Commercial Ripening 2026: An Interview With David Byrne

Commercial ripening has come a long way over the past 30 years. From air-stacking boxes in temperature-controlled holding rooms to today’s ultra-advanced, digitally controlled ripening room systems that can uniformly ripen multiple truckloads of palletized fruit to the exact same color at the exact same time. As the global leader in commercial ripening room design […]

Posted inIndependent Store News, News, Northeast, Produce News, Tops Friendly Markets

Tops Markets Launches 2026 Produce Winter Olympic Games

Tops Markets has launched its 2026 Produce Winter Olympic Games, a four-week, company-wide competition Feb. 1-28 that challenges store teams to showcase produce displays, innovative merchandising and strong sales performance. Throughout the competition, stores participate in weekly themed events designed to highlight freshness, presentation and promotional creativity within the produce department. Teams compete for thousands […]

Posted inProduce News, Marketing News, News, Northeast

Keystone Fruit Marketing Promotes Gideon To Director Of Sales

Greencastle, Pennsylvania-based Keystone Fruit Marketing, a division of Progressive Produce, has promoted Matthew Gideon to director of sales. Gideon has been with Keystone since 2009, playing a key role in supporting the division’s growth and strengthening its year-round sweet onion program. In his new role, Gideon will be responsible for all aspects of sales for […]

Posted inProduce News, Southeast

NC Sweetpotato Commission Honors Yencho With Service Award

The NC Sweetpotato Commission presented its 2026 Distinguished Service Award to Craig Yencho at the organization’s annual meeting held in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Through his extensive work in agricultural research, Yencho has shared valuable knowledge with sweetpotato growers across the state, developing new cultivation techniques, improving pest management practices and innovating varieties that have boosted […]

Posted inProduce News, News, Southeast

Fresh Del Monte Named Winning Bidder To Acquire Del Monte Foods Assets

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE: FDP) has been named the successful bidder to acquire select assets of California-based Del Monte Foods Corporation II Inc. for a purchase price of $285 million, plus assumption of certain liabilities, through a court-supervised sale under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The transaction remains subject to court […]

Posted inProduce News, National, News, West

Mission Produce To Acquire Calavo Growers In $430M Deal

Mission Produce Inc. (NASDAQ: AVO) and Calavo Growers, Inc. (NASDAQ: CVGW) have entered into a definitive agreement under which Mission will acquire Calavo in a cash-and-stock transaction. The transaction would give Mission entrée into the high-growth prepared food segment, complementing its avocado business with Calavo’s value-added, avocado-based prepared foods. In addition to a variety of ready-to-eat […]

Posted inProduce News, News, Southwest

NatureSweet Introduces Employee Recognition On Product Labels

NatureSweet has launched a new marketing initiative called Hearts Behind the Harvest, spotlighting employees by featuring their names and stories on product labels. The program is designed to celebrate frontline team members, deepen connection with customers and showcase the people who contribute to growing, packing and delivering NatureSweet products. The company said the effort highlights […]

Posted inProduce News, National, News

Avocados From Mexico Projects 2.5B Pounds For 2025-26 Season

Avocados From Mexico is projecting a record-breaking 2.5 billion pounds of Mexican avocado imports to the U.S. during the 2025-26 season, marking the highest volume Mexico has ever supplied to the U.S. market. The organization said about 280 million pounds of Mexican avocados are projected to be available for the Big Game alone, another record-setting […]