company’s response vehicles with supplies and food to assist with providing up to 1 million meals.

Delta Fresh Sales LLC, based in Nogales AZ, along with outside partners, is breaking ground on a new infrastructure project in Pharr, TX. The project will include a total of four to six separate facilities constructed in segments to total over 1 million square feet of warehouse space located on 80 acres.