HEATHROW, FL - The votes are in, and Village Farms says its Heavenly Villagio Marzano® variety has been voted the “Best Flavored Tomato” in the company's Garden Fresh Flavor™ Challenge at this year's PMA Fresh Summit.
Going up against Village Farms' Lip Smackin’ Grape® tomato and Sinfully Sweet® Campari varieties, visitors to Village Farms' booth favored the San Marzano tomato's flavor during the blind taste test. The other two varieties were very close seconds, however, showing the strength of Village Farms' entire menu of offerings, according to a press release.
What did visitors have to say about the Heavenly Villagio Marzano? “A little tomato with full flavor,” “a great mouth feel and bite,” “sensational,” “sweet,” and “outstanding” were just a few of the descriptions offered during this great showing.
Doug Kling, Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer for Village Farms shared, “It is no surprise this great tasting snacking tomato won the award for best flavored tomato at PMA. But did you know that Heavenly Villagio Marzano® is also an excellent cooking tomato?”
If the popularity of the Heavenly Villagio Marzano® tomato at Fresh Summit is any indication, many more people will be learning about the great flavor profile and versatility of the variety over the coming months.
When Village Farms' new website launches in late 2014, the grower shares that it will be supporting the variety with an exciting set of cooking instructions and recipes. With the support of these materials, consumers will be able to test Doug's claim for themselves. If you ask me, I'm confident that they won't be disappointed.
CASTROVILLE, CA - With the Thanksgiving season rapidly approaching, Ocean Mist Farms is preparing for its busiest time of year. The company is a leading grower of California celery as well as a variety of other key Thanksgiving categories and Kori Tuggle, Director of Marketing & Business Development at Ocean Mist Farms, shared with me the steps the grower is taking to be ready for the holiday.
“The Thanksgiving Pull is our busiest time of year at Ocean Mist Farms,” Kori said. “With celery for example, we'll typically see our retail orders go from pallet quantities to straight truck loads when the season is in full swing!”
Fortunately, Ocean Mist is in a prime position to capitalize on this demand boom, thanks to a strong celery crop which is already looking to outpace last year's numbers. Art Barrientos, Vice President of Harvesting, explained that he expects volume to carry through to mid to late November, meaning an uninterrupted supply of high quality Ocean Mist celery for Thanksgiving festivities.
“As an industry, we have been gifted with an exceptional celery crop this year,” Art shared. “Ocean Mist Farms has been no exception to this trend. Our retail partners and loyal consumers can rest assured that come Thanksgiving time, Ocean Mist will be ready to meet demand with a premium celery crop which is sure to delight.”
As the industry moves closer to the Thanksgiving Holiday Pull, many in the industry are looking forward to rising prices in response to growing seasonal demand. This could mean a very strong season for Ocean Mist.
This is not to suggest, however, that celery is all Ocean Mist has in store for this fall. The grower has a comprehensive Thanksgiving rollout prepared, one built to complement the full range of Ocean Mist products ready for the season.
For example, this will be the first holiday season in which Ocean Mist will be able to offer its full extended Season & Steam Brussels sprout product line. Headlined by the popular Quick Cook (Halved) Brussels Sprouts, SuperShreds Brussels Sprouts and Microwavable Whole Brussels sprouts, this line has already gained significant national market share since the new products' debut in January.
“We also take advantage of the seasonal demand by catering to consumers searching online for recipes and Thanksgiving menu inspiration,” Kori elaborated. “Ocean Mist's Holiday Digital Cook book, Holiday recipes, and Short cooking videos help us show consumers the best ways to incorporate fresh produce into their Thanksgiving plans, for a healthy, fun meal everyone will love.”
If you'd like to learn more about this produce leader, I reccomend checking out this great video celebrating Ocean Mist's history and honoring its 90th anniversary in the industry:
Congratulations on a great start to the Thanksgiving season, Ocean Mist Farms!
WASHINGTON, U.S. – China is once again buying Washington apples after a two-year market closure.
The Associated Press reports that U.S. agriculture officials have said China will import both Red and Golden Delicious apples from Washington beginning immediately.
Todd Fryhover, President of the Washington Apple Commission, said that Yakima and Wenatchee area fruit companies could begin shipping as early as next week, according to the Yakima Herald.
In August of 2012, the Chinese government stopped imports, citing fungus concerns. Plant inspectors and officials from both nations have negotiated over the past two years before reaching a deal.
The Herald reports that in 2012-13, China ranked No. 6 on the Washington apple export list with more than 2 million 42-lb boxes. In 2010-11, the country purchased 3 million 42-lb boxes, the 4th highest market that year, according to the commission.
The state of Washington produces nearly 90% of all U.S. apple exports. It will certainly be interesting to see what effects this has on the apple season.
ANAHEIM, CA - The inaugural Tour de Fresh race was a roaring success, raising over $136,000 for United Fresh's Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools Campaign. 41 racers from companies throughout the produce industry biked from Carmel, CA to Fresh Summit in Anaheim, CA to put produce on the map and donate over 40 salad bars to schools across the United States.
