ARVIN, CA - In business as well as boxing, it’s good to have well-seasoned experts in your corner. Tasteful Selections® knows this and has taken steps to pack its corner of the ring with the best in the biz. The company has named Celeste Porter to its executive management team as Chief Financial Officer.
In her new role, Porter will be responsible for the financial, administrative, and risk management operations of the company, including the reporting of accurate financial results, development of financial and operational strategies and metrics, and the enhancement and monitoring of control systems. Porter will directly oversee the Finance, Information Technology, Accounting, and Human Resources departments within the company.
“We are very eager to have Celeste join our team at Tasteful Selections,” said Nathan Bender, Chief Operating Officer, in a press release. “With her experience and extensive capabilities, Celeste will assist us as we continue to successfully grow our business.”
Porter brings a diverse background to the company, with over 20 years of experience in various capacities. She served as Owner and Principal Consultant for her business, Breakthrough Financial Services, based in Bakersfield, CA, and most recently, Porter served as CFO and Interim Controller for Gazelle Transportation, LLC.
A Certified Management Accountant (CMA), Porter earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Boston University. She is an advocate for automation and has experience with launching full-scale ERP and other systems to sustain scaling operations, strengthen infrastructure, and allow for real-time business insights. Committed to improving her industry and the world around her, Porter is an active member of Women Leaders in Business, which fundraises and works to increase awareness and support for women- and children-centered issues in the community.
“I am excited to partner with the Tasteful Selections’ operations and farming teams to enhance costing methods, integrate financial and operating systems, and provide best-in-class reporting with the use of BI tools and data science,” Porter said.
Congratulations to Celeste! Want more news about executive management changes in our industry? Keep reading AndNowUKnow.
GREEN BAY, WI - Yesterday morning, Shopko announced that it will be liquidating its assets and closing all of its remaining retail locations by June of this year.
“This is not the outcome that we had hoped for when we started our restructuring efforts,” said Russ Steinhorst, Chief Executive Officer, in a recent press release. “We want to thank all of our teammates for their hard work and dedication during their time at Shopko.”
Shopko announced in its release that it was unable to find a buyer for its go-forward business and will not be moving forward with the auction it previously contemplated. Gordon Brothers will oversee the liquidation process that is expected to conclude 10-12 weeks from now. As a result, the retailer will commence an orderly wind-down of its retail operations beginning this week—retail operations that began in Green Bay in 1962.
As of right now, no further details have been disclosed, but AndNowUKnow will keep its eyes on the newswire for the latest.
WENATCHEE, WA - CMI Orchards has announced plans for an impressive retail program that will give produce departments a veritable land of opportunity for holiday promotions.
“We are eager to work with our customers to set up promotions in alignment with key holiday events this summer,” said George Harter, Vice President of Marketing. “We truly feel that this program will positively resonate with shoppers and help drive summer sales.”
According to the press release, the company first introduced its American Dream promotion to retailers at PMA in October, 2018. Intending to “celebrate and inspire” Americans across the country, CMI Orchards created a new apple label to show support of military families, veterans, and patriots.
Opportunities for retailers to support this program and give back to their communities during Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Veteran's Day are coming up—with Veteran's Day in particular aligning with new crop apples in the fall.
“CMI’s eye-catching American Dream apple box can be used to create an impressive billboard display, with a positive, patriotic message that resonates with consumers,” said Harter. “Our dream with this program is two pronged: to honor and give back to those that have served and sacrificed; and to help retailers create excitement in their produce department, tying in to some of America’s most important holidays.”
With a portion of proceeds from the sale of each box returning to causes that support veteran and military groups of the retailer’s choice, the American Dream program is extra important! Harter said the specialty carton can be “packed with any conventional apples CMI sells.”
The company is “proud to honor and celebrate” the service and sacrifices veterans and their families have made and it hopes to continue to get some considerable retail promotions set up and give back to causes that are critical to local communities.
For more fresh produce news, keep reading AndNowUKnow.
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO - It’s a marriage made in ag-tech heaven! SoftBank Group Corp.-backed farming startup, Plenty Inc., has brought on Twitter’s former Chief Financial Officer, Mike Gupta. Filling the same role at Plenty as he did for Twitter, Gupta's hiring is in line with Plenty’s plans for international expansion and making improvements to its vertical growing technology, as reported by Bloomberg.
“It’s not new for me to be in hypergrowth companies that are entering uncharted territory," said Gupta in an interview. "This is a very capital intensive business so having someone who can think about how we raise and deploy capital in the long run will be very important.”
A veteran of the tech industry, Gupta spent about eight years in a variety of roles at Yahoo before serving as Treasurer at gaming company Zynga Inc., helping to lead the company’s initial public offering, according to Bloomberg. Gupta was key in helping Twitter go public in 2013, after which he left for a position at Docker Inc.
