FRESNO, CA - Summertime is synonymous with stonefruit, and Trinity Fruit Company’s strong portfolio keeps retailers well-prepared to answer consumer demand. The company is set for a strong season, with exceptional flavor and sizes across apricots, plums, nectarines, and specialty varieties, supported by coordinated in-store displays, seasonal promotions, and tailored point-of-sale support.

“This year, we are leaning into our Snack the Sweet Side of Healthy campaign, highlighting the importance of summer fruit and its many health benefits—positioning it as the ultimate summer snack,” shared Angela Hernandez, Vice President of Marketing. “We have POS materials available for all commodities, with the goal of keeping retailers and shoppers educated and engaged around healthy snacking choices.”

In addition, Trinity Fruit Company partnered with the Breast Cancer Research Foundation® (BCRF), the largest private funder of breast cancer research—and metastatic research—in the world, for its Peaches for Pink campaign.

“This program features a 2 lb pouch bag, display bins, and merchandising materials designed to raise breast cancer awareness while promoting peaches as one of the best sweet and healthy summer snacks,” Angela noted.

Beyond Peaches for Pink, Trinity continues to build out additional stonefruit programming across the season to drive sustained momentum at retail. To learn more about this initiative and BCRF’s work, visit bcrf.org.

“Our goal is to keep stonefruit top-of-mind for shoppers throughout the summer by creating consistent visibility, strong merchandising, and engaging programs that highlight freshness, flavor, and versatility across the entire category,” Angela concluded. “Let’s snack healthy together!”

Keep checking back with AndNowUKnow for more updates on stonefruit.

WENATCHEE, WA - CMI Orchards has released its first annual Impact Report, Building a Planet Positive™ Future, marking a significant milestone in the company’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and regenerative agriculture.

The 50-page report provides a comprehensive look at CMI’s environmental progress and long-term vision for sustainability and regenerative agriculture. Designed for transparency and accessibility, the report outlines measurable progress while offering a deeper understanding of how CMI is working to create a more resilient food system.

“CMI Orchards is taking meaningful steps toward building a stronger, more resilient, and sustainable business,” said Bob Mast, President, in the recent release. “I am proud to present our first annual Impact Report, highlighting our leadership in sustainability and regenerative agriculture. Together, we are shaping a company that is not only successful today but prepared to thrive for generations to come.”

Key highlights include:

• 12 ambitious sustainability goals, spanning three key pillars: regenerative agriculture, carbon and emissions, and education and communication. These goals, with target years ranging from 2025 to 2030, include sequestering 2 million metric tons of CO2e by 2030, achieving 25% of nitrogen needs from natural materials by 2028, and developing research to improve soil biodiversity and micronutrient density in fruit.
• A spotlight on The Soil Center®, CMI Orchards, and Royal Family Farming partnership focused on upcycling waste into soil amendments. Since 2022, The Soil Center® has sequestered over 1 million mtCO2e, generating carbon credits to sell to partners as insets.
• Overview of CMI’s sustainability practices across orchards, warehouses, and packaging, as well as its ongoing investments in local communities and partnerships throughout its supply chain.
• CMI’s 2025 greenhouse gas inventory, which, for the first time, includes several Scope 3 categories, an important step in delivering a more complete and transparent view of the company’s environmental footprint.

“This first annual Impact Report represents an important milestone in our sustainability journey, highlighting how far we’ve come and where we’re headed next,” said Rose Vejvoda, Sustainability Manager. “Over the past year, we’ve challenged ourselves to think bigger, act bolder, and pursue ambitious goals that we believe can help move the produce industry toward a more sustainable future. We are excited to share this work and invite others to dig in.”

CMI SOARS serves as the company’s central platform and portal for sustainability, enabling retail partners to source regeneratively grown fruit, invest in carbon offset projects, strengthen supply chains, reduce emissions, and engage eco-conscious consumers through verified, data-driven action.

