Lake Worth, Florida-based Green Life Farms has hired Donald Grandmaison as general manager of its Babcock Ranch facility. Grandmaison brings more than 20 years of experience to the role. Most recently, he served as sales and marketing manager for BrightFarms/Lef Farms Corp. Grandmaison joins Green Life Farms’ team with experience growing sales revenue, developing methods […]
Category: Produce News
The Shelby Report covers the produce industry for grocery retailers nationwide, from fresh fruit and vegetable trends and supplier announcements to merchandising strategies and regional market news. Updated regularly across our five regional editions.
Find all our fresh coverage in Focus on Fresh.
Posted inMeijer, Midwest, Produce News
Meijer Expands Fresh Produce Offerings With Revolution Farms
Revolution Farms, an innovator of sustainable farming in the Midwest, is partnering with Grand Rapids, Michigan-based retailer Meijer to bring local lettuce and salad greens to consumers year-round, across the retailer’s six-state footprint. Products include cut, whole leaf and whole head lettuce varieties, as well as the cut lettuce for all of the retailer’s fresh, […]
Posted inProduce News, Marketing News, Northeast
Ocean Spray Promotes Cranberries Through New Brand Campaign
Boston, Massachusetts-based Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. is launching a brand refresh and new creative campaign. “What will you do with all that power?” uses animation to promote the power of the cranberry, inspired by the farmers, the science and the history of the original superfruit. Ocean Spray’s multichannel campaign explores the positivity and health benefits of […]
Posted inProduce News, West
Stater Bros. Markets, FirstFruits Donate 20K Pounds Of Apples
Stater Bros. Markets recently donated 20,000 pounds of apples to Feeding America Riverside | San Bernardino as part of the Take a Bite Out of Hunger program sponsored by FirstFruits Marketing of Washington. The donation helps local food banks to provide fruit to the underserved in the local community. “No one should ever go hungry, and everyone should have access to […]
Posted inProduce News, Northeast
Patriot Pickle Acquires Some Assets Of Farm Ridge Foods
Wayne, New Jersey-based Patriot Pickle has acquired the pickle assets of Farm Ridge Foods. The company distributes pickled products into the retail channel under its own name, as well as private label and third-party brands. “This is an exciting time to be a leader in fresh pickle manufacturing,” said Bill McEntee, CEO of Patriot Pickle. “The […]
Posted inProduce News, Southeast
Fresh Express Celebrates National Salad Month With Recipes, Contests
Orlando, Florida-based Fresh Express is celebrating National Salad Month with a series of promotional activities throughout May, anchored by an online and social contest that provides salad inspiration and encourages consumers to create a new salad every day. The company offers more than 100 varieties of fresh and healthy salads ranging from leafy salad greens like […]
Posted inProduce News, Executive News, Northeast
Edible Garden Appoints 3 Industry Executives To Board Of Directors
Belvidere, New Jersey-based Edible Garden AG Inc. has appointed three new independent members to the company’s board of directors as of May 4: Mathew McConnell, Tracy Nazzaro and Ryan Rogers. McConnell has served as CEO of Marco Polo Securities Inc.’s MPS Chaperone and Distribution business since March 2020. In this position, he oversees international equities, […]
Posted inProduce News, Association News, Southwest
Potatoes USA Elects 2022-23 Leadership
Denver, Colorado-based Potatoes USA, the marketing and promotion board for the potato industry, elected new leadership during its annual meeting in March. The newly elected chairman and executive committee will lead the board through 2022-23. Jason Davenport was elected as chairman of the board. This marks Davenport’s sixth year on the board and as a member of the executive […]
Posted inProduce News, West
Four Star Fruit Reports Large Supply For Mexican Grape Season
Delano, California-based Four Star Fruit Inc. says it expects strong volume to supply this year’s Mexican table grape season. Each year, Four Star Fruit boasts year over year volume growth and this year, the company is expecting its volume growth to be 25-30 percent higher due to its Mexican grape program. Harvest began the first […]
Posted inProduce News, Executive News, West
Mission Produce Appoints Bulow As President And COO
Oxnard, California-based Mission Produce Inc. has named Timothy Bulow as president and COO, effective no later than Aug. 1. Steve Barnard, Mission’s founder, will continue to serve in his role as CEO and a member of the company’s board of directors. “Tim is a versatile and results-driven executive who has a great appreciation for global […]