Plenty was founded in 2014 and boasts the ability to yield more produce in a given area than conventional farms, using only a fraction of the water. Bloomberg reports that the company’s backers include funds that invest on behalf of Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, and Eric Schmidt, a Director of Alphabet Inc. With a previous $200 million investment from SoftBank and the company’s superior technology, Plenty hopes it will be able to spread its farms across the globe.
Gupta is not the first tech hire that Plenty has brought on. The company also has hired former Directory of Battery Technology, Kurt Kelty and former VP of Engineering, Nick Kalayjian, both from Tesla Inc.
Currently in the process of building a new version of its farms, called Tigris, Co-Founder and CEO of Plenty, Matt Barnard, said the new farm will be capable of producing over 40 times the amount of leafy greens that its current farms are able to grow, all while using less energy. Tigris is planned to roll out later this year.
With 200,000 square feet of indoor space in South San Francisco, the company uses only a small portion of the space for the produce it sells. Most of the facility’s space is used for research and development testing. The company has been selling its food online and in neighborhood grocery stores in the Bay Area since June 1, reported Bloomberg.
Plenty is in a somewhat precarious position, as many companies utilizing similar vertical farming tech proved economically unsustainable and shut down in recent years. As opposed to vertical farms that grow produce on parallel shelves, Plenty sprouts plants horizontally using tall columns. The company reports that its method allows it to more cheaply remove excess heat given off by LED grow lights and reduce energy required to deliver nutrients to the plants.
Currently the company is working on early-stage development in China and is also in discussions with partners and distributors in Abu Dhabi, Japan, and other regions.
Will this investment of tech industry leadership pay off for the farming startup? Keep reading AndNowUKnow for all the updates.
ATLANTA, GA - A true treasure of American ag is coming back to market this spring—Vidalia onions are back as of April 22. This week the Georgia Department of Agriculture and the Vidalia Onion Committee announced that the pack date for the 2019 Vidalia Onion® season is 8 a.m. on Monday, April 22.
“With tremendous consideration after consultation with the Vidalia Advisory Panel, industry experts from the University of Georgia and crop assessments from the Georgia Federal State Inspection Service, I am pleased to announce April 22 as this year’s pack date for the official state vegetable of Georgia, the Vidalia onion,” said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black, in a press release. “For more than two decades, Georgia’s Vidalia onion trademark has garnered global recognition, reaffirming our trust in the Vidalia onions being among the highest-quality in the food industry.”
Available for a limited time each year and hand-cultivated in 20 southeastern Georgia counties by 80 registered growers, Vidalia onions are prized by chefs, produce departments, and laypeople for their sweet, mild flavor.
The Vidalia Onion pack date is, the Vidalia Onion Committee notes, a rite of spring for fans of the vegetable. Each year, the Vidalia Onion Advisory Panel, state agricultural scientists, and the Department of Agriculture determine the pack date based on soil and weather conditions in South Georgia during the growing season to help ensure only the highest-quality onions are shipped to stores across the country. In 2018, 9,356.26 acres of Vidalia onions were hand-planted to be harvested in the forthcoming weeks, according to Troy Bland, chairman of the Vidalia Onion Committee.
And this year, the committee is launching “The Sweet Life”, a new marketing campaign targeting grocery shoppers and aimed at reaching home cooks across the country.
“The Sweet Life builds on our very successful marketing effort over the last two years that helped to raise the profile of the Vidalia onion among food connoisseurs, particularly millennials who set many of today’s consumer trends,” said Bland. “Now we plan to focus on broader category of consumers who like to cook, entertain, and use onions. The goal is to elevate the brand as a signifier of good taste and living well.”
Vidalia onions represent nearly 40 percent of the sweet onion market in the country and are sold in every state.
The Vidalia trademark is owned by the state of Georgia because of the Vidalia Onion Act of 1986. To be considered a Vidalia, the vegetables must be cultivated in the South Georgia soil from a distinctive Granex seed and packed and sold after the official pack date each year, resulting in only the highest-quality onions reaching Vidalia fans each season.
For more fresh produce news, keep reading AndNowUKnow.
WASHINGTON, DC - The United Fresh Produce Association is celebrating its 15th year of recognizing produce and retail excellence. This week, the association announced the top 25 honorees of the 2019 Retail Produce Manager Awards Program. This year’s winners—representing the best of the best produce managers from supermarket banners, commissaries, and independent retail stores across 16 different states and two Canadian provinces—will be recognized at the United Fresh 2019 convention on June 10-12 in Chicago.
