WASHINGTON D.C. - The U.S. House of Representatives paid tribute to produce industry legend Rick Antle, who passed away this month, in a series of general speeches made on the House floor this week.
“I sadly rise today with fellow colleagues because we lost a friend way too soon,” said Representative Jeff Denham. “Rick Antle was an ag visionary—a community leader, a family man, and to Sonia and I, a mentor and a friend. His passion and dedication made him a leader not only a leader in the California Salinas Valley but in the entire ag industry nationwide…He’s going to be missed by many—here in Washington D.C., in the Salinas Valley, around the country.”
Denham payed tribute to the way in which Antle, who assumed control of Tanimura & Antle as President and CEO at the age of 26, grew the business over the course of more than three decades, to become a worldwide leader in agriculture—a fourth-generation operation farming 35,000 acres.
“Rick Antle was truly an icon not only in California agriculture but in American agriculture,” seconded Representative Jim Costa. “He was a leader. Rick and Tonya always put their family first, and what a family it was. To be a part, with them, with their children, and with his father Bob—I have fond, fond memories…of working together on public policy affecting agriculture…their efforts to bring value-added and innovation is legendary in terms of the incredible food products we enjoy today at home…We thank you for all the contributions you’ve made over the years. We will miss Rick Antle.”
Both Denham and Costa praised Tanimura & Antle’s Spreckels Crossing farmworker housing project and Antle’s dedication to his employees—who became owners of the company when Tanimura & Antle launched its employee stock ownership plan last year.
“Today, we…commemorate, we celebrate Rick Antle and what he has done for the Salinas Valley agricultural industry—and what he and his family at T&A did to claim that area as the Salad Bowl of the world,” said Representative Jimmy Panetta. “Let me tell you; he did it through innovation, and he did it through ingenuity…he was on the forefront of innovation when it came to precision farming…Rick was and is a legend—not just on the central coast, not just in the central valley, but in the agricultural community.”
The speeches ended with Denham expressing his condolences and thanking Rick Antle’s family for his contributions to agriculture and to the lives of those he touched.
SONOITA, AZ - A semi-truck carrying tomatoes along the State Route 82 overturned, this week, blocking traffic along the route in both directions for an extended period and presumably spoiling a large cache of the sensitive produce item.
The crash occurred mid-day—just after 2:15 pm—just east of the city of Sonoita. According to a report by Nogales International’s Weekly Bulletin, the driver of the truck lost control along a stretch of SR 82 and careened onto its side. The trailer appears to have slid along the center of the road, dragging the truck into a completely upside-down position and smashing a portion of its cab.
Thankfully, the driver managed to escape the truck unharmed, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS). A post to the Sonoita-Elgin Fire District’s Facebook page noted that the driver had been wearing his seatbelt.
Traffic was initially blocked, then delayed as traffic was redirected along the route’s dirt shoulder, and crews worked to remove the tractor-trailer from the roadway.
No news was forthcoming on the state of the maters involved, and the trailer of the vehicle remained intact—though a certain Heinz-brand condiment springs to mind when this trade news writer ponders what the inside of the trailer must look like...
For more on tomato toss-ups, kale collisions, and other produce mishaps, keep reading AndNowUKnow.
VERO BEACH, FL - Here they are. Signed. Seald. Delivered. Seald Sweet’s Mexico-grown grapes can be yours! The company’s Mexico grape season is revving up and launching on April 30th, which is music to my ears like Stevie Wonder’s original tune.
“This Mexican harvest appears to have sufficient volumes giving us tremendous opportunity to supply our customer base with consistent promotable volume throughout the program,” said CEO Mayda Sotomayor. “Consumers love grapes, and we are pleased to be able to provide our retail partners with a high-quality, great-tasting product.”
In some areas, suppliers have been down in volume this season. Seald Sweet, ready for any occasion, has production stemming from various areas. According to a press release, it is primed and prepped for the season and not expecting much shortfall.
“Our growers are located in several areas throughout Mexico, so we will have product from beginning to end of this quickly moving deal,” explained Sotomayor. “We have some exciting new varieties that start early and go all the way to the end of the harvest.”