In order to showcase the highlights of this race, which has captivated the focus of the produce industry, Tour de Fresh has released its official 2014 highlights video. Check it out for yourself below:
Buoyed by the success of this first year, the men and women behind the Tour de Fresh are already exploring several exciting ideas for next year and new sponsorship opportunities. Brock Nemecek, Creative Manager at DMA Solutions, shared with me that there's talk of the 2015 Tour de Fresh doubling the fundraising accomplishments of this year's race!
Tour de Fresh is already hard at work on formalizing the destination, ride route, roster size and sponsorship opportunities for next year's race. While these details are not yet ready to be released to the industry, Brock shared that the official Tour de Fresh Facebook, Twitter, and newsroom on its website will be must-follow sites for industry members wanting to be in-the-know with the latest news.
Events like these showcase the best of our industry. We are lucky to have countless talented men and women working every day to make fresh produce more accessible to people everywhere, and the Tour de Fresh just shows how willing they are to go the extra mile, quite literally, for this cause.
AndNowUKnow would like to congratulate Tour de Fresh and its racers for achieving this very impressive fundraising goal. We'll see you next year!
SALISBURY, N.C. - Beth Newlands Campbell, Food Lion’s President since late 2012, has announced her departure from the company due to “personal and professional reasons,” according to a press release. Meg Ham, President of Bottom Dollar Food, has been named as Newlands Campbell’s successor, effective November 1.
“I want to thank Beth for her 27 years of service at both Food Lion and Hannaford,” said Kevin Holt, Delhaize America CEO. “She has led significant improvements at Food Lion during the past two years, with a strong focus on enhancing the customer shopping experience and ensuring that Food Lion’s communities can count on us through our Food Lion Feeds hunger relief efforts. I know our associates join me in wishing Beth and her family all the best in the future.”
Newlands Campbell's successor, Meg Ham, will be responsible for leading all Food Lion banner operations, including strategic direction, financial performance, product assortment, pricing, customer service, and marketing. She will report directly to Holt.
“I look forward to maintaining our positive momentum at Food Lion by continuing to deploy our new strategy, serving our customers well and caring for our communities through Food Lion Feeds,” said Ham.
Ham joined Delhaize America in 1988 and held a number of leadership roles at both Food Lion and Hannaford. Her strong experience in customer experience and associate engagement leverages her extensive background in merchandising and retail operations.
“I have full confidence in Meg to continue to lead Food Lion’s transformation and to deliver on the company’s Easy, Fresh, and Affordable…You Can Count on Food Lion Every Day strategy to enhance the customer shopping experience,” added Holt.
Delhaize America has also announced further changes in management. Gene Faller, Vice President of Operations for Bottom Dollar Food, will assume leadership responsibilities for the banner. JJ Fleeman, currently Senior Vice President of Food Lion Strategy, has been promoted to Delhaize America’s Chief Strategy and Development Officer. Both will report to Holt.
We wish Newlands Campbell the best of luck in her future endeavors, and congratulate Ham on her new executive role with Food Lion.
MCLEAN, VA – Gladstone Land Corporation has acquired two farms with 332 farmable acres in Ventura County, California for $24.6 million.
According to a press release, the land is leased to Sunrise Growers, which farms it for berries and tomatoes, and Eclipse Berry Farms, LLC, a grower and marketer of fresh fruits and vegetables.
"We are privileged to partner with one of the largest suppliers of processed strawberries in the world and add such significant acreage in this important strawberry and vegetable growing region. These two farms have good water for our tenants, and the land is great for the crops being grown there,” said Bill Reiman, Managing Director at the Gladstone and Head of West Coast Investing.
The two current leases for the farmland both have a remaining term of nine months with one 2-year renewal option.
“These farms have been rented for many years, and we expect them to be rented for many years into the future. Our goal of having strong tenants on premium land is certainly met in this transaction," added Reiman.
Currently, Gladstone owns 31 farms, made up of 7,973 acres in 5 different states valued at $185 million. The majority of its acreage is used to grow row crops like berries and vegetables.
YAKIMA, WA – Domex Superfresh Growers® has launched a new social media and in-store promotion called “Share Your Perfect Pear” sweepstakes, designed to connect retailers with consumers.
“Consumer focused marketing programs like our ‘Share Your Perfect Pear’ sweepstakes paired with proven category business intelligence is one of the many tools we offer to our retail partners to help them prepare for the changing demands of the modern marketplace,” said Howard Nager, Vice President of Marketing, Domex Superfresh Growers.
According to a press release, Domex will offer retailers a suite of in-store and online partnership opportunities including ready-to-post social content, turn-key POS materials and co-branded #EatPears Twitter parties.
“While we know consumers love to eat our pears fresh out-of-hand, they also consume pears with cheese, wine, chocolate and as part of charcuterie plates. We designed our promotion artwork to reinforce these “pairing” trends and recommend that our retail partners cross promote pears with these items as part of their holiday displays,” Howard added.
