The application period for the 2018 Frieda Rapoport Caplan Family Business Scholarship is now open. The Frieda Rapoport Caplan Family Business Scholarship Program was founded in 2001 by sisters Karen Caplan and Jackie Caplan Wiggins, in honor of their mother, Frieda Rapoport Caplan, founder of Frieda’s Specialty Produce. The program provides the opportunity for representatives […]
Category: Produce News
Produce Innovation Award Winners Recognized At United Fresh 2018
Seven Produce Innovation Award winners were recognized at United Fresh 2018 in Chicago in late June. This year’s honorees were selected by show attendees from a total of 36 contestants across seven categories: Best New Food Safety Solution; Best New Fruit Product; Best New Packaging; Best New Packing/Processing Equipment; Best New Vegetable Product; and two […]
Kroger’s New Payment Policy A Cause For Concern For Produce Industry
Kroger recently sent out a letter to produce shippers outlining its new 90-day standardized payment policy, which takes effect Aug. 1, 2018. According to a number of produce industry organizations, the new policy conflicts with protection rights under the PACA Trust, and agreeing to any extension beyond 30 days automatically forces produce suppliers to waive their PACA […]
Nicaraguan Red Dragon Fruit Almost Ready For Summer Sales
Red dragon fruit, grown in Nicaragua, is two weeks away from its high-volume launch in July, and will be available through Frieda’s Specialty Produce through November. “Our grower continues to focus on the best, most flavorful varieties of red dragon fruit, and we are expecting excellent volume this season,” said Allen DeMo, director of procurement […]
Secretary Of Agriculture Sonny Perdue To Keynote United Fresh 2018
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue will open United Fresh‘s 2018 convention on Tuesday, June 26, in Chicago as keynote speaker. Perdue will address the key issues facing the produce industry, from immigration reform and the need for a legal workforce to NAFTA and the need to retain a fair international trade framework for agriculture. […]
AgriLife Wants To Boost Texas Tomato Production Through Grafting
A team of Texas A&M AgriLife researchers and horticulturists are investigating how successful integration of vegetable grafting into tomato production practices could present new opportunities for the Texas tomato industry. More than 2,100 acres in Texas were used for tomato production in 2012, in 2015, that crop value reached $4.9 million, according to the USDA’s […]
Indiana Grown Makes Life‑Changing Connections For Producers
by Terrie Ellerbee/editor-Midwest Austin and Kristen Witt have been growing blackberries on their District 6 Farm in Jasonville, Indiana, since 2015. It isn’t easy to grow blackberries in the state, but for the Witts, it was a lot easier than selling them. “This is all new to us,” said Austin Witt. “I didn’t even know […]
Leevers Supermarkets’ New Loyalty Program Rewards Healthy Eating
Leevers Supermarkets Inc., a Save-A-Lot grocery licensee, has partnered with Green Piranhas Inc., a digital customer engagement platform development firm, to launch Snap2Save, a new kind of grocery shopping loyalty app. The program goes beyond saving customers money. It also aims to help them eat healthier by incenting the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables. […]
