Andrea Astrachan of Ahold USA was elected chairman of the Produce for Better Health Foundation's board of trustees at its 2010 annual meeting April 8-10 in Half Moon Bay, CA. Ms. Astrachan most recently served as vice chairman of the foundation. The board of trustees recognized the service of outgoing 2009 Chairman Paul Klutes of C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. Mr. Klutes will remain on the executive committee as immediate past chairman. Roger Pepperl of Stemilt Growers Inc. was elected vice chairman, and Paul Palmby of Seneca Foods Corp. was elected secretary-treasurer. Marty Ordman of Dole Food

WASHINGTON - The United States and Brazil struck a tentative deal April 6 over a cotton dispute that threatened to result in millions of dollars of tariffs on U.S. goods, including fruits and nuts. The long-running dispute over U.S. farm subsidies culminated in August when the World Trade Organization ruled that Brazil could impose $820 million in trade countermeasures against U.S. products for trade violations. On March 8, Brazil announced a list of products that would face higher tariffs, starting April 7. Automobiles, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, electronics, textiles, wheat, and

ORLANDO, FL -- Two-dozen heavy-hitters representing all facets of the produce industry gathered April 7 in a conference room at the Ritz-Carlton Grande Lakes, here, to tap into the knowledge base of Gary Fleming, a leading authority on produce traceability. Mr. Fleming's presentation was part of an ongoing series of continuing- education seminars hosted across North America by N2N University. The "university" is the offspring of N2N Global, a Longwood, FL-based company that provides business solutions to the produce industry, including well- known software like Food Safety Manager and the

After several years of California blueberry producers and handlers moving toward creating a blueberry commission, the California Blueberry Commission has become a reality. A referendum vote was passed by blueberry producers and handlers in February. Nominations were put out in February and board elections were held in March. The commission held its first official meeting March 25. Buck Klein, part owner of Gourmet Blueberry-CA LLC and newly elected chairman of the California Blueberry Commission, told The Produce News March 30 that the commission's role will be in areas such as research and

Official estimates for the 2010 spring grape crop from the state of Sonora, Mexico, were not due to be released until April 16, but as of late March there was general agreement among most importers of Mexican grapes with whom The Produce News talked that the crop would be neither exceptionally small nor exceptionally large. Most importers expected a larger volume than last year for the industry as a whole, with figures in the vicinity of 14 million to 16 million boxes being the most frequently mentioned, but always with the caveat that with several weeks of weather to go before the start of

WALLA WALLA, WA -- For the second consecutive year, artist Diana Schmidt has taken the top award for her Walla Walla Sweet Onion Festival poster designs at the Washington Festivals & Events Association conference. The conference, held March 7-9 at Seaside, OR, saw Ms. Schmidt win for the 2009 poster heralding the 25th annual festival. The colorful poster, depicting a vintage pickup loaded with enormous Walla Walla Sweets, was the second in what Kathy Fry, director of marketing for the Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee, referred to as the "truck series." "Last year Diana won for the