To access the full report, visit: https://www.cmisoars.com/impact-reports.

And for more information on CMI’s sustainability program, visit www.cmisoars.com.

UNITED STATES - Storytelling is something that we do in our daily lives; it is the way we understand the spaces we navigate and the decisions we make.

In part one of this series with Mary Heslep, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development, for Ten Acre Marketing, we explored how storytelling in the fresh produce industry goes far beyond marketing, arguing that the most impactful brands are the ones that uncover and authentically communicate the unique moments, values, and decisions that define who they are. In this next feature, Mary dives into the pitfalls of produce marketing and how to find our way back to the light.

“We are our own worst enemies. No, we’re not at war, but we are in competition for consumer attention, and most of us are losing,” Mary begins. “The starting point is to wade ourselves out of the sea of sameness. It’s easy to produce marketing and packaging that appeals to your personal style preferences. It is even easier to ask AI to do the heavy lifting, ideation, and execution in the creation of these assets. Make something with our logo, use all the necessary certifications and codes, and get it on the shelf: STAT!”

But, as Mary explains, this rushed approach perpetuates the sea of sameness—an environment where multiple packages start to blend in on the shelf or in your social media feed because they all look the same: same colors, same fonts, same product.

“AI-generated creative uses existing visual points of reference to deliver what you’re asking for: a logo, a packaging design, a social media ad. It cannot differentiate unless you tell it what should be different. It does not think; it produces,” Mary describes. “For this reason, human creative professionals become the heart, soul, and thought leadership that controls such tools—rather than letting the tools dissolve our differentiation into gray matter, into a message that feels tone deaf and a mere echo of who and what a brand is. Creative professionals can use their visual storytelling training to develop logos, packaging, and advertising that is specific to an audience, creates an emotional connection, and delivers on a brand promise, in spades. And these elusive left-brained pros are still very much in business.”

Sometimes the horizon is hard to discern, especially with all the messaging that bombards us throughout our marketing calendars.

“This spring, while the industry was attending SWIPE, SEPC Southern Exposure, and Viva Fresh, some were also walking the CPG aisles at Expo West, seeking inspiration from center-store brands. And others were attending SXSW to learn the latest consumer and retail trends and where technology and culture are driving consumerism. It’s important to gain outside perspectives to freshen up stale marketing, but Expo West and SXSW won't cut it,” Mary lays out. “For the produce industry to be truly competitive, we need to be willing to take risks within our own category. An uncertain financial environment and geopolitics can create a perfect storm in which staying the course is the safest course, weathering the sea of sameness for another season. I believe this is the exact environment in which we should do the opposite: take risks that will propel us forward.”

Mary then sets us up for a momentum shift.

“After decades of borrowing brand competitors’ colors, graphics, and personalities, it’s time we, as an industry, took a bold new approach to food branding and marketing. An approach that does not try to be center store. But, an approach that will elevate produce as a well-rounded food product that no other department can compete with,” Mary expresses. “And it will be the creative humans, invested in the future of the industry, who will lead the charge into uncharted brand territory.”

Will you follow?

Stay tuned for the path ahead in the next story in our series with Mary Heslep.

OKEMOS, MI - The 2026 Michigan asparagus season is beginning to take shape, with harvest now underway across the state and pacing influenced by recent weather conditions. As fresh volume begins to build and peak availability nears, the focus shifts to connecting with consumers and encouraging seasonal purchases.

To help drive demand during this limited window, the Michigan Asparagus Advisory Board (MAAB) is launching a robust, multi-channel marketing strategy designed to drive awareness and demand. The campaign includes a mix of traditional and digital tactics such as trade advertising, social influencer partnerships, recipe development, video content, retail promotions, and CTV advertising—ensuring the message reaches consumers across a wide range of demographics.