The “Share Your Perfect Pear” sweepstakes uses Domex’s #EatPears hashtag and the company’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest social properties to help consumers connect to pear recipes, new usage ideas and messages about health and wellness.
A Grand Prize winner will win $1,000, one First Prize winner will win $500 and one Second Prize winner will win $250. The sweepstakes starts November 1, 2014 and ends December 31, 2014.
To enter, consumers have to upload an original photo to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest that shows off their favorite pear recipe or usage idea. The image caption also has to include the hashtag #EatPears and tag @Superfreshgrowers.
RIO RICO, AZ - SunFed has been known for 20 years as a premier grower, packer and shipper of fruits and vegetables in the fresh produce industry. As the industry continues to vie for a share of the consumer’s attention and pocketbook, the company is refreshing its current marketing efforts and designs while sticking true to what SunFed does best - flavor.
Inspired by 30’s and 40’s linear art, the Perfect Produce® program communicates a fresh new range of merchandising solutions focusing more on what the consumers want with bright packaging and designs, big bold colors and dynamic shapes and graphics.
“The consumer is drawn to flavor and differentiation, and SunFed offers great quality produce and consistency across the board,” Matt Mandel, VP of Sales and Marketing, tells me. “This new program raises the bar for our sales and marketing efforts moving forward.”
Included under the new design, are 6-count peppers, 2-count eggplant, 1 lb. mini cucumber offerings as well as 2 lb. cucumber pouch bags.
“For the consumer that buys attention with their eyes, our program offers the right ratio of color, imagery and text to drive traffic through produce departments,” Brett Burdsal, SunFed’s Director of Marketing notes.
In addition to tapping into their marketing savvy, the SunFed team has also announced a sponsorship of Olympic hopeful Sofia Arreola. Arreola is a National Track Champion and two time silver medalist at the 2013 World Championships.
She has achieved 27 national titles, and 6 gold medals from her participation in the Junior Pan-American games.
Sofia embodies the healthy, active lifestyle which aligns with SunFed’s own mission to promote and enhance the overall well-being of each consumer through fresh fruits and vegetables.
Congrats to the company on the new innovative marketing campaign. Stay tuned for more news on SunFed’s evolving program and produce offerings.
Welcome to What’s in Store. It's RealSweet Peruvian onion season at Shuman Produce and this season is shaping up to be Shuman's best in years. Quality and volume are both looking outstanding and John Shuman, President and Director of sales, says promotable volumes are now available for its full range of size profiles. Shipments are expected to last through February 2015.
The Peruvian onion has a nearly identical flavor profile to the much-loved Vidalia variety. With shipments already rolling in, Shuman is poised to provide its retail partners with a consistent supply of the sweet onion taste consumers crave. This is key because consumers value the versatility and sweet, mild flavor of sweet onions. The demand for sweet onions is so great, in fact, that it acts as a principle driver of the whole onion category. According to Nielsen's Perishables Group research, nearly 30% of total onion category sales comes from sweet onions.
Shuman shares that sweet onions make great cross promotional centerpieces, especially during the fall months when tailgating is at its peak during football season. Pair them with ease with grill-friendly meats and veggies to please hungry football fans and give sales a boost.
As a proud supporter of National Breast Cancer Awareness month, Shuman's entire line of RealSweet onions - bags, bins, cartons and PLUs – is going pink this October. The grower will also be donating $10,000 to this very worth cause.
Count on Shuman Produce to fill your sweet onion needs all fall and winter long. Thanks for watching What's in Store.
CHESHUNT, ENGLAND – Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has begun a formal criminal investigation into Tesco’s accounting errors.
As we reported previously, Tesco released its 2014/15 Interim Financial Results last week, which showed that the retailer overstated its profits by £263 million (roughly $421.70 million). That error had already led to the suspension of eight senior staff members, as well as the resignation of Chairman Sir Richard Broadbent, while the matter is investigated, though Tesco did state that there was no suspicion of wrongdoing on their parts.
Reuters UK reports that for the SFO to launch a full criminal investigation against a company or individuals it has to be satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe that conduct might involve serious fraud or bribery. Tesco says that it has been "co-operating fully" with the SFO, according to BBC News.
Simon Gompertz, a business correspondent for BBC News, said in an analysis that this is a major blow for Tesco. Those found guilty of fraud can be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison and the company could face unlimited fines, Gompertz states.
Robert Amaee, a partner at law firm Covington & Burling and former head of anti-corruption and head of proceeds of crime at the SFO, told the BBC, “The SFO will no doubt be engaging with the new management to review the scope and focus of Tesco’s ongoing internal investigation, and the steps taken for example in relation to the preservation of documentary evidence, and the interviewing of witnesses, some of whom have already been suspended by the company.”
The process could take years, with the agency taking months to sift through huge quantities of digital data and other evidence, while looking to identify and trace witnesses, according to Reuters. At the end of the process, the investigation could still find nothing criminally amiss.
Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for the latest on this developing investigation.