MEXICO - Building a calendar for table grape promotions combined with early planning can help ensure a seamless program through spring and into summer—especially with a partner like Giumarra Companies. As Fernando Soberanes, Vice President of Sales, Long Beach, shares, the team expects to supply excellent quality with promotional Mexican grape volumes in June.

“Overall, the current Mexican grape crop estimate is slightly lighter and earlier than last year. We will begin first arrivals around May 13,” Fernando shares. “The better we can anticipate volumes, merchandising needs, and promotional activities ahead of time, the more effectively we can cater to the needs of our retail and foodservice customers as a company. We suggest and encourage heavy grape promotions during the entire month of June!”

For that promotional calendar, here is what we can expect from Giumarra Companies as the season gets underway:

• Early Sweet™: available starting 5/13; promotional volumes 5/17–6/21
• ARRA Honey Pop™: available starting 5/20; promotional volumes 5/27–6/21
• ARRA Sugar Drop™: available starting 5/20; promotional volumes 5/27–6/21
• Flame Seedless: available starting 5/20; promotional volumes 5/27–6/14
• ARRA Passion Fire™: available starting 6/3; promotional volumes 6/10–7/5
• Summer Royal: available starting 5/27; promotional volumes 6/3–6/21

Currently sourcing table grapes from the state of Sonora, Mexico, Giumarra plans to have Mexican grape availability through the end of June.

“Our Mexican grape volume continues to increase, especially for our ARRA Passion Fire red seedless and ARRA Honey Pop green seedless premium varieties. All grapes are grown by the Salazar family of Videxport, our grower partner for more than three decades,” Fernando details. “Our Mexican grapes are Fair Trade Certified™ by Fair Trade USA and Giumarra is a Fair Trade Certified importer.”

Fernando notes that Giumarra works with additional Mexican grape growers to cover organics and other varieties not produced by Videxport.

As a component of its strategy to boost sales of Mexican grapes for retail partners, Giumarra provides comprehensive merchandising assistance, which includes point-of-sale materials showcasing the Salazar family.

Kellee Harris, Vice President, Retail Merchandising Services, notes that merchandising teams will regularly be in stores for key customers throughout the season, ensuring displays are fully replenished and set with educational signage where appropriate.

“Every retailer has a merchandising formula that works for its store layout and shopper demographics, and our goal is to offer solutions within their existing framework that help drive sales,” she says. “Depending on the retailer, this can include flavor information and powerful nutrition-focused messaging, as well as grower stories.”

Meeting the needs of its customers is an area where Giumarra Companies thrives, and that includes keeping customers informed of any fluctuations in the market to help all parties manage expectations and strategies.

“The challenge for our industry remains the same. Only 25 percent of the total volume comes in May, and the remaining 75 percent comes in June. It really is a race to the finish line before grapes get started out of the San Joaquin Valley in California,” Fernando concludes.

As spring creates more opportunities across the fresh produce department, keep checking back with AndNowUKnow for the premium categories that drive sales increases and success.

BETHESDA, MD - InReach, a Sodexo company offering multi-market convenience solutions, recently announced the acquisition of Legend Food Service’s Linthicum Heights, Maryland, branch.

"We're thrilled to extend a warm welcome to the Legend Food Service team," said Ken Sullivan, President of InReach. "Their addition brings significant strength to our presence in the DMV region, bolstering our expansion efforts in this dynamic market. With their expertise, we're confident in our ability to reach our revenue target of $500 million. The Legend team's prowess will be instrumental in shaping our strategic approach within this market."

According to a press release, this addition will strengthen the InReach footprint in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia markets.

It will add approximately 35 additional employees while offering micro-markets, vending, pantry, office coffee, water, and fresh food.

"The integration of Legend Food Service amplifies our overarching food transformation agenda," said Husein Kitabwalla, Chief Executive Officer of Food Transformation, Sodexo North America. "This recent acquisition aligns strategically with our prior endeavors, fortifying our service capabilities, and extending our market reach across the U.S. Leveraging a proficient team renowned for their commitment to service excellence, Legend seamlessly enhances Sodexo's diverse portfolio of offerings, driving our ongoing journey of innovation."

In this year alone, InReach has expanded its portfolio through the strategic acquisition of Five Star Food Services and K&R Vending Services.

For additional comments, click here.

AndNowUKnow will continue to cover the latest in foodservice updates like this.

WASHINGTON, DC - With the launch of the Federal Plastics Registry in Canada, many within our business are wondering what is necessary to do to prepare. International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) already alerted its members to the development of the registry and issues this message to the industry at large.

“The Federal Registry is a broad sweeping approach to gather information about what plastics are entering the market,” said IFPA Chief Science Officer, Max Teplitski. “Because of this, we are strongly recommending our members connect with their legal counsel in order to determine whether they are required to provide information for the registry and what information that would be.”

According to a press release, the registry is designed to help lawmakers and regulators understand the plastic entering the Canadian market. It will require input from businesses across the supply chain whose products enter the Canadian market.

