PHILADELPHIA, PA - Love Beets is introducing the ability to “drink your beets” with its new Organic Beet Juice, hitting retail shelves nationwide towards the end of the month.
“We are thrilled to kick off 2015 with this exciting launch and respond to consumers who continue to request organic options,” George Shropshire, Vice President of Love Beets, said. “Beyond meeting those demands, we are particularly excited that more consumers are embracing beets and their numerous health benefits – from boosting performance and stamina to improving overall heart health to even combating the effects of fatigue.”
Available in 14 oz. glass bottles, the juice will appear bearing the fresh look of the company’s new brand identity, alongside the re-launch of its previously better-known flavors bearing the new design, according to a press release.
Love Beets’ Cherry & Berry, a balance of sweetness with tart, and original Beet Juice will be available in 20 oz. recyclable plastic bottles for portability and ease.
The new products and packages will be available ranging from $4.99 to $5.99 nationwide in grocery stores.
LEAMINGTON, ON – Pure Hothouse Foods has broken ground on a brand new state-of-the-art distribution center in San Antonio, Texas.
“Pure Flavor®’s dedication to growing the most flavorful vegetables has fueled our expanding North American footprint and is a real tribute to the talent of our growers in all regions in North America,” says Jamie Moracci, President of Pure Flavor®.
This facility will encompass 60,000 square-feet of cooled space that features fully insulated cooler panels and the latest eco-friendly technologies to ensure all produce is maintained to its highest level of freshness, according to a press release.
Moracci continued, “With the continuous commitment to our customers in the southern region, and more production from our Mexican operations, we want to be able to provide more availability from our San Antonio facility to help fuel customer growth.”
This new facility will help Pure Flavor® distribute fresher produce to its expanding customer base in the Southern U.S. with limited food miles.
“In just over one decade since we opened our doors, we have seen Pure Flavor® expand from one distribution center in Ontario, Canada to three strategic locations in North America to service our growing customer base,” stated Matt Mastronardi, CMO.
He added, “I believe with our continued level of customer service, continual growing line up of fresh produce offerings from the greenhouse, accompanied by Pure Flavor®’s innovative marketing approach, we will see continued expansion into other regions in the near future.”
This new expansion will create more than 100 employment positions in the San Antonio, TX area. Pure Flavor® is looking to open it in the summer of 2015.
MINNETRISTA, MN - Golden Sun Marketing is welcoming a new Marketing Coordinator, Marcela Fabbri, to support its growing business, according to a press release.
“We are very excited to have Marcela join our team; her extensive marketing skills are a valuable asset and she will make a great addition to the team,” said Don Goodwin, President and Founder of Golden Sun Marketing.
Marcela brings her more than 4 years of experience in developing strategies to grow sales and increase brand strength. Most recently, Fabbri spearheaded a comprehensive effort to rebrand a nationally recognized health care company by converting marketing strategies from tactical and event-driven to strategic and brand building. Previously, she worked as Marketing Manager for a leading Human Resource outsourcing organization.
“What makes us choose the food we choose?” said Fabbri, “It’s one of the most basic human instincts and I can’t help but be fascinated by it.”
Fabbri noted her excitement to join the Golden Sun Marketing team and says she’s ready to continue using her experience to grow clients in the produce category.
WASHINGTON - The USDA has filed an administrative action against Taylor Produce LLC, an Idaho-based company, under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA).
While acting as a growers’ agent, Taylor Produce LLC allegedly failed to remit to nine growers in the amount of $3,943,926 for 605,492 lots of produce it purchased in interstate and foreign commerce from June 2013 through December 2013, according to a USDA press release.
Taylor Produce LLC will have an opportunity to request a hearing. Should the USDA find that the company committed repeated and flagrant violations, it would be barred from the produce industry for two years. 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.
In the past three years, the USDA resolved approximately 4,250 PACA claims involving more than $77 million. Individuals, including sole proprietors, partners, members, managers, officers, directors, or major stockholders may not be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee without the approval of the USDA. The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), PACA Division, regulates fair trading practices of produce businesses operating subject to PACA.
BRONX, NY – Workers at the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Market voted yesterday to approve a three-year contract, thus ending the possibility of their first strike in almost 30 years.
As we previously reported, the three-year agreement would give workers a raise of $20 a week the first year, $22 the second year and $24 the third year. This would be a compromise between the union’s earlier push for a raise of $25 a week each year and the merchants’ counter of $16 in the first year and $22 thereafter.
Teamsters Local 202 says that the workers voted in favor of the contract by 97%, granting the 1,300 workers significant wage increases in each year of the contract.
“It’s our best wage and benefits package in two decades,” said Daniel Kane Jr., President of Teamsters Local 202.
Robert Leonard, a Spokesman for the market, told the New York Times that the merchants were pleased with the ratification of the agreement.