The Mexico grape season has become a crucial leg of business for the company’s grape program, which started out with 50,000 boxes in 2009 and has now grown by 1900 percent.
“Mexico is a cornerstone of our grape business, and we believe a great deal in it—enough to invest with growers in Mexico and in hiring a seasoned professional to oversee this business sector,” shared Sotomayor.
In addition to launching this season’s Mexico-grown grapes, the company also announced its hiring of Rob Anderholt as the West Coast Divisional Sales Manager. He brings 20+ years of experience working with the grape category; now, Anderholt will oversee the current season and future expansion of the company’s grape program.
“Our customers can look forward to a terrific Mexican grape program because of our solid mix of colors as well as our quality growers,” expressed Anderholt. “We have a full team in-country to watch over the packing and ensure we have the proper quality throughout the season. Our early sweet grapes coming out of our ranches south of Hermosillo will be key. We should see a solid supply of these green grapes over the first three weeks of May.”
The company offers all colors—red, green, and black—with a good cross-section of varieties. This season, the company will market one of its new varieties, Early Sweets. More exciting yet, the company is also offering its first volume of organic Flames.
“Aside from our early grapes, customers can take advantage of our mix of all colors and our organic product coming out of the major growing areas,” said Anderholt. “Our growers have taken care to secure the right bunches on their vines to give us excellent quality.”
For more exciting produce news that will make you grape-ly excited about this season’s happenings and more, keep checking back with us at AndNowUKnow.
FORT MYERS, FL - Lipman Family Farms is setting its sights on what it can do to increase exposure to fresh fruits and vegetables for families in underserved communities. Teaming up with Harry Chapin Food Bank and Brighter Bites, a nonprofit organization that helps create communities of health through fresh food, Lipman Family Farms is launching school-based programs to encourage healthy eating by providing fresh produce, nutrition education materials, support of in-class education, and healthy recipes to families in South Florida.
“Over the past couple of years, Lipman Family Farms has donated tomatoes to Brighter Bites programs in Houston, Dallas, and Austin, and we’ve been proud of our association with the program and its impact on so many lives,” said Jaime Weisinger, Director of Community Relations and Government Relations, Lipman Family Farms. “When there was an opportunity to bring the program to Southwest Florida, we jumped at the chance. Brighter Bites fits every part of our philanthropy strategy, and we’re thrilled to be donating even more produce to Brighter Bites right here in our own backyard.”
According to Feeding America, nearly 40,000 individuals in Collier County, 36 percent of whom are children, lack consistent access to nutritionally adequate food. To remedy that, Brighter Bites is running programs this spring and summer that will provide more than 75,000 pounds of produce and thousands of pieces of nutrition education materials to over 600 families and teachers at Lake Trafford Elementary School, Eden Park Elementary School, and the Boys and Girls Club in the Collier County School District. Lipman Family Farms and Harry Chapin Food Bank are supporting the initiative and doing their part by donating thousands of pounds of fresh fruits and veggies, warehousing, and transportation services.
“Local partnerships are critical to the success of our organization and the impact we have on the communities where we work,” said Samuel Newman, Executive Director of Brighter Bites. “We could not be happier to be partnering with two of the most trusted organizations in the region.”
Within the initiative, a simple formula is used to introduce healthy lifestyles to families that includes produce distribution, nutrition education, and encouraging families to sample delicious and fun recipes. Parents and community volunteers also pack bags of fresh fruits and veggies for families and teachers to take home each week over the course of three eight-week sessions. Each free two-bag set contains approximately 50 servings of 12 different produce items.
“Many hungry families struggle to eat healthy food on a budget. Teaching them how to do that is an important priority for us,” said Richard LeBer, President and CEO of Harry Chapin Food Bank. “That’s why we’re very excited to bring Brighter Bites’ effective programs to Southwest Florida.”
