Last year's West Side melon deal in California came in at 19.3 million 40- pound cartons, a slight decline from 2008 totals. Jerry Munson, manager of the Cantaloupe Advisory Board, said that the board anticipates 20 million 40-pound cartons in 2010. In 2009, West Side growers were short of product toward the end of the year. Most crop is in by mid-September. The final total ratchets upwards of the projection as the harvest continues to Oct. 1 or later. "Toward the end of the season [in 2009,] we didn’t get late production," Mr. Munson said. “The season didn’t last long, but they had been

Tapping into consumer interest in celebrity chefs, the California Avocado Commission put together an innovative public relations program combining new social media tactics and the organization's ongoing relationship with chefs Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger, known together as the Too Hot Tamales, to spread new ideas that encourage demand for California avocados. Ms. Feniger also has received national attention as a finalist on Bravo’s hit reality series, "Top Chef Masters." “With more than 70 million pounds of avocados consumed around Cinco de Mayo, the California Avocado Commission

A provision that allows sellers to extend payment terms beyond 30 days without jeopardizing their PACA Trust rights has been proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with comments due by Aug. 9. Matthew McInerney, executive vice president of Western Growers Association in Newport Beach, CA, applauded the proposal, which he said came from the USDA's Fruit & Vegetable Industry Advisory Committee. "I applaud them for recognizing the common practices that occur in our industry with regard to payment schedules and proposing this amendment as a solution," he told The Produce News. "I have not

While it was not enough to salvage a disastrous season, Florida tomato growers were happy to find a market for at least another $6 million worth of product in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which announced plans June 4 to spend up to that amount to immediately purchase fresh Florida tomatoes for federal food nutrition assistance programs. Florida tomato growers are still reeling after freezing weather wiped out the winter crop, and a too-cool spring resulted in a glut of product coming on at once. In May, tomatoes that cost at least $8 a box to produce were selling for as little as $4 a

Dole wants people to know that bananas are not just for breakfast. And to encourage consumers to think of the fruit as a snack for all times of the day and night, the Westlake Village, CA-based marketer has launched the Go Bananas After Dark campaign. "The great majority of bananas consumed in the U.S. are eaten for breakfast, lunch or as a daytime snack," Bill Goldfield, communications manager of Dole Fresh Fruit Co., told The Produce News. "In general, less than probably 10 percent of consumers consider bananas as a dinnertime food -- and I would suggest the actual percentage eaten for

Produce items served in Subway sandwiches are under scrutiny as Illinois health officials investigate an outbreak involving 60 Salmonella cases across 22 counties. As of June 8, Illinois Department of Public Health reported 60 cases of Salmonella Hvittingfoss, an uncommon serotype, which appears to be linked to food served at Subway restaurants. Illinois reports only one or two cases of this type of Salmonella each year. "At this time, a specific food source has not been identified in association with this outbreak," the Illinois Department of Public Health said June 7. Subway said that the