The notice stated that the responsible groups include:

• Manufacturers and importers of plastic resins
• Producers of plastic products
• Generators of packaging and plastic product waste
• Service Providers like waste collections, disposal businesses and more

“This is another step in the growing chorus of changes coming from national and international governing bodies to ban or regulate plastics,” added Teplitski. “While limiting waste from single-use plastic is a cause we can all support, IFPA continues to advocate that regulators prioritize food safety, food quality, and reducing food loss and waste when regulating plastic packaging. In many cases, these new regulations have no exemptions for ready-to-eat products to utilize a diversity of materials required to honor the trust of consumers in the safety of the most nutritious products on supermarket shelves. We maintain that there will be a significant impact on global health, global trade, and increase in food waste should governments continue to pursue packaging bans without an alternative on the market.”

Members of the industry looking for more information can click here.

We'll keep you in the loop on which plastic regulations are affecting our industry, so stay tuned to ANUK.

BREWSTER, WA - Are cherries a big winner in your produce department? Then I have some great news for you! Honeybear Brands® announced it will begin shipping cherries from Washington to retailers ahead of normal. Thanks to an earlier bloom, dark sweets will be in market in early June quickly followed by Rainiers.

“Cherry sales are critical for successful summertime produce sales. Our expanded capabilities in Washington allows us to provide cherries at strong volumes and deliver a premier cherry eating experience for our retail partners’ consumers,” said Don Roper, Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “A great cherry eating experience coupled with the right promotional activity sets the tone for summer cherry sell through and produce department success. So far, Mother Nature has us profiled for an early start and strong season.”

Honeybear is partnering with retail customers for key summer promotions and sales events to support shopper demand for this highly anticipated sweet and juicy fruit, a press release stated. Buyers will be well positioned to offer these coveted summertime snacks, matching promotions to holiday time frames.

Retailers can expect to receive packed-to-order fresh fruit handled with the precision and white glove service Honeybear prides itself on. With flexible packing capabilities at its expanded cherry packing facility in Pateros, Washington, Honeybear can accommodate nearly all retailer packaging configurations, the release noted.

For more updates like this, keep coming back to ANUK.

SANTA PAULA, CA - Less than a week ago, we reported on Limoneira completing Phase 2 of its latest venture, Harvest at Limoneira, a master-planned community in Santa Paula. Recent news from the company stated that the proposal brought forward by its real estate development joint venture with The Lewis Group of Companies to increase the number of entitled lots at Harvest at Limoneira from 1,500 dwelling units to 2,050 dwelling units was approved.

“We appreciate the Santa Paula City Council’s continued support of what we are trying to achieve at Harvest and believe their approval to increase the total number of units speaks to the excellent value our development project brings to the city,” remarked Harold Edwards, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We honor our tradition of being great stewards, not only to the land we cultivate but also to our community and believe this is the reason we have been one of only two real estate development projects in Ventura County to receive approval via a SOAR vote. We plan to provide an update to our anticipated cash flow projections for Harvest at Limoneira when we release our second quarter financial results in June.”

A press release noted that the 550-unit increase will provide 250 additional single family for-sale homesites within Phase 3 of Harvest.

In partnership with Lewis, Limoneira plans to construct 300 multi-family rental homes on a mixed-use portion of the project.

As we reported before, Harvest at Limoneira is a well-balanced, comprehensively designed community providing a range of new housing options near the Pacific Ocean.

ANUK will be here to share the latest on ventures within the produce business.

SANTA BARBARA, CA - The latest launch from Apeel Sciences is designed to enhance the fresh produce supply chain even further. Dubbed "The Apeel Leverage," the initiative wields Apeel’s innovative, plant-based technology to transform operational efficiencies, expand market reach, and maximize both product quality and retail performance. The initiative kicks off with its first of four pillars, “Expand Offerings with Confidence.”

"We’ve listened to our customers and have responded by making our innovations integrate seamlessly into existing operations while also enhancing them significantly,” said Denise Junqueiro, Vice President, Commercial and Marketing. “'The Apeel Leverage' is our commitment to enhancing the produce supply chain in a more sustainable way, empowering our partners with tools that reduce their shrink, extend produce freshness with confidence for those trickier markets, and ultimately improve their economic outcomes."

By extending the freshness of produce, Apeel enables suppliers and retailers to deliver products to market in optimal condition, enhancing the seasonality of offerings and maintaining superior quality upon arrival. A press release explained that this capability significantly reduces spoilage and the need for overpacking, helping minimize waste and optimize operations while ensuring products meet market demands with consistency and high quality.

"As we roll out 'The Apeel Leverage', our goal is to communicate how we can support produce industry supply chains, making sustainable practices easier to adopt without additional cost affecting our customers’ bottom line," Junqueiro added. "By partnering with us, our customers are experiencing cost reductions in their supply chain while increasing their sustainability initiatives. We’re passionate about delivering solutions that not only benefit our direct partners but also create ripple effects that positively impact the entire agricultural sector and the environment."

This first pillar is a cornerstone of "The Apeel Leverage" campaign, which will include additional focuses to be unveiled in subsequent announcements. Each pillar of the campaign is designed to address specific challenges within the produce supply chain, ensuring Apeel's partners can leverage cutting-edge technology to achieve remarkable results.

To learn more about the Apeel Leverage, click here, and stick with ANUK for more produce news.