“Produce managers are the face of our industry to the consumer. Their creative merchandising and positive approach to customer service directly correlates to the growth of sales and ultimately consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables,” said United Fresh President & CEO Tom Stenzel. “We are grateful to Dole for once again sponsoring this program and for their partnership in recognizing these 25 deserving honorees. I look forward to celebrating our winners this June in Chicago.”
According to a press release, the 2019 Retail Produce Manager Award Winners are:
- Vincente Aguirre, Fort Bliss Commissary, El Paso, TX
- Gregory Barnufsky Jr., Yokes Fresh Markets, Spokane, WA
- Mike Burdi, Metro Ontario Inc., Toronto, ON, Canada
- Jerry Clark II, The Fresh Market, Roanoke, VA
- Cassandra Crone, North State Grocery, Inc., Auburn, CA
- Bobby David, Audubon Market, St. Francisville, LA
- William Denault, Price Chopper Supermarkets, Lenox, MA
- Elaine Fong, Calgary Co-op, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Baryn Hagood-Lund, Safeway Inc., Everett, WA
- Heather Hudgins, MOM's Organic Markets, Whitemarsh, MD
- Edward Jette, Big Y Foods, Easton, MA
- Jason Karaffa, Albrecht's Sentry Foods, Delafield, WI
- Robin Manwaring, Tops Friendly Markets, Pulaski, NY
- Greg Miller, Raley's Family of Fine Stores, Chico, CA
- Michael Rowe, Brookshire’s Grocery Company, Bridgeport, TX
- David Scarlett, Food City/K-VA-T Food Stores, Knoxville, TN
- Martin Sevensky, Weis Markets, Inc., Clarks Summit, PA
- Michael Sockett, Gelson's Markets, Valley Village, CA
- Jimmy Strickland, Harris Teeter, Fayetteville, NC
- Charles Tavacol, Giant Foods, McLean, VA
- Roman Teig, Hy-Vee, Inc., Omaha, NE
- Jason Thompson, Hollywood Markets, Madison Heights, MI
- David Thompson, The Kroger Company, Peachtree City, GA
- Brittany Woodall, Fred Meyer, Bellevue, WA
- Patricia Young, Meijer, Springfield, IL
Since its inception in 2005, the retail produce manager program has recognized those on the front lines of produce, working every day to increase sales and consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables. In its 15-year run, the program, which is sponsored by Dole Food Company this year, has named over 325 retail produce managers from 110 different retail banners. These winners were selected from hundreds of nominations that were submitted by retailers and produce suppliers across our industry. Nominations were then evaluated based on individuals’ efforts to increase produce consumption via merchandising, special displays and promotions, community service, and commitment to customer satisfaction.
“These individuals and the companies that they represent are really putting forward the tremendously positive messages around produce to shoppers everyday,” said Johan Linden, President and CEO of Dole Food Company. “All of us, whether growers, processors, or distributors—the entire supply chain—would not be as successful without their knowledge and expertise at the store level. The United Fresh Retail Produce Manager Awards program is an opportunity for Dole, and all of us as an industry, to show our appreciation and say thank you.”
The 2019 winners and their corporate produce directors will be honored at United Fresh 2019 during the Retail-Foodservice Celebration on June 12. In addition to their awards, five Grand Prize recipients will each receive a $1,000 cash prize.
Who will this year’s Grand Prix winners be? Find out in Chicago for another great United Fresh convention and expo!
For more of the latest produce industry news, stick with us at AndNowUKnow.
SURREY, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA - Walmart has been riding a bit of a high after it reported its better-than-anticipated fourth quarter results, challenging its competitors to “bring it on.” (No, I’m not about to announce that the retailer will be engaging in an epic cheer-off). However, it did recently announce plans to expand its distribution network, furthering its move toward staying at the front of the grocery pack.
In a recent press release, Walmart Canada announced one of its distribution centers is poised for approval by the Surrey Council in British Columbia. These plans have been in action since last July, when the retailer announced that it intended to spend upwards of $175 million on a refrigerated grocery facility.
Proposals for the site list it as a “state-of-the-art automated refrigeration warehouse, which will distribute fresh produce to more than 60 markets throughout British Columbia,” a city report noted.
Features of the site will include energy-efficient LED lighting and intelligent controls that reduce lighting energy consumption by 70%.
Will this new facility be another jewel in Walmart’s grocery crown? AndNowUKnow will continue to report.
ORLANDO, FL - Surrounded by the warmth and soul of those in the produce industry, I wandered the show floor of this year’s Southern Exposure with a happy heart—and a full belly. With so many standout booths and a veritable menagerie of fresh produce, it was nearly impossible to narrow it down to just five picks. Read on to see what stood out to this writer!