According to a press release, research shows the Brighter Bites model provides consistent opportunities for children and their families to practice healthier behaviors in school and at home, with 98 percent of parents reporting their children eating more fruits and vegetables thanks to the Brighter Bites program and 74 percent maintaining that increased level of consumption after the program ends. Children and parents participating in Brighter Bites also reported:
- Significant increase in the amount of fruits and vegetables consumed
- Significant increase in serving more fruits and vegetables as snacks
- Two-fold increase in cooking meals from scratch, and a significant increase in eating meals together and serving more produce as part of those meals
- Two-fold increase in using nutrition labels to guide grocery purchases
- A significant decrease in added sugars consumed among children
Since launching in 2012, Brighter Bites has distributed more than 16 million pounds of produce and over 100,000 nutrition education materials to 40,000 families through elementary schools, preschools, and summer camps. Southwest Florida is the sixth Brighter Bites program to launch after Houston, Dallas, Austin, New York City, and Washington, D.C.
For more news like this, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.
SAN ANTONIO, TX - Getting things from A to B can be stressful for so many reasons. Add to that a multi-billion-dollar industry relying on the delivery of fresh, crisp, flavorful, and pristine produce, and the pressure seems to mount even higher.
I luckily had a chance to chat with IFCO’S Vice President of Retail Sales, Greg Kurkjian, and he shares some key facets of packing and shipping processes that impact the supply chain at large and how the company addresses them.
“Looking at the value of any packaging solution, you have to look at the packaging solution holistically, which includes the direct costs of the packaging and the indirect costs. Indirect cost will actually make up about 85 percent of the total cost of moving that package through the supply chain, so you have to look at things like space, equipment, labor, and transportation—and, importantly, product damage,” he shares with me.
RPCs provide excellent supply chain efficiency, cold chain temperature management, and a dramatic reduction of product damage compared to one-way packages, he explains. To provide customers a way to quantify their savings, the company created a tool to track cost variables.
To find out more on IFCO’S tool to calculate cost savings and value throughout the supply chain process and more, check out the whole video above.
To find out more fresh produce news, stick with us at AndNowUKnow.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has filed an administrative action under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) against Goodness Greeness Inc.
According to a press release, the company, operating from Illinois, allegedly failed to make payment to 12 sellers in the amount of $259,993 from April 2016 through June 2016.
Goodness Greeness Inc. will have an opportunity to request a hearing. Should USDA find that the company committed repeated and flagrant violations, it would be barred from the produce industry for two years. Furthermore, its principals could not be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee for one year and then only with the posting of a USDA-approved surety bond.
The PACA Division, which is in the Fair Trade Practices Program in the Agricultural Marketing Service, regulates fair trading practices of produce businesses that are operating subject to PACA including buyers, sellers, commission merchants, dealers and brokers within the fruit and vegetable industry.
In the past three years, USDA resolved approximately 3,400 PACA claims involving more than $58 million. PACA staff also assisted more than 8,500 callers with issues valued at approximately $151 million. These are just two examples of how USDA continues to support the fruit and vegetable industry.
SALINAS, CA - As sure as tulips rising with the frost melt in spring, when the seasons turn, and the air develops a lackadaisical quality, my mama chops up some broccoli, grapes, and celery for a spring salad. And, with the sunny weather that’s graced the West Coast these past few weeks, I’ve got little green inflorescences on my mind.
I spoke with Jason Lathos, Manager of Commodities for Church Brothers Farms, to find out how the growers' Salinas broccoli is fairing, what the market looks like, and how retailers can promote the crop this season.
“Everyone just made the transition from Yuma back to Salinas,” Jason explains. “Broccoli was one of the first items that we started harvesting up here—actually, we started harvesting it a couple weeks earlier than normal due to the weather.”
Jason tells me that due to the nice winter, everything has been ahead of schedule. The oscillating temperature has made volume less steady but has not resulted in any quality issues. He reports that the market has been relatively normal and that he expects it to stay that way, although, with Mother’s Day—foodservice growers’ second biggest holiday after Valentine’s Day—there may be an increase in demand.
