SUN VALLEY, ID -- As a wildfire raged just a few miles from the site of the Idaho Grower-Shipper Association's 79th annual meeting, held here Aug. 29-31, members of the Idaho potato industry tackled their own hot topics and explored ways to better manage and promote the state's most important produce crop. The 72-square-mile fire, which started Aug. 16 as the result of a lightning strike, forced the evacuation of about 2,500 homes in the Ketchum area just a mile down the road from the Sun Valley Lodge and Inn, where the industry gathered to hear forecasts of the 2007-08 Idaho potato season. In

Sean Villa, son of Great West Produce Inc. owner Paul Villa, who has been working for the family business for about six years, has been named vice president of the Commerce, CA-based company. He also continues in sales, according to Paul Villa. Sean Villa's new title of vice president is part of "a process," Paul Villa said. "He is taking on more and more as time goes on. ... Eventually, he will be running [the company] and I will be calling him to see how things are going," but that will be several years "down the road," he said. Ben Heck, who was previously sales coordinator at Great West

During the seven-day period beginning Aug. 13, 16,496 visitors came to The Nunes Co. web site and spent an average of one minute and 46 seconds leafing through the pages on www.foxy.com. Two sections in particular, "What's New" and "Great Recipes," garnered the most attention. By almost any gauge, those numbers are impressive. Matt Seeley, director of marketing for The Nunes Co., said that over the past few months, both the number and length of visits has increased. Very early in the game, The Nunes Co. saw the value of the Internet and locked up some very good domain names. Besides its

When tailgaters across the United States prepare for their next parking lot picnic, they may be thinking a lot more about adding a produce favorite to their usual burger, hot dog and salad fare. The Hass Avocado Board has pulled out its marketing playbook to create a game plan to encouraging consumers to include Hass avocados in tailgating events. Jose Luis Obregon, the board's managing director, is enthusiastic about the promotion's potential. "The Hass avocado tailgating promotion is firing on all cylinders," he said in a release. "With an integrated marketing program featuring television

Hurricane Felix, which reached Category 5 status and slammed into the Nicaragua-Honduras border Sept. 4, was reduced to a fast-moving tropical storm over eastern Guatemala. The storm broke up and lost strength as it hit the Honduran mountains, according to Martin Maldonado of Miami-based Team Produce International Inc. Ed Loyd, manager of investor relations and corporate communications for Chiquita Brands International in Cincinnati, said Sept. 5, "It's a little early for us to know what potential impact Hurricane Felix will have. We do have a number of farms in northern Honduras and Guatemala

Harry Morford, senior director of produce, procurement, merchandising and marketing for the Nash Finch Co. in Minneapolis, said that over 1,200 people attended the company's second annual Fall Food Show Aug. 20-22 at the Minneapolis Convention Center. "We operate in three regions of the country: the Midwest, Great Lakes and Southeast regions," said Mr. Morford. "We hold two shows in each region annually. This was our second, or fall show, for the selling season in the Midwest region." The company has six produce distribution centers in the Midwest, and until two years ago, each hosted its own