SALINAS, CA - Taylor Farms, the leading global producer of ready-to-eat salads and healthy fresh foods, has announced the launch of Taylor Farms ZERO™, a platform designed to meet the growing consumer demand for seed-oil-free products.

Taylor Farms ZERO™ products do not contain seed oils, including soybean or canola. They are made with dressings, dips, and ingredients that use alternative oils such as olive and avocado oil.

“Produce consumers are asking for more alternative dressing and dip options, along with greater ingredient transparency,” said Bryan Jaynes, Senior Vice President of Product, in the recent release. “As consumers are increasingly discerning and seeking specific food attributes, this demand is driving the category forward, and we’re committed to empowering them with more choices.”

Taylor Farms ZERO™ products include:

• Taylor Farms ZERO™ Seed-Oil-Free Aged Parmesan Salad Kit – baby greens, cheese, and garlic crouton crumbles made with avocado oil, shaved aged parmesan cheese, and cheese and pepper vinaigrette made with olive oil.
• Taylor Farms ZERO™ Seed-Oil-Free Italian Chopped Salad Kit – romaine lettuce, green and red cabbage, kale, carrots, green onion, cheese, and garlic crouton crumbles made with avocado oil, shaved aged parmesan, and Italian vinaigrette made with olive oil. This salad contains zero grams of added sugar.
• Taylor Farms ZERO™ Seed-Oil-Free Tropical Crunch Chopped Salad Kit – romaine lettuce, radicchio, island-style crouton crumbles made with avocado oil, roasted diced almonds, diced banana bits, and creamy tropical dressing made with olive oil.
• Taylor Farms ZERO™ Seed-Oil-Free Veggies & Dip Snack Pack – carrots, tomatoes, broccoli with cheesy parmesan dip made with olive oil.

“By using avocado oil with its mild nutty flavor and olive oil with its distinctive full-bodied appeal, we are incorporating new non-seed-oil ingredients for consumers to enjoy,” added Charis Neves, Vice President of Innovation and Product.

Taylor Farms ZERO™ products are available nationwide now, with additional seed-oil-free products expected to launch in the coming months.

ANDERSON, IN - Needler’s Fresh Market celebrated the grand opening of its newest location in Anderson, marking a major milestone for the community and expanding access to fresh, affordable groceries on the city’s west side. The store, which is located at 2810 Nichol Ave., is the newest Needler’s Fresh Market serving Ohio and Indiana.

“Our goal is to be more than just a grocery store — we want to be a trusted neighborhood partner,” Store Director Kenny Smith said in the recent release. “This grand opening represents an important step in serving Anderson residents with fresh food, everyday essentials and a welcoming place to shop close to home.”

Designed with the local community in mind, the newest Needler’s Fresh Market location offers:

• A wide selection of fresh produce, quality meats and everyday grocery essentials;
• In-store butchers serving fresh-cut and Chief Smokehouse signature smoked meats;
• Deli fried chicken and fish made in-house;
• Bakery items made fresh daily, including Needler’s Special Recipe cookies;
• Value throughout every aisle, weekly and monthly specials and Our Family® products;
• Additional savings through the Needler’s loyalty program; and
• Delivery through DoorDash, with additional online shopping services coming soon.

The Needler’s Fresh Market is part of a broader redevelopment effort in Anderson, transforming a long vacant retail space into a vibrant neighborhood destination focused on quality, value and community connection. The store also supports local economic growth through job creation and renewed activity along the Nichol Avenue corridor, reinforcing Needler’s commitment to investing in Indiana communities.

To celebrate the grand opening, Needler’s presented a check for $2,500 to The Gathering of the Queens — a community-focused organization committed to addressing food insecurity. Shoppers also took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony and were treated to free samples, giveaways, and special opening week savings as Needler’s Fresh Market welcomes neighbors into the store for the first time.

For more information about the Anderson grand opening or to learn more about Needler’s Fresh Market, visit NeedlersFreshMarkets.com.

FRESNO, CA - The fast-paced nature of our industry means that generic ERPs tend to fall short in the fresh produce supply chain. Famous Software outlines the strategic advantage of having a fresh produce ERP in a recent blog post. An excerpt is below.

Fresh produce companies operate in a fast-paced industry where traditional enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems often fall short. Fortunately, over the years, technology has evolved to meet the specific complexities of the fresh produce supply chain.

In this blog, we explore how robust traceability and purpose-built functionality give fresh produce companies the foundation they need to stay competitive and streamline operations at scale.

Key Takeaways

The ability to trace product instantly back to the field lot and forward to the retailer is essential to prevent mass product disposal and protect retail partnerships.

Generic ERPs struggle with the non-linear produce cycle whereas a purpose-built system can manage ownership transfers and variable pricing structures.

As the fresh produce industry consolidates, the transition to specialized software is a strategic necessity for companies looking to eliminate operational friction and achieve scale.

Strategic Advantage #1: Robust Traceability

Traceability is crucial for fresh produce, allowing trading partners to follow products forward and backward through the supply chain. Although the Food Safety Modernization ACT (FSMA) has been pushed to July 20, 2028, traceability remains a critical aspect of protecting your brand. When a safety concern arises, the speed at which you identify the source determines the extent of your financial and reputational loss.