“The new contract fairly addresses a number of concerns raised by both management and labor throughout the negotiation process,” Mr. Leonard said. “We can now continue our focus on working together to provide our region with the freshest and highest quality fruits, vegetables and produce.”
This contract offer came on the heels of a strike vote that members took last week. 95% of the members approved the strike after merchants gave what was deemed a “final offer” with raises far short of those proposed by the union. After the strike vote, merchants raised their wage offer to what has now been agreed upon.
Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for the latest news as we continue to cover labor issues and their effects on the produce industry.
CHICAGO, IL - Whole Foods is getting a new look.
The retailer is currently in the midst of a 6 store expansion plan in Chicago, featuring new stores that will offer a bit more than the company's usual fare. According to Crain's Chicago Business, these locations will be outfitted with a variety of popular in-store dining options, such as restaurants, bars, wine bars, coffee hubs and more. Michael Bashaw, President of Whole Foods' Midwest region, is excited about their potential.
“Simply put, we're looking for ways to make the places more appealing,” he shared. “If bricks-and-mortar [grocers] are going to survive, they must offer a compelling experience to customers.”
“Whole Foods Market loves Chicago, and we know that the community has been hungry for these stores to reopen for some time,” Michael continued. “We took the time to design and build a brand new store for each community that would offer not just a full-service grocery, but also a place to meet friends and share each other’s company. After the communities come to know these stores, I believe they’ll feel the wait was worth it!”
According to a press release, the Whole Foods' Streeterville location will be partnering with RAW in order to feature a branded, in-store restaurant complete with raw foods and vegan dishes, as well as a full-service bar, an expanded coffee stand, wine room, Ramen station, and an apothecary-style Whole Body department. Shoppers will be able to check out the fresh offerings for themselves when the store opens on January 28th.
The current projected opening dates for the full line of new stores are:
- Streeterville: January 28th
- DePaul (+29,000 sq. ft.): February 25th
- West Loop (+42,000 sq. ft.): March 25th
- Edgewater (+54,000 sq. ft.): April 29th
- Elmhurst: May
- Evanston: July
- (Relocated Willowbrook location: August)
Two additonal locations in Englewood and Hyde Park are planned for 2016.
As Crain's Chicago Business noted, it was Whole Foods' Lincoln Park mega location in Austin, Texas that paved the way for these new features. Complete with three full-service bars, it was a landmark location for Whole Foods when it opened five years ago. The reception for that location has been so strong, that Whole Foods has worked to incorporate aspects of the format into its stores in outside markets.
“Customer response has been very strong, and it's a rapidly growing category for us,” Bashaw says. “Our customers have told us what they want by strongly patronizing [these locations]. Given the response, we're going to do more of that...In any business, you constantly need to reinvent yourself. People would get bored if we do the same thing year after year. That's what's driving this, and I don't expect it to stop.”
“I think you'll see a lot more of this,” added David Livingston, Owner and President of Milwaukee-based DJL Research. “The new trend of the new age supermarkets is to have some sort of drinking and dining options in their stores. It's all part of the new movement in socialization. It's all about the experience.”
What's next for Whole Foods? You'll have to stay tuned to AndNowUKnow to find out.
NIXA, MO - Darren Minor is bringing 38 years of industry experience to Market Fresh Produce as its new National Packaging Coordinator.
Minor will be responsible for the inventory control of Market Fresh’s packaging. He will also ensure suppliers are meeting the quality and design standards while assisting in both sales and procurement initiatives regarding packaging, according to a press release.
“Darren’s industry knowledge and experience is vital in keeping our inventory cost down and providing an innovated design for our brand,” said Market Fresh CEO and Owner, Steve Phipps. “With his skills in receiving and shipping, Darren will bring valuable knowledge of receiving product to optimizing productivity.”
Minor has extensive experience in both the grocery and produce industry. Most recently, he was Produce Merchandiser for Reasor’s in Oklahoma, overseeing all produce department operations. Previously, Minor held the Director of Warehouse position for Horner Foods, Inc. and is Food Safety Manager certified.
VANCOUVER, B.C. – Step aside, Cookie Monster. According to Oppy’s newest philosophy, brighter is better and fresher is sweeter.
The company is pitching new packaging and new producers in association with PMA’s eat brighter! campaign, directed towards getting children to eat healthier with Sesame Street characters assigned to each berry.
“With their intense color, berries lend themselves perfectly to the eat brighter! concept,” Jason Fung, Director of Category Development for Oppy, said.
The company is offering blackberry clamshells featuring Ernie, raspberries with Cookie Monster, blueberries with a fuzzy Grover, and plump sweet Elmo on the label for strawberries.
Currently, Oppy is sourcing berries from Florida, Mexico, and, as of last year, California.
“Last year we shipped California strawberries for the first time, testing the waters and assuring we could create a program that accommodated our customers’ needs,” said Fung. “We have built on that ‘year one’ effort through relationships with growers in Coachella, Oxnard and Salinas, so now we can serve more of our customers with larger organic and conventional California strawberry programs.”