“I think we’re going to have increased demand as we get toward the end of April. There is always a five or ten percent uptick as the East Coast weather starts getting better and you get more into spring conditions,” Jason says. “Taking mom out to breakfast, lunch, or dinner for Mother’s Day does impact demand on our side. I think supplies are fairly steady. I see the market staying where it’s at; maybe getting a little bit higher as the increase in demand occurs.”
Jason hesitates to say anything with certitude: one of the great things about this industry, he tells me is that it changes every week.
“I’m always looking to promote and drive sales. It’s a good crop; it’s a healthy crop. For Mother’s Day if you’re going to be cooking at home for mom, cook her some broccoli,” Jason tells me.
Maybe this year, I’ll take Jason’s advice and try my hand at my mother’s spring salad recipe. For more on market and crop conditions across the industry, keep reading AndNowUKnow.
CASTROVILLE, CA - During the Fresh Produce Floral Council’s Northern California Exposition, I had an opportunity to speak with Bob Polovneff, Senior Sales Manager for Ocean Mist Farms, to discuss market and crop conditions of Ocean Mist’s artichokes.
“Quality is excellent, and volumes are increasing," Bob says. "Demand is increasing as the quality of the artichokes improves. As we increase in volumes over the next three to six weeks, pricing will likely see a decrease in response."
He explained that the company’s operation out of Castroville, California, ships February through December. Coupled with winter production in Coachella, Oxnard, and Baja California, consumers have the opportunity to dig into this tasty thistle year-round.
“The fields have recovered from the frost conditions that delayed spring artichoke season," Bob comments. "So quality improvement, increased volumes, and increased demand are all related and reflection of that reality.”
Now, at the start of the season, most available artichokes are jumbo and large sizes, which sounds perfect to me—who doesn’t love a big heart?
To stay in the know on the crops across the market, keep reading AndNowUKnow.
SALISBURY, NC - Today, Food Lion announced it will be acquiring four BI-LO stores located in South Carolina from Southeastern Grocers, who filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. The transaction is expected to be completed by late May.
"We are so excited to add these four new locations to our network of nearly 70 stores serving the greater Myrtle Beach, Florence, and Columbia areas," said Meg Ham, Food Lion President. "We are part of the fabric of this community. We've been here in these towns and cities nourishing our neighbors and customers for nearly 40 years. With the addition of these four new stores, we have an even greater opportunity to serve more customers with fresh, quality products at affordable prices every day with the caring, friendly service they expect from Food Lion."
According to a press release, the locations include the following:
- 1241 38th Avenue N., Myrtle Beach, SC 29577
- 1610 Highway 17 S, Surfside Beach, SC 29575
- 500 Pamlico Hwy, Florence, SC 29501
- 9003 Two Notch Road, Columbia, SC 29223
All locations will remain open as BI-LO stores until the transaction is complete, pending final approvals.
What other retailers will absorb some of the 94 stores Southeastern Grocers is closing? AndNowUKnow will continue to report.
TUCSON, AZ - Picture this: I’m munching on my honey mango for breakfast and sipping upon my hot coffee, then—gasp—news breaks that someone used one of my favorite fruits for different, nefarious purpose than a trusty, go-to snack. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed at Arizona’s Port of Nogales have arrested a man for his handiwork in what is now a failed attempt to bring 270 pounds of methamphetamine stateside within a mango shipment on Wednesday, April 25, 2018.
The tractor-trailer carrying mangos was making its way through inspection on Wednesday afternoon when Mariposa Cargo Facility-based officers referred the 33-year-old man operating the vehicle for further review.
If you’re wondering how they were tipped to the narcotics, a CBP canine, trained to detect narcotics, alerted officials to a scent—from there, the drugs were located on the trailer’s rear floor. The alleged meth shipment is worth a reported $809,000, according to a CBP press release, and was tucked within 250 packages.
The suspect was arrested after the drugs were seized, and was then turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigation.
Enter, sight of relief. We can all rest in our chairs again, knowing that CBP tracked down one more shipment with ulterior motives, rather than supporting the industry and the produce we know and love.