Unlike a generic ERP, a produce‑specific ERP is able to trace a product back to the individual field lot and forward through repackers, distributors, and on to the retailer. This level of robustness allows you to isolate specific affected lots and associated orders.

Without it, a company may be forced to tell a retailer to discard everything they’ve received, instead of targeting only the lots tied to the issue—a difference that can be financially devastating and permanently damage key retail relationships.

Strategic Advantage #2: Purpose-Built Functionality

Standard ERP systems are designed for a traditional, linear workflow: buy raw materials at a fixed price, transform them, and sell finished goods on a straightforward cost-plus basis. In the world of fresh produce, the process is rarely that clean. Ownership often transfers from a grower to a packer or distributor before a final price is even determined, demanding a level of nuance that generic software simply cannot support.

A purpose-built fresh produce ERP, however, can provide the foundational elements required to manage these specific complexities:

• Grower Accounting & Settlements: A produce‑specific ERP can support flexible grower accounting and settlements. This allows the repacker to settle back to the grower after the product is repacked and sold, in a way that reflects how produce companies actually operate.
• Variable Pricing Structures: Commodity prices can fluctuate day by day. A produce‑specific system must handle this volatility so that companies can buy from growers one day and sell on another at a different price, with the ERP accommodating those changing prices instead of assuming a fixed cost structure.
• Granular Field Payroll: Managing a workforce in the field involves complex pay structures—by the day, hour, or piece. A fresh produce ERP can provide the granular tracking needed to manage laborers and field-level data, integrating these costs directly into financial management for true profitability visibility.

To read the full post, click here.

MCALLEN, TX - What I have learned more than anything in recent years, working with our industry leaders and advocates, is the strength of relationships in the face of both manageable and unmanageable challenges. Celebrating the wins is one thing, but coming together when times get tough is when the rubber meets the road. Viva Fresh is an organization that celebrates this strategic alliance. As we move toward the annual Viva Fresh Expo, industry veteran Tony Incaviglia joins me to discuss GR Fresh’s program going into the event and why relationships are key.

“At the end of the day, everyone here can sell produce, but only a few can actually grow produce. For us, it’s always been about partnerships first. Anyone can move produce, but in markets like these, it’s about who shows up consistently for you,” Tony, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, tells me. “Across all categories, including tomatoes, avocados, cucumbers, eggplant, and both green and colored bell peppers, to mention a few, we work side by side with our customers to navigate whatever the market or Mother Nature throws at us, good or bad.”

GR Fresh takes pride in its consistency, steadiness, and transparency.

“We may bend but never break because when our partners win, we win. That’s how we have always approached it,” Tony shares. “This year will feel especially meaningful because of what everyone’s been dealing with: volatile markets, supply gaps, and a lot of uncertainty across key commodities. It’s created real pressure on programs and partnerships.”

There is no better time than now for Viva Fresh—a meeting ground for conversations that bring all parties to the table.

“What makes this show timely is the chance to get face to face, reset alignment, and have honest conversations about how we move forward together and truly team up,” Tony reflects. “For us, it’s about strengthening the relationships we’ve built over the years and finding new ways to support each other through whatever comes next. In times such as these, that kind of connection matters more than ever.”

The strength of GR Fresh’s core program across its entire product list is essential today, especially in a year where consistency has been hard to come by.

“Being able to offer a dependable, well-rounded mix really matters,” Tony explains before turning to the company’s additional value strategies. “On the innovation side, we’re focused on how we source and support expanding growing regions, strengthening grower partnerships, and improving visibility so our customers can plan with more confidence. It’s less about reinventing the wheel and more about making the wheel stronger and more reliable.”

All of these messages share a deep, resonant theme: The industry is moving toward deeper partnerships and smarter supply chains.

“It’s not just about price anymore; it’s about trust, communication, and who can help you navigate challenges before they become problems. That’s exactly where we’re focused,” Tony expresses. “What we are most hopeful about is the resilience of this industry. No matter how challenging the markets get, people continue to show up, adapt, and find solutions, and that says a lot about where we are headed. The partnerships we value most are the ones built on trust, transparency, and a long-term mindset. So, for us, it’s less about one transaction and more about finding people who want to grow together, solve challenges together, and build a relationship that lasts.”

GR Fresh will have a cross-functional team at Viva Fresh, which is central to how the company approaches partnerships. It’s not just sales, but production, operations, and leadership as well.

“That means when we sit down with customers or partners, we can speak to the full picture—what’s happening in the fields, how we’re navigating supply challenges, and how we execute day to day to keep programs running as smoothly as possible,” Tony details. “Our production team brings real-time insight into growing and sourcing market conditions, operations focus on consistency and execution, and the leadership team is there to strengthen long-term alignment and strategy. At the end of the day, it allows us to have more meaningful, solution-driven conversations—not just talk about what we can do, but how we can actually get it done together.”

Keep an eye out for the GR Fresh team this April, and make sure to stop by the Viva Fresh booth #1000!