Fung continued, “Berries have become a very important facet of the produce department, delivering a high dollar share to the bottom line. Because they are such a critical part of the mix, the quality and consistency has to be there 365 days a year.”
Beginning in December 2014 with plans to last through September, Oppy has forged partnerships with high-quality berry producers as they continue to grow. This will enable the company to deliver berries throughout the year while offering parents a continuous option for children outside of conventional sweets.
WILMINGTON, DE - Chilean President Michelle Bachelet made her first visit to the Port of Wilmington this week during her tour of Delaware.
This event importantly marked the first time a Chilean President has visited the state, according to a press release. President Bachelet's visit comes at an important time. Just under a month has passed since the beginning of the “zero tariff” legislation pertaining to all Chilean products entering the United States. This marked the last phase of the tariff reduction schedule put into place when the United States and Chile signed the Free Trade Agreement back in June 2003.
During her visit, President Bachelet was joined by Ronald Bown, President of the Chilean Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX), Chile’s Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Furche, Foreign Trade Minister, Heraldo Muñoz and other ASOEX representatives.
“ASOEX welcomes the opportunity to join President Bachelet on this visit,” shared ASOEX President Ronald Bown. “It highlights the work that has been done by Chile’s fresh fruit industry, in conjunction with the Government, to establish the U.S. as a key market for our fruit. The United States remains Chile’s largest market for fresh fruit exports. Last season, more than 750,000 metric tons (MT) were shipped to the U.S., with grapes, apples, blueberries, cherries, citrus and avocados the top items.”
While at Wilmington, the delegation met with Delaware Governor, Jack Markell, and members of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce. During a public ceremony, President Bachelet displayed a plaque sponsored by ASOEX in order to symbolically mark the importance of the event.
The Port of Wilmington will be playing a key role during the current Chilean fresh fruit season. Over half of all fruit exports from Chile enter the nation through Delaware ports. In addition, roughly 16 million boxes of Chilean fruit pass specifically through the Port of Wilmington each year between November and April. With grape, blueberries, and stone fruit shipments already rolling in, this year is expected to be no different. In fact, due to favorable weather conditions, quality and volume are expected up across the board this season.
Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow as we continue to bring you the latest developments concerning the fresh produce industry.
PLEASANTON, CA – Distribution Market Advantage (DMA) has selected iTradeNetwork's GDSN master data and integration services for implementation early in 2015. iTrade's Data Management Services (DMS) will allow the company to review data and resolve exceptions after which master catalog data will be fed to DMA’s proprietary reporting solution for its customers. This system is designed to ensure that new and changed product information will be complete and accurate for DMA customers’ performance analytics needs.
“At DMA, our role, first and foremost, is optimizing supply chain solutions for our multi-unit customers’ specific needs,” shared Dan Cox, President and CEO of DMA. “iTrade really knows both foodservice and master data – that’s an important point, they really understand both the foodservice industry and the level of service excellence that we work to achieve for our members and customers. Extending our collaboration to incorporate iTrade’s GDSN standards and technology integration expertise is a natural fit.”
“We view iTrade as our outsourced IT team,” added Jim Szatkowski, DMA’s Vice President of Data Services. “They provide us with critical path technology like our data warehouse, which handles hundreds of millions of records, and a custom mapping application that enables national roll-up of product data in our reporting applications for our national multi-unit customers with exceptional reliability. Because of our existing integrations, iTrade can bring GDSN data right into our applications faster and with far lower cost. iTrade will also incorporate DMA’s specific business rules through data governance and approval workflows, to streamline information management processes.”
“We are thrilled to extend our partnership with DMA. With its world class distributor members and highly experienced management team, DMA has always worked to bring the best in supply chain services and technology to its multi-unit operator customers,” said Joe Bergera, President, iTradeNetwork. “We’re proud that DMA selected iTrade to integrate industry standard, fully synchronized foundational product information into one of DMA’s key customer initiatives, its robust reporting and analytics solution.”
Going forward, DMA will work with iTrade to receive GDSN data from suppliers of its multi-unit operator customers, including detailed item and supplier identification and description data, and synchronize this foundational master data with the DMA item catalog.
According to a press release, iTrade complies fully with GS1 and GDSN standards and is an active participant in GS1 Global and U.S. standards maintenance and working groups. In addition to its Certified GDSN Data Pool, the company has closely integrated GDSN into its collaborative supply chain solutions. This allows organizations to quickly and easily send and receive GS1-compliant product information across a global network and leverage that product information in key business processes such as order-to-pay. iTrade’s GDSN Data Pool interoperates with all other GS1 GDSN Certified Data Pools worldwide to further ensure data consistency and accuracy.
Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow as we continue to bring you the latest news affecting produce industry insiders.