Produce quality may seem to lie in the eye of the beholder, but there are seven deadly sins that can cause produce to lose quality before it is purchased or received by the customer. The first deadly sin observed by produce buyers is that many growers do not harvest produce at the correct maturity stage. In many cases, the produce is …
Brighter Bites, a national nonprofit that delivers fresh fruits and vegetables directly into families’ hands, announces Gabriela D’Arrigo, VP of Communications and Marketing at D’Arrigo New York, as its newest board member. “We are honored to welcome Gabriela as the newest member to our board,” said Rich Dachman, chief executive officer at Brighter Bites. “She and the D’Arrigo family have …
David W. Cudney, UC Cooperative Extension specialist emeritus, passed away in Riverside on March 30. He was 82. Cudney joined UCCE in 1964 as a farm advisor for Imperial County. In 1978, he became a UCCE weed science specialist for Southern California, based at UC Riverside. While working as a specialist, he earned his Ph.D. from UC Riverside in 1989. …
USDA Foreign Ag Service — We see them every time we purchase fresh fruits and vegetables: price look up (PLU) labels. The little coin-size stickers are stuck to everything from apples, bananas, and cantaloupes to watermelons, yams, and zucchini. According to the Sustainable Packaging Coalition , PLU labels have been used globally for more than 30 years with the International Federation for …
Ocean Mist Farms, the leading year round producer of fresh California artichokes, is expecting an outstanding 2023 spring crop of artichokes from their northern California growing region in Castroville. “The storms that devastated parts of California during the winter months put the season behind about 4 weeks,” said Ben Wilson, Ocean Mist Farms artichoke commodity manager. “That being said, we …
Growers are now spending an average of $500,000 a year on automation in response to the persistent ag labor shortage, according to the Specialty Crop Automation Report released today and commissioned by Western Growers. This is the second year the Specialty Crop Automation Report has been released by WG in collaboration with consultants at Roland Berger. The report, which tracks …
Nearly 500 people with a professional stake in the safety of fresh fruits and vegetables consumed worldwide will gather at Sherwood Hall in Salinas on May 3-4 for the 18th Annual Western Food Safety Conference. The conference will be held at Sherwood Hall at 940 N. Main St., in Salinas, and will focus on the theme, “Food Safety: The State of …
Celebrating the theme “Thistle be Fun,” the 63rd annual Artichoke Festival takes place June 10-11 at the Monterey County Fair & Event Center, with online ticket sales now available. The 2023 festival will feature a wide-ranging variety of entertainment, including the popular Chef’s Demo, a farmers market, live music, wine tasting, NEW this year a Saturday Night comedy show, and …
Ocean Mist Farms, the leading grower and marketer of fresh artichokes in North America, announces the launch of its annual spring promotion conveying the health and nutrition benefits and accolades of their famous Gold Standard artichokes. The Gold Standard Giveaway will run from April 24 – June 1, giving participants the opportunity to win one Grand Prize VISA gift card …
Potato chips are America’s classic snack: crunchy, salty, greasy and tasting of potato or flavored with sour cream, vinegar, BBQ, maple bacon or Cajun dill. It shouldn’t be a surprise that Americans eat more potato chips than any other nation; more than four pounds a person a year, according to Potatoes USA. About 22 percent of the U.S. potato crop—nearly 7,500 million …
