IDAHO FALLS, ID – Kingston Cross Dock & Cold Storage (KCD) has hired industry veteran Brian Osborne as its new Warehouse & Operations Manager.

“Kingston’s strong reputation in the produce and storage industries for both product quality and customer service made me immediately interested in the opportunity.  However, it was their good people and clear vision for growth that solidified my decision to come aboard,” Osborne said.  “I am excited to join the team and utilize my industry knowledge and relationships to help further expansion plans.  I am very excited for next season.”

Brian has over 30 years of experience in cold storage, operations and logistics.  His focus will be on daily operations and growing the level of customer service offered to KCD’s growing customer list, according to a press release.

Dennis Carroll, KCD General Manager, said, “Brian has a broad wealth of knowledge as it relates to operations, cold storage and the industry in general.  With the growth we have experienced at Kingston Cross Dock this year, Brian joining the team is a perfect fit to ensure our operations and general customer service continues to improve.”  He added, “Brian comes to Kingston with an excellent reputation in the industry and a strong track record of management skills and leadership abilities.  His experience and network to major customers compliments our continued growth plans.”

Prior to Kingston, Brian held senior-level management positions at other major produce firms like Southern Specialties and Carb Americas.

Congratulations, Brian!

Kingston Cross Dock & Cold Storage

CASTROVILLE, CA – Arti the Artichoke, Ocean Mist Farms’ mascot, won the Fan Favorite Contest against other Salinas Valley company mascots in a social media contest from the California Rodeo Salinas.

“We are thrilled to see Arti voted as the fan’s favorite; we know his fans are passionate about the California State vegetable he represents in his friendly way,” said Kori Tuggle, Director of Marketing and Business Development. “This is a great way to extend our company’s 90^th anniversary celebration as we consider Arti part of the Ocean Mist family.”

The contest was held on the California Rodeo Salinas Facebook page and invited fans to vote for their favorite produce mascot by leaving comments in a photo album.  The contest ran from June 16-30, according to a press release.

Arti won with 56% of the total votes and was declared the winner on July 1 at a special trophy presentation at the company’s headquarters in Castroville, CA.  Tuggle credits Ocean Mist Farms’ employees, Artichoke Club members and Arti’s Facebook page fans for the win.

Arti will make his next appearance at the California Rodeo Salinas on July 18.  Congratulations on the win!

Ocean Mist Farms

IRVINE, CA – California avocados are now available at retail locations with new California brand labels.

The California Avocado Commission’s (CAC) labeling initiative is being backed by a significant level of marketing support to ensure that consumers know to look for them.  The marketing initiatives include print, radio and online, including mobile, as well as social media, according to a press release.

CAC President Tom Bellamore said, “Our goal is to have California avocados with a prominent label designating that point of origin in an artful way that mirrors the messaging CAC presents to consumers and retailers in its marketing campaign.”

The idea to develop a connection between CAC’s consumer advertising campaign and the California brand at point of sale is a concept the California Avocado Commission has supported for more than two decades, according to a press release. 

Bellamore continued to explain that even though some packers use labels that recognize California, it is often in fine print and most consumers pass right over it.  “We needed to make ‘California’ more prominent and graphically compatible with the designs we use in our marketing campaign.  Convincing packers to make a change was not without difficulty.  For a variety of legitimate business reasons, many avocado packers had previously not made California branding labeling a priority,” said Bellamore.

The Commission has conducted consumer testing to persuade packers to embrace CAC’s label initiative.  “We know based on research that shoppers already prefer premium California-grown avocados,” Bellamore said, “so it was no real surprise that the consumer response was very positive when ‘California’ was clearly visible on labeled fruit.”

CAC hoped to convince one or two packers to launch a pilot program for 2014, but after several packers agreed to try, the majority came aboard, according to a press release.  Currently, 10 of the California avocado industry’s 13 largest packers are using or have plans to use California brand labels on the fruit by the start of the 2015 season.

There are currently several sticker options that packers are working with.

