KANSAS CITY, KS - Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. (AWG), the nation’s largest cooperative food wholesaler to independently owned supermarkets, announced that its Board of Directors has approved a significant investment in advanced warehouse automation at the company’s Gulf Coast Division Support Center in Pearl River, Louisiana, as part of the company's North Star Strategic Plan.

This project is a major step in strengthening operational efficiency, improving service reliability, and enhancing long-term supply chain resilience across AWG’s distribution network. Crucially, this investment will substantially increase capacity to support our members' current and future growth and geographic reach from this high-volume distribution center, all without requiring a major capital building expansion. The new capacity also provides immediate supply chain flexibility and contingency options for AWG’s entire cooperative supply chain network.

The Gulf Coast Division Support Center currently handles over 22 million cases of dry grocery annually using fully manual processes. Increasing operational demands, coupled with challenges like labor retention in manual roles, rising equipment repair and distribution costs, weather-related disruptions, and capacity limitations, all require ongoing future investments. These factors prompted AWG to pursue a more scalable and resilient solution to support continued growth and improve service to the communities our member retailers serve.

To address these challenges, AWG will implement Symbotic’s high-density automation technology across approximately 114,000 square feet of the existing building. Once fully operational, the automated system is expected to handle nearly 19 million cases annually, significantly improving accuracy, reducing product damage, increasing operational consistency, and enabling more efficient inventory management. Furthermore, the cooperative structure ensures the profitability benefits of the automation are delivered directly back to our membership, strengthening both members' retail results and the cooperative’s overall financial health for the future.

AWG completed its first ground-up automated warehouse in Hernando, Mississippi, which opened in 2022. The Gulf Coast Division automation project represents the company’s first retrofit of an existing facility. AWG continually evaluates its operations to ensure it leverages technology that enhances distribution efficiency and member value.

“The Symbotic automation solution directly addresses supply chain risks by consolidating the majority of our Gulf Coast Division Support Center grocery volume into a highly automated environment. This will reduce labor dependency, damage and repair costs, and create a safer, more resilient operation. Most importantly, it allows us to grow without the expense of building additional space, driving long-term capital savings while protecting service to our members,” said Richard Kearns, AWG’s Executive Vice President, Distribution & Logistics, in the recent release.

“This is an exciting investment that is part of our North Star Strategic Plan. By increasing automation at the Gulf Coast Division Support Center, we add immediate benefits to our members' retail results through a strengthened supply chain while also enhancing our division support center financial results benefiting all cooperative member owners. This investment expands our capacity to grow, lowers our cost structure for the future, and delivers stable financial returns that go back to our member owners as a result of this investment,” said Dan Funk, AWG’s President and CEO.

Construction and facility preparation are scheduled to begin in early 2027, followed by installation, testing, and system integration. AWG anticipates the automation platform will go live in the fourth quarter of 2027, subject to final engineering and commissioning timelines.

WASHINGTON, DC - The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) has released its 2026 U.S. Public Policy Agenda, a comprehensive framework for advancing the fresh produce and floral industry's priorities across six critical areas at a time of significant legislative and regulatory activity in Washington.

"Every one of these priorities is grounded in what our members tell us they need to grow, compete, and continue feeding families across America and around the world, this is our Fight for Fresh" said Cathy Burns, CEO of IFPA, in the recent release. "I am committed to IFPA being the most effective advocate for the fresh produce and floral industry with policymakers and regulators in D.C., the Administration, and wherever decisions are being made that affect our members' livelihoods."

IFPA’s 2026 Policy Agenda features six pillars that address the full breadth of the fresh supply chain from the fields where produce is grown to the tables where it is consumed.

The six pillars are:

• Workforce Stability: Modernizing agricultural worker programs, defending regulatory reforms, and improving H-2A and H-2B visa access for the specialty crop sector.
• Nutrition and Health: Protecting and expanding fruits and vegetables access in WIC, SNAP, and school meal programs, advancing produce prescriptions in government health systems, and making fruits and vegetables eligible in HSAs and FSAs.
• Producer Profitability: Championing Farm Bill reauthorization, better risk management tools, and increased research investment in biologicals, precision agriculture, and mechanization.
• Trade: Advocating for science-based trade policies and tariff exemptions for fresh, perishable products to protect year-round consumer access to affordable fruits, vegetables, and florals.
• Supply Chain Resilience: Countering unworkable packaging bans, supporting members through EPR requirements, and advancing the Supply Chain of the Future initiative.
• Food Safety Modernization: Strengthening FDA's Human Foods Program, sustaining the federal traceability rule, and securing funding for state produce safety programs.

"This policy agenda is our roadmap for the year, and the IFPA Washington Conference in June is one of the most important places where we put it into action," said Alexis Taylor, Chief Global Policy Officer at IFPA. "When our members come to D.C., they bring with them the real-world impact of these issues, from labor shortages in the field to trade disruptions at the border. That direct engagement with lawmakers is what turns priorities into policy, and this agenda channels the momentum our members have built into sustained policy impact.”

IFPA will host a webinar on Thursday, April 16, 2026, from 12:00–12:45 p.m. ET to brief members and stakeholders on the 2026 U.S. policy agenda. The session will highlight the key legislative and regulatory issues shaping the year ahead and how IFPA's advocacy efforts align with the needs of the fresh supply chain. Register at freshproduce.com/advocacy/2026-policy-priorities-webinar.

The full 2026 U.S. Public Policy Agenda is available at freshproduce.com.