DelFrescoPure®'s Living Cube
Have you ever bought lettuce and forgotten about it? I certainly have. I’ve returned three days later to wilted leaves and a heavy heart. But we forgetful shoppers no longer need to worry about such a calamity. DelFrescoPure’s Living Cube features lettuce with the roots still attached; once they’re in your fridge, they won’t wilt! The added benefit of having the roots attached is that you can plant them after you’ve purchased them and continue to watch your lettuce grow!
Ippolito International Bagged Brussels Sprouts
Long gone are the days when people reviled the dreaded Brussels sprout. We’ve ushered in a new era in which the veggie reigns and I’m a huge sucker for Brussels sprouts. Sauté them with bacon and onions and I won’t eat anything else for about a week. Conveniently pre-packaged, these bulbs will look amazing as a produce display and will soon find their way onto consumer's dinner tables. Since shoppers won’t have to worry about wrestling the bulbs off the stalk, they're one step closer to making dinnertime magical.
Red Sun Farm’s Sweetpops
We all know that we must bow down to the snacking gods, and why not present them with Red Sun’s Sweetpops as an offering? Refreshingly sweet and juicy, these little guys pack a huge flavor punch! It’s impossible to stop munching on them as soon as you’ve started. With its sweet-to-acidity ratio, there’s no going back. The see-through packaging lets the consumer peek in at what’s inside—allowing those tomato customers to gear up for the tastebud adventure they are about to embark on. Consumers are sure to find them as enchanting as I did, mark my words!
Highline Mushrooms Top Seal Packaging
Are mushrooms taking center stage in the veggie aisle? They very well could with the help of Highline Mushrooms' package trays. With updated packaging, the latest product from Highline Mushrooms continues to show off the goods on sleek black trays. Seeing those gorgeous mushrooms—some already sliced!—consumers will be hard-pressed to turn away from creating their very-own plant-based meal.
CMI Orchard's Apple Flavors of the World
The Great Wall of China, Macchu Picchu, the Roman Colosseum—all of these have nothing on CMI’s box of apple treasures! CMI is celebrating the homelands of consumers’ top apples, such as Ambrosia Gold®, KIKU®, Kanzi®, Smitten™, Jazz™, Envy®, and Pacific Rose™. Your tastebuds will wind through the homelands of these varieties, such as Italy, Belgium, Canada, and New Zealand. Who knew the produce aisle could become a tourist destination?
Until next year, Southern Exposure!
LOS ALAMITOS, CA - Holiday and celebrate with Frieda’s! The specialty produce company just celebrated Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day last week and is looking forward to Love Your Produce Manager® Day, April 2nd, to show appreciation for all these two teams accomplish. These are opportunities to make eating healthy effortless and enjoyable for every shopper.
“Recognition of your produce and dietitian teams is always important, but having a day that truly acknowledges the value they bring every day builds loyalty,” explained Alex Berkley, Sales Manager. “These teams help create an in-store experience that brings shoppers into your store and keeps them coming back.”
As stated in a press release, statistics shows that freshness and associate friendliness are the main drivers of the shopper experience, scoring a “4.4 and 4.3 respectively, on a 5-point scale according to the Retail Feedback Group’s U.S. Supermarket Experience 2019 report.”
“Going that extra mile for these teams is a great way to ensure that your store becomes the destination for fresh and healthy eating,” said Berkley.
By celebrating your produce heroes and dietitian teams this year, Frieda’s noted, it will create an excellent consumer experience for all!
For more fresh produce news, keep reading AndNowUKnow.
PELION, SC - Much went down at the 2019 Southeast Produce Council’s (SEPC) Southern Exposure. Companies from far and wide traveled to Orlando, Florida, to unveil new products and looks. One such company that unveiled a fresh new look was WP Rawl, which showed off its new leafy green packaging.
“As the leafy greens guide in the produce industry, we pride ourselves in continuing to invest in the leafy greens category by staying in tune with trends,” said Ashley Rawl, Vice President of Sales, Marketing, and Product Development, in a recent press release. “With a fresh new look and creative modern design, we are excited to draw in new consumers to the leafy greens category.”
The complete line of conventional, triple-washed, and ready-to-use leafy greens are turning over a new leaf with this packaging refresh. The press release noted that the traditional Nature’s Greens' brand’s bold, bright colors and nutritional information call outs continue to be the center of the pack’s focus, while also adding a fresh new twist.
The product line that includes collar, kale, mustard, turnip, and a greens blend will now include illustrations of each product’s leaf design. Each leaf is positioned vertically on the package to simulate how the produce grows up from the ground, and the leafy greens inside fill in the color of the leaves from inside the bag.
Keep reading AndNowUKnow for the latest in all things fresh produce.