California Avocado Commission 

PHILADELPHIA, PA - The wholesale produce business John Vena, Inc has announced the hiring of James Collins as its new Packing Room Supervisor. In his role in this newly created position, Collins will oversee all Packing Room operations, ensuring that John Vena meets the needs of its trading partners and growing customer base.

“We are very happy to have James join our team. This part of our business is growing rapidly and he has the skills we need to properly guide our production team,” said John Vena, President. “James has a bachelor’s degree in Networking & Communications Management as well as experience in production processes. James has spent the majority of his career working in operations, which has allowed him to develop his skills in process technology and lean manufacturing."

Some of this growth has come in the Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market, where John Vena has notably increased its presence. According to a press release, John Vena has recently needed to build new packing room units to meet the growing demands of its customers.

“We have taken unit F6 and converted it to serve as our packing room. We outgrew our current units, so this will really allow us to work more efficiently,” said Vena.

Congratulations on the new position James!

John Vena

Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market

GRAND JUNCTION, MI – With local growers working to ensure that blueberries are picked, packed and distributed, the Michigan blueberry harvest is about to go into full swing. 

South Haven Mayor Bob Burr helped kick off the local harvest, according to a press release.  He, Archie Armino of Wal-Mart and Bob Hawk, President & CEO of MBG Marketing, a grower-owned cooperative and founding partner of Naturipe Farms, visited the Fritz family of Brookside Farms.

“This is a crucial time of year for our local family farmers,” stated Mayor Burr. “Our local and regional economies rely on a successful harvest season and it is a source of Michigan pride when we start to see our blueberries ripen and prepared to be shipped throughout the country.”

Cousins Peter Fritz and Carly Fritz Parsley, third generation blueberry growers, gave a tour of their home farm in Bloomingdale, Michigan.  When asked about this year’s crop, Peter said that the unseasonably cold winter was thought to pose a significant threat on the crop, but the plants have rebounded well.  Bob Hawk added, “Certain varieties fared better than others. However we are pleased with how the bushes have bounced back this spring and are looking forward to another great year.”

To help promote the health and taste of blueberries, MBG Marketing and Naturipe Farms are working with the Michigan Ag Council to sponsor the Pure Michigan program. “The locally grown movement has made tremendous strides to highlight the importance of supporting our local agricultural sector and the positive impact it has on our economy,” said Bob Hawk. “We are especially pleased to be working with local retail customers, including Wal-Mart, who highlight the heritage, traditions and contributions made by the family farms in Michigan.”

Wal-Mart plans on doubling the sales of locally sourced produce in the U.S. and has partnered with MBG Marketing to feature 11 of its family farms with in-store signage throughout Michigan Wal-Marts this summer, according to a press release.  “Wal-Mart is committed to the farmers who grow our food and supports the in-season locally grown products such as these healthy, flavorful Michigan blueberries,” said Armino.

Michigan is the number one state in highbush blueberry production.  Its growers produce over 100 million pounds of blueberries every year.

Naturipe

MIAMI, FL – Right in time for the 4^th of July, the National Hurricane Center has named Arthur the first tropical storm of the season.  Beyond holiday plans, how might this storm affect citrus crops in the Southeast?

In a hurricane preparedness fact sheet for citrus growers, the University of Florida IFAS Extension says, “Tropical storm winds are sustained between 39 and 73 mph. At these velocities, light damage to groves will occur in the form of twigs and branches broken off trees, fruit knocked off, and the first and/or second row of trees on the windward side may have an occasional tree pushed over.”  Luckily, this is not much of a concern.

At this point in the storm’s development, the main impact will be rain.  "Some spots may pick up around 5 inches (of rain) if they get hit with the squalls," but rainfall is more likely to be 1 to 3 inches, said Tony Cristaldi, a Meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Melbourne, Florida. Tropical Storm Arthur's winds are expected to be 20 to 30 mph and could bring a foot or two of beach erosion, according to USA Today.