Posted inProduce News, Marketing News, Southeast
Dole Launches Astrology-Based Salad Recipe Series
Beyond ingredient variety, nutritional value, taste and ease of preparation, Charlotte, North Carolina-based Dole Food Company Inc. has added another selection criteria to the 12 recipes featured during its “Healthier by Dole” salad recipe series in May: the alignment of the stars. The produce leader has released a dozen original recipes linked to the specific astrological […]
Posted inProduce News, Beverage News, Retailer of the Year, Southwest
From Watermelons To Pepsi, Lowe’s Not Afraid To Go Big
Lowe’s Market is continuing to go big with its product displays. Residents of Lubbock, Texas, were treated to a record-breaking display of watermelons on June 2, 2021. The Food King on 82nd Street hosted a watermelon marketing event of epic proportions, with the world’s largest watermelon display. Although unverified by the Guinness Book of World […]
Posted inProduce News, Executive News, West
Calavo Growers Announces Departure Of CFO Matute
Santa Paula, California-based Calavo Growers Inc., an avocado-industry provider of value-added fresh food, has announced Mariela Matute, CFO, will be leaving for a CFO role at another company. She will remain with Calavo through May 19 to assist with the transition. Brian W. Kocher, Calavo’s president and CEO, will assume the role of the company’s […]
Posted inProduce News, Southwest
Avocados From Mexico Introduces Guactail For Cinco De Mayo
Irving, Texas-based Avocados From Mexico is showing consumers new ways to celebrate with avocados this Cinco de Mayo with the introduction of Guactail. To bring the Guactail to life, Avocados From Mexico teamed up with author, food and wine expert Antoni Porowski to create the Guactail. The drink takes a spin on a fruit-forward daquiri […]
Posted inProduce News, National
IRI Report Shows Fresh Produce Sales Increased From 2020
To document the changing nature of the marketplace, IRI, Anne-Marie Roerink of 210 Analytics and Marriner Marketing have teamed up to continue to bring the latest trends and analysis relative to fresh produce sales. This is the sixth in a series of reports presented by IRI, discussing inflation trends. Fresh produce prices are up from last year, […]
Posted inProduce News, Albertsons, Northeast
Gotham Greens, Grateful Dead Launch Grateful Greens
On the heels of Gotham Greens’ 10th anniversary celebration, the New York-based company has launched a new series of musical marketing partnerships featuring some of the most iconic bands and musicians that connect fans to their communities. Gotham Greens has entered into a partnership with the band, the Grateful Dead, on a limited-edition packaging and […]
Posted inProduce News, Marketing News, West
California Avocado Extends Advertising Campaign
The California Avocado Commission is extending its advertising campaign – “the best avocados have California in them.” This season’s ads feature visuals that point to the “CA” in the middle of the word “avocados,” and audio and other ads that call out the play on words in their tag lines. Consumer media is targeted to […]
Posted inPackaging News, Produce News, Southwest
MountainKing Introduces 3-Pound Mesh Bags For Potatoes
Houston, Texas-based MountainKing has introduced new, 3-pound mesh bags of its baby-sized red and gold potatoes designed to generate a higher ring for retail grocers while providing shoppers with a larger, yet still manageable product size for summer cook outs, potato salads and other dishes associated with the season. “It’s well documented that small potatoes […]
Posted inProduce News, Executive News, Midwest
Revol Greens Adds Key Leadership Roles
Owatonna, Minnesota-based Revol Greens has hired Kathy Flores as chief of staff and Amanda Crews as VP of people (human resources). Both bring decades of experience and proven results to the company. “I admire their impressive backgrounds and the impact they will make within our rapidly growing organization,” said Michael Wainscott, Revol Greens CEO. “We’ve hand-selected […]
Posted inPublix Super Markets, Produce News, Southeast, Sustainability News
Publix Donates 50M Pounds Of Produce From Farmers To Food Banks
Lakeland, Florida-based Publix has donated more than 50 million pounds of produce as part of its initiative to support farmers and food banks in the Southeast. Launched in response to farmers being forced to discard produce they could no longer sell due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Publix began purchasing produce directly from impacted farmers and donating […]