Tested by Edge Analytical Laboratories in Burlington, WA, Red Wing onions grown by Grigg Farms in Quincy, WA, and marketed by Sweet Clover Produce LLC in Walla Walla, WA, come with a certification that they are free of E. coli and Salmonella pathogens. According to Lorin Grigg, grower of the famed single-center red, the testing is performed on all 400 acres of Red Wings at his farm. "They are going to primarily restaurants," Mr. Grigg said of the onions, and he added that a specific customer requested the testing. When he spoke with The Produce News in late October, Mr. Grigg said that the

INDIANAPOLIS -- With the 2009-10 apple season underway, Imagination Farms has added an additional apple supplier, FirstFruits Marketing in Yakima, WA. "During the past three seasons we have experienced incremental growth in our apple program, driven by our successful year-round programs and exciting special promotions," Matthew Caito, chief executive officer of Imagination Farms, based here, said in a Nov. 12 press release. "The addition of FirstFruits as a new supplier to the 'Disney Garden' program will allow us to increase our sales reach and touch more consumers, complementing our mission

For growers who forego the four- or five-week Iceberg lettuce deal in Huron, CA, and harvest longer in Salinas, CA, the tail end of this season was not a strong one. Then, too, the short harvest in Huron was no picnic, either. Both avenues lead to a transition to desert harvests in areas such as the Imperial and Coachella valleys in California, and Yuma, AZ. Sales manager-partner Steve Church of Salinas, CA-based Church Bros. LLC told The Produce News Nov. 9 that the company's Iceberg lettuce harvest in Huron was slated to wrap up around Nov. 13. "It's not a stellar crop," Mr. Church said.

PHILADELPHIA -- On Nov. 10, as an emerging sun lit the sky to a grayish- pink over the east side of the Philadelphia Regional Produce Market, John Vena and Dan Kane closed the doors of a refrigerated container. It was the Philadelphia market's payment on a World Series wager with the New York Hunts Point Terminal Market. Mr. Vena is the Philadelphia terminal's marketing committee manager and owns John Vena Inc. Mr. Kane is the assistant manager of the Philadelphia Regional Produce Market. The New York Yankees clinched their 27th World Series championship with a decisive win over the

The Associated Press called it a "historic water deal." California Assembly member Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) called it a miracle. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called it "the most comprehensive water infrastructure package & in the history of California." But will the $11.1 billion water bond measure, which was signed by Mr. Schwarzenegger Nov. 9 and which is scheduled to go on the November 2010 ballot in California, actually deliver the promised construction of new water storage and conveyance infrastructure that California so desperately needs to provide reliable supplies of water

WASHINGTON -- A new survey has found that some state health investigators miss asking questions about fruit and vegetable consumption during initial interviews with people suffering from foodborne illnesses. State and local health departments play a key role in investigating foodborne illness outbreaks by contacting people with laboratory-confirmed illnesses, recording possible exposures to pathogens, conducting inspections of food establishments and performing DNA analyses. Policies that govern state investigations vary widely across the country, an issue the produce industry discovered