A tropical storm watch has already been issued for Florida’s east coast, from Fort Pierce to Flagler Beach. As of early Tuesday afternoon, CBS Miami reported that the storm was located 80 miles east-southeast of Cape Canaveral and was moving to the northwest at near 5 mph with maximum sustained winds of near 40 miles per hour.

Weather.com forecasts the storm from now through the holiday:

• Wednesday:  A slow north-northeast crawl will continue. The system's center will likely move east of the northeast Florida coast. Situated over the Gulf Stream, Arthur will continue to gather strength.
• Thursday:  Arthur should bend toward the northeast and accelerate, and will be located somewhere near or off the coast of the Carolinas. Arthur may be a strong tropical storm and has a chance of intensifying to a Category 1 hurricane.
• Friday:  Arthur makes its closest approach to eastern North Carolina (Outer Banks), possibly extreme southeast Virginia, then takes a sharper northeast turn out into the open Atlantic, as the jet stream westerlies exert their steering influence. 

Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for developments on Arthur and any other tropical systems should they develop.

National Hurricane Center

NEW YORK CITY, NY - As Argentine officials head to New York to meet with representatives from U.S. hedge fund NML Capital Ltd in the hopes of finding some agreement which would allow them to avoid default, American produce powerhouses in Salinas may be seeing an opportunity for a major investment. 

As AndNowUKnow covered in a previous article, a combination of sky-rocketing inflation and increasing food prices have created what could be a prime market for foreign land purchases in Argentina. USA Today reported that estimates for 2014's inflation rate are between 25-40%, unsustainable numbers for any economy. Because of this serious devaluation of the peso, the purchasing power of the U.S. dollar has risen considerably for Argentine products. An American investor looking to speculate could use these exchange rates to their advantage, buying up acres and acres of relatively cheap Argentine farmland.

This latest escalation in the Argentine debt crisis comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal to hear a case to overturn the previous ruling of U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Griesa. Judge Griesa had ruled that Argentina must repay the full $1.5 billion it owes NML in defaulted bonds NML holds from Argentina's 2001 default.

According to MSN, Argentina had hoped to be able to make interest payments on its current bond obligations without having to also make payments on the defaulted bonds. Payments on these defaulted bonds could trigger payments on additional defaulted bonds owned by other investors amounting to $15 billion. For a country with just $29 billion in reserves, only $16 billion of which is not tied to IMF loans and other illiquid assets, this situation would mean disaster.

"Why not pay the $1.5 billion and end it," reflected President Fernandez in a Business Insider article. "Because there is another more serious problem that the 1% of holdouts create. There's another 7% that, if we pay NML their $1.5 billion, Argentina has to pay them $15 billion...That's half of all the reserves in our Central Bank."

Starting Monday, June 30th, the Argentine government has a 30-day grace period to pay its obligations or work out an acceptable payment plan with its creditors. If it is unable to do either it will default. 

Regardless of what happens, it will be a situation which you can be sure foreign investors will monitor closely.

Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow as we continue to cover this developing story. 

NEWARK, DE – Attendees at this year’s PMA Foodservice Conference will get a look at leading crops in an exclusive visit to the fields and facilities at Ocean Mist Farms, Naturipe, and Braga Fresh Family Farms on the Behind the Scenes: Field & Plant Tour.

Registrants will also get a field-to-fork perspective on these crops while learning about growing, picking and culinary preparation tips. 

The Ocean Mist Farms stop of the tour will show off its premium fresh vegetables with a focus on its heirloom artichokes and Brussels sprouts.  “This will be our ninth year hosting the PMA Foodservice tour groups,” said Kori Tuggle, Director of Marketing & Business Development at Ocean Mist Farms.  “The event is right in our backyard, and we appreciate the opportunity to showcase our program and educate attendees about the commodities we grow.”

At Naturipe, attendees will tour strawberry, blackberry and raspberry fields along with a sustainability-driven packing facility, according to a press release.  Kyla Oberman, Naturipe’s Marketing Manager said, “The most valuable asset to us is showing rather than explaining how we do things.  To see the harvesting and experience the various processes that happen between the field and the cooler are things that all of our customers should see to truly understand everything involved in berry production.”

