The board of directors of Fruit Patch Inc. announced the appointment of Scott Wallace as president and chief executive officer, effective July 13. Mr. Wallace, a native of Covina, CA, and a graduate of San Francisco State University, is a sales and marketing veteran with experience in a wide range of well-known consumer brands. Most recently, he served as president of global operations for SVP Worldwide Corp., a consumer products manufacturer owned by KKR. Prior to that, he was president, CEO and chairman of the board of the Gardenburger Corp., where he led the financial and market turnaround

Geno Valdes, president of Sunburst Farms 10 years ago, has returned to the Miami-based floral company, again as its president. "I'm excited to be back and to work with so many good employees who were here when I left and know what it takes to achieve success in this industry," he told The Produce News. Mr. Valdes left the floral industry to become executive vice president of FreshPoint, a Sysco Corp. subsidiary selling specialty produce in central Florida. He returned to the floral industry, briefly serving as vice president of purchasing for 1-800 Flowers "until Mario Nannetti and his family

Bashas', Arizona's largest grocery store retailer with 158 stores, filed for bankruptcy protection in mid-July and announced that it would close 10 stores by July 21. The amount of produce debt covered by the PACA Trust amendment appears to be in the neighborhood of $5 million, and experts expect that it will be paid. In fact, Bashas' has informed its creditors that it hopes to reorganize and emerge from bankruptcy within three months. The firm blamed the national credit crisis and slow growth in Arizona for its financial woes. The retailer announced that closing 10 underperforming stores and

The 2009 Northwest cherry season has not been without its challenges, with what one marketer described as a "barnburner of a crop." By all accounts, the Bing crop is the largest on record, with June estimates from Northwest Cherries at 16 million to 18.5 million 20-pound equivalents. That number was significantly higher than the 2007 crop, which was itself a record at just under 15 million boxes. Mid-July estimates came in closer to 20 million boxes. Moreover, early July heat brought on cherry harvest in higher elevations at the same time that fruit was being picked in lower regions. Some

The California Avocado Commission in Irvine, CA, which represents the state's 6,000 avocado growers, has announced staff reductions of nearly 40 percent. Tom Bellamore, who was named president of the commission in June, told The Produce News, Tuesday, July 14, "Last Friday there was an announcement out to the industry from me that we have taken the first formal step in reorganizing the commission and restructuring, and part of that entailed a reduction in force." It was a "major" cut, he said. "We went from 18 people down to 11." Mr. Bellamore, who had been acting president of the commission

WASHINGTON -- Food safety legislation should not hand the Food & Drug Administration quarantine authority and should not require finished product testing -- two fixes the produce industry asked for at a July 16 hearing in the House Agriculture Committee. Ranchers and farmers said they could not support the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, which is heading to the House floor after passing a committee in June. The bill, they fear, would expand FDA's authority on the farm for producers already regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "Farms are explicitly included in extensive