Frieda Caplan, founder and chairman of the board of Frieda's Specialty Produce, will receive a Compass Award Aug. 12 at the Women's Leadership Exchange West Coast Business Summit at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, CA. WLE's Compass Awards honor women who have made significant contributions in their professional fields. Ms. Caplan is one of four successful executives being honored at the event. Founded in 1962, Frieda's Inc. was the first wholesale produce business in the United States owned and operated by a woman. Ms. Caplan gained international recognition for her role in

Paul Catania Sr. loved the produce industry. After returning from World War II in 1945, where he was a seaman in the Canadian Navy for two years, Mr. Catania went to work for his father, Michael's, produce brokerage, M.L. Catania, which was founded in 1929. He went on to manage its subsidiary, Superior Packing Co. in Bradford, ON, for 13 years. In 1963, he purchased M.L. Catania after his father's retirement and actively served as its president into the early 1990s. Along the way, he built the firm into what it is today, his son Paul Catania Jr. said. Mr. Catania died July 28 at age 83 at the

Movement of Australian citrus was a bit slower than normal this July due to decreased volumes of citrus in Australia, but the quality and condition of the fruit are excellent, according to the exclusive U.S. importer of that country's citrus crop. "During harvest, there were long stretches of morning fog that prevented producers from getting to the fruit for harvesting," said Stu Monaghan, national sales manager for DNE World Fruit Sales in Fort Pierce, FL. DNE is the only U.S. importer of Australian citrus, although its sub-agent, The Oppenheimer Group, based in Vancouver, BC, markets about

WASHINGTON -- Produce companies already labeling commodities by country of origin are not expected to be rocked by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's new labeling rule, and those that haven't started will find that USDA tried to minimize hefty regulatory costs. The department released its long-awaited COOL rule Aug. 1, which requires new labels for domestic and imported beef, chicken, goat meat, lamb, fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables, peanuts, pecans, ginseng and macadamia nuts. The 233-page interim final rule mirrored many of the changes for which the industry fought in the 2008 farm

PETROLINA, BRAZIL -- As part of an ongoing outreach program with its member countries, the U.S.-based National Mango Board held an informational meeting for Brazilian growers, shippers and exporters, here, Friday, July 25, in conjunction with an agriculture show that took place in the country's top mango-producing region. In Brazil on an information-gathering trip at the invitation of the country's fruit promotion board, The Produce News was present at the mango board meeting, which was attended by scores of participants. The meeting was conducted by William Watson, executive director of the

WASHINGTON -- A congressional hearing on the role of traceability in the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak took the first stab at exposing the gaps in the investigation and the damage done to the produce industry. "The poor handling of this outbreak has confused consumers and damaged producers," said Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), who chaired the July 30 House Agriculture Subcommittee hearing. "You could describe our current food-safety system as 'outbreak roulette.' One spin of the outbreak wheel and your industry may be bankrupt and your loved ones sickened," said Rep. Cardoza. But federal health