“Our goal is to meet consumers at key touchpoints—from social media to streaming platforms and beyond,” said Jamie Clover Adams, Executive Director of MAAB, in the recent release. “As the nation’s leading asparagus producer, we are focused on building a stronger, more engaged customer base that sees Michigan asparagus as an essential part of everyday meals.”

This year’s enhanced social media strategy will deliver a steady stream of engaging content, including fun facts, cooking tips, giveaways, and a stronger emphasis on video to connect with younger audiences. Influencer partnerships will span key lifestyle categories such as motherhood, farming, and dietetics, collectively reaching a broad and highly engaged audience.

In addition, new recipes and videos will highlight the versatility, flavor, and freshness of Michigan asparagus showcasing how it can elevate everything from quick snacks to complete meals as a natural complement to everyday dining.

To further expand reach, a 15-second commercial will air through MNTN, a platform that distributes advertising across more than 150 premium streaming networks. This effort is designed to drive in-store traffic in both established and emerging markets while increasing awareness that Michigan asparagus is in season and ready for purchase. Target audiences will include health-conscious consumers and families looking for fresh, nutritious meal solutions.

“In an ever-changing marketplace, one thing remains constant: Michigan asparagus offers retailers a unique opportunity to promote a ‘locally grown, locally sold’ message during its limited eight-week season,” said Sarah Greiner, MAAB Chair. “Through strong retail partnerships, we’re confident we can continue to grow market share and reinforce that Michigan asparagus belongs on every grocery list.”

Retailers are encouraged to contact MAAB to access point-of-sale (POS) materials that support in-store promotions. These tools are part of a comprehensive strategy to boost visibility and drive sales both at retail and across digital channels.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - GrubMarket, the AI-powered technology enabler and digital transformer of the American food supply chain industry, as well as one of the largest private food eCommerce companies globally, announced the Spring 2026 product release for its software suite, the industry's only fully integrated technology platform spanning ERP, AI, and eCommerce. This release introduces significant enhancements across WholesaleWare, Orders IO, and AI Orders, delivering new capabilities designed to help restaurant and foodservice distributors and produce wholesalers improve efficiency, elevate customer service, and drive profitability. All features are now available to both new and existing customers.

Key Highlights of the Spring 2026 Release

• WholesaleWare
  • Automated Work Orders: Streamlines repacking and processing workflows with automated creation and management of work orders, including real-time inventory and cost updates.
  • New Price Groups: Enables flexible, rule-based pricing segmentation with support for item- and category-level overrides, enhancing existing pricing capabilities, including customer-specific pricing and premium pricing for smaller units of measure.
  • Automated FIFO Lot Allocation: Gives users the option to automatically allocate lots at shipment, common for just-in-time purchasing operations, in addition to pre-allocating lots and scanning lots to pick.
  • Expanded EDI Integrations: New integrations with Produce Alliance and Restaurant365 enable seamless, automated order processing.
  • New Reports: Empower the team with new, actionable reports such as purchasing guides, route summaries, and charge insights for accounting teams.
  • Platform Enhancements: Includes notable improvements across sales orders, drop ship orders, inventory management, lot tracking, cost management, loads, and accounting.
• AI Orders
  • Multi-Language Order Processing: AI Orders now supports multi-language inbound orders, to better support the diverse customer bases that distributors serve.
  • Match Confidence Indicators: Improves order review efficiency with visual cues representing the AI's confidence in product and unit of measure matches.
  • Customer Product Code Recognition: In addition to reading product names and descriptions, AI Orders now understands customer-specific product codes, streamlining orders for large retailers and foodservice contracts, and enabling EDI workflows without requiring integration.
  • Customer-Specific AI Prompts: Allows tailored AI training for individual customers and their unique order formats.
  • Enterprise Dictionary: Introduces configuration to help AI Orders interpret specialized terminology used by a company and its customer base.
  • Additional Enhancements: Includes configurable product matching logic, enhanced UI displays, and improvements to historical order analysis.
• eCommerce Platform (Orders IO)
  • Automatic Product Suggestions: Increases order value through dynamic, customer-specific upsell recommendations.
  • Advanced Delivery Management: Provides granular control over delivery scheduling with product- and customer-specific rules, along with built-in management of holidays and non-delivery days.
  • Order Guide Tagging: Simplifies order guide management with customizable tags, such as those for seasonal menus.
  • Streamlined Customer Onboarding: Introduces an improved workflow with automated welcome communications providing access to the online ordering platform and mobile ordering apps.
  • User Experience Improvements: Enhancements across customer chat, product search, supplier portal, pricing management, and catalog browsing.