The Braga Fresh stop will share insights on how it produces organic and conventional leafy greens, broccoli, beets and a growing line of herbs.  “Everyone who visits Braga Ranch gains appreciation for the complexity of agriculture and the bond of a generational family farm,” explains Rod Braga, President & CEO of Braga Fresh Family Farms.  “We’re excited about the opportunity to welcome PMA members and students to our home ranch and give them a unique education about what it takes to grow and distribute fresh, healthy vegetables around the world.”

This is the 33^rd year of PMA’s Foodservice Conference & Expo, a networking opportunity for members of the fresh produce supply chain to come together and build business connections.  The three-day event will bring over 1,700 foodservice and produce industry leaders together.  Foodservice operators like Wal-Mart, Chick-fil-A, Brinker International and regional and independent companies will be in attendance, according to a press release.

The conference will also feature educations sessions and discussions on ways to increase the role of fresh produce in foodservice.  For more information and registration, visit the PMA Foodservice website.

PMA

Naturipe

Ocean Mist

Braga Fresh

OVIEDO, FL - Professional chefs have long loved celery for the way it can enhance the flavor profile of their dishes, but now Duda Farm Fresh Foods is hoping to make celery a foodservice staple by highlighting the convenience and versatility of this delicious vegetable.

Susan Noritake, Director of Fresh Cut Sales at Duda, was to-the-point in her promotion of Duda's increased focus on its wide variety of celery products for the foodservice industry: “Let’s talk stalk,” she said.

Years of selective breeding and market testing has allowed Duda to grow celery throughout the United States while maintaining the vibrant green color and naturally sweet taste that customers look to celery for. Whether they're buying traditional celery stalks, diced celery, or any of Duda's other celery products, Duda is confident that buyers will be exceedingly happy with the quality of the product.

Duda also hopes that the combination of the quality of their celery and its Dandy® celery line will allow it to be able to increase celery sales to schools this year. The Dandy® 1.6-ounce, 2.5-ounce and 3-ounce single serving celery stick packs are perfect for any school’s healthy meal or snack program.

Foodservice companies will also enjoy the dependability which Duda is able to provide because its celery is delivered by in-house freight experts supported by a logistics team that doesn't rely on the open truck market for deliveries. Direct relationships with the trucking companies have given Duda the ability to request trucks dedicated specifically for Dandy product deliveries.

“Our consistent truck supply means on-time deliveries and excellent customer service,” said Jeff Goodale, Duda's Business Development Manager. “From across town to across the world, let our team take care of your logistics.”

Duda will be marketing its celery products, as well as its multitude of fresh citrus fruits, at this summer's PMA Foodservice Expo. Sponsor chefs will be on hand to prepare dishes centered around Duda celery, dishes which attendees will later have a chance to take a crack at themselves. According to a press release, the PMA Foodservice Expo will be held on Saturday, July 26th. 

Duda Farm Fresh Foods

IDAHO FALLS, IDAHO – This past weekend, Kingston Fresh’s team was “Running for a Cause” in the annual “Bone & Back’ 40-Mile Relay Race.” 

Ken Nabal, Kingston President, was in attendance to cheer the team on.  “This is one of our favorite local events that our company gladly supports.  We remain committed to the local communities in which we operate both domestically and abroad.  This occasion is especially important as it is right here at home in Idaho Falls.  Our two teams of runners did a great job and the weather was perfect.”

David O. Kingston, Kingston Companies CEO, added, “What an excellent way to make a difference in our community. I commend our entire team who supported this race.  It not only gives our company a chance to support local charities but fosters team building and promotes exercise.  That’s a win-win!”

The company had two teams of eight where each runner had to carry the ‘Bone baton’ for a 5-mile leg before handing off to the next teammate, according to a press release.  The race started in Idaho Falls and runners raced through the mountains and windmills to Bone, ID and back.

Proceeds from the event support local charities in Idaho.

Kingston Fresh