MIAMI, FL - When Crystal Valley Foods sought to celebrate their 30th anniversary with a redesigned website and refreshed brand, the Miami, FL-based specialty produce pioneer tapped the food branding and marketing experts at Moxxy.

The new Crystal Valley Foods website at www.crystalvalleyfoods.com launched in 2025, and was recently selected as a winner of Graphic Design USA’s Digital Design Awards—an accolade that fewer than 10% of the 3,000 entrants received.

“Moxxy has created award-winning work for us in the past,” said Katiana Valdes, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Crystal Valley Foods, in the recent release. “We love our new website! So, we aren’t surprised it captured the interest of the judges at GDUSA. It’s beautiful, easy to navigate, does a great job presenting our wide variety of specialty produce, and clearly demonstrates the value Crystal Valley Foods provides.”

Moxxy also updated the Crystal Valley Foods logo, retaining equity in their highly recognized mountain-to-valley sunrise landscape scene, by applying a simplified, modern design and fresh, contemporary color palette. Moxxy also streamlined the logo’s visual hierarchy by featuring the Crystal Valley name in black, allowing it to take prominence and draw attention.

“Reaching our 30-year milestone was a proud moment for our team, yet humbling when you think about what it took to achieve that longevity and growth,” said Jay Rodriguez, CEO & Founder of Crystal Valley Foods. “In this challenging industry, we keep evolving and taking care of our customers. Our new brand look is a great representation of our bold, bright future, with a nod to our humble history.”

The updated website features gorgeous graphics, including header and product images Moxxy captured during a custom photoshoot. The site also integrates intuitive backend technology that allows Crystal Valley Foods to make their own content updates—such as a custom homepage popup message and easy-to-maintain recipe section.

One of the new website’s greatest feats was developing an interface that showcased Crystal Valley Foods’ extensive product line without overwhelming visitors or requiring multiple clicks to get to relevant information. With more than 50 products ranging from asparagus and baby vegetables to tropical fruits and heirloom tomatoes, the challenge for Moxxy was to structure the website navigation to help visitors see all products and categories at a glance.

The new website prioritizes user experience by featuring a drop-down menu that allows all products to be viewed at once. Products are also sub-grouped into categories that empower visitors to learn about an entire category or specific individual fruits and vegetables. The “Our Favorites” section highlights some of Crystal Valley Foods’ top offerings. Overall, visitors have a lot of choices and visual cues that help them navigate the product portfolio with ease.

“I’m so happy with the new logo and website,” says Karen Nardozza, CEO at Moxxy. “Not because it won an award, although that’s fun too, but because I’m confident these marketing tools are providing value to Crystal Valley and contributing towards achieving their goals.”

CALIFORNIA - The highly anticipated California cherry season is making an early arrival this year, creating unique timing for retail programs, ad planning, and dynamic destinations. As Brianna Shales, Marketing Director, tells me, it all hinges on close communication throughout the orchard and sales desks, along with retail partners.

“A very warm March is bringing the California start significantly ahead of normal. Early varieties will begin in mid-April, and there will be plenty of high-quality cherries by May 8th. Daily high temperature records were broken, but in the 80s and not crop-damaging,” Brianna tells me. “The warmth sped up growth and maturity. It also caused compression, so we'll see harvest overlapping in regions. We want to stay in close communication with field updates as they come in and help retailers prepare for the unique timing of the season ahead by setting merchandising and promotion plans that align with the crop.”

Stemilt is excited about the quality and what the team is seeing on the tree so far, and Brianna reminds me that quality cherries drive repeat purchases to help retailers grow their cherry sales.

“We expect promotable volumes from May 8 to May 28, with a quick taper down on the crop after that. Retailers are well-positioned to hit both the Mother's Day and Memorial Day holidays with California cherries, which rarely happens,” she emphasizes.

As we get closer to the season kick-off, ANUK will bring you more on the crop coming down the supply chain and all the opportunities therein!

CALIFORNIA - Summer tastes better in the moonlight. This phrase is more than a tagline—it’s an evocation, bringing sensory stonefruit richness, depth, and artfulness rarely attributed to a produce company. But Moonlight Companies is not just a produce operation—they have created a category all their own, setting a new benchmark for what’s possible when imagination meets execution for peaches, plums, nectarines, and pluots. Join us for a look at To The Moon and Back.

"Inspired by the beloved phrase 'I love you to the moon and back,' this campaign personifies a program designed to drive real category and market share growth," Brett Britz, Vice President of Sales, shares with me. "Beginning in April, retailers get an early-season four-week jumpstart, helping customers capture early demand and build momentum in the category right out of the gate." ​

This spring, Moonlight launches its To the Moon and Back campaign, showcasing the company’s category leadership while inspiring both retail partners and consumers with a nostalgic yet modern appeal.

To the Moon and Back leans into delicious summer vibes, moonrise, blending family-friendly moments with light, grown-up humor to create broad emotional appeal.

Moonlight masterfully blends these elements, creating an inclusive space through digital design, communications, and consumer engagement.

The result is more than a toolkit for retail partners—it’s a path to deepened loyalty throughout the stonefruit category.

Through a combination of engaging social content and eye-catching in-store displays, the campaign brings the fun, sweetness, and joy of summer to life in a way that feels distinctly Moonlight.

Consumers don’t choose Moonlight solely for its fruit. Summer tastes better in the moonlight because it’s an experience—and experiences are always remembered.