"GrubMarket's Spring 2026 Release represents a major step forward across our ERP, AI, and eCommerce platforms," said Mike Xu, CEO of GrubMarket, in the recent release. "These innovations reflect our commitment to equipping customers with powerful, AI-driven tools that unlock new efficiencies and elevate operational performance. We are proud to continue advancing our mission of driving technological innovation across the food supply chain as the only provider of fully integrated ERP, eCommerce, and AI solutions for our industry."

"Driven by our ongoing commitment to help our customers become more effective in their operations and more successful in the market, we built this release around the most important challenges and opportunities that they shared with us," said Genevieve Wang, Chief Software Product Officer. "We combined those insights with our deep technical expertise—particularly in AI—as their trusted technology partner to deliver powerful solutions that deliver immediate, positive impact to their businesses. This is a major release for us, and we are incredibly proud of what our teams have delivered."

As foodservice distributors and produce wholesalers face increasing operational complexity and intensifying competition, GrubMarket continues to advance its software platforms to meet the industry's evolving needs. The company's solutions are built on a modern technology infrastructure, offering customers depth of functionality paired with world-class user experiences and intuitive design. Customers can adopt the capabilities that best fit their business needs today and expand over time as they grow. As a technology partner, GrubMarket ensures that customers gain ongoing access to the latest innovations, purpose-built for the unique needs of food wholesale and distribution.

This Spring 2026 Release equips GrubMarket software users with solutions to reduce manual effort, improve operational accuracy, and achieve greater profitability across their businesses. To learn more about GrubMarket software and its transformative capabilities, visit here.

SALINAS, CA - Church Brothers Farms has named Jeff Mendelsohn as Director of Foodservice Sales, further strengthening the company’s leadership team and strategic focus on foodservice distribution and national accounts.

In his new role, Mendelsohn will focus on supporting Church Brothers’ broadline distributor business. He will also help lead the company’s regional sales team and support the continued growth of national account relationships.

Mendelsohn brings nearly 20 years of experience in the foodservice industry, including more than a decade on the grower-shipper side of the business. Most recently, he worked directly with regional and national chain accounts while representing a variety of produce brands and maintaining relationships with both national broadline distributors and regional independent produce distributors.

“Jeff has a strong combination of foodservice expertise, customer relationships, and deep roots here in the Salinas Valley,” said Jeff Church, Chief Operating Officer at Church Brothers Farms, in the recent release. “He understands the distributor landscape, he understands the operator side of the business, and he understands the people behind this industry. We’re excited to have him join the Church Brothers team as we continue to grow.”

A third-generation Salinas Valley resident, Mendelsohn’s family has longstanding ties to the region’s agriculture industry as his maternal grandfather, Jim Panziera, was a prominent lettuce and artichoke grower. In addition to his sales and business development experience, Mendelsohn previously served as Managing Editor of Coastal Grower Magazine and remains active in covering the local agriculture industry and community through his writing. He graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in Business and Marketing.

“Church Brothers has built an impressive reputation across the industry, not only for quality products and innovation, but for the people and culture behind the business,” said Mendelsohn. “I’m looking forward to hitting the ground running and helping build on the strong foodservice foundation here.”

Outside of work, Mendelsohn is an avid sports fan and father of three children.