The National Watermelon Promotion Board increased its assessment by 50 percent to six cents per hundredweight from four cents on Jan. 1, according to NWPB officials. A lengthy two-and-a-half year process culminated with the U.S. secretary of agriculture reviewing and approving the increase recommended by the NWPB board of directors, Mark Arney, the board's executive director, told The Produce News Jan. 4. A release issued Nov. 1, 2007, by the USDA detailed the increased assessment. "Handlers and producers of 10 acres or more will split the costs by paying 3 cents [per hundredweight] each

TRAVER, CA -- In late 2007, several members of the California stone fruit and grape industries came together to form a new fruit shipping and marketing organization called Scattaglia Growers & Shippers LLC with offices located at the New Leaf packing and cold storage facility here. The partners and marketing staff of SGS formally announced the company's formation on Tuesday, Jan. 8, although SGS had actually opened for business during December. According to a fact sheet furnished by the company, "Scattaglia Farms, a million-box shipper of stone fruits, was established 30 years ago in

Madison, ME-based Backyard Farms, one of the larger New England greenhouse growers of high-quality vine-ripened "Backyard Beauties" tomatoes, has appointed Roy Lubetkin president and chief executive officer. Mr. Lubetkin, 50, will be responsible for leading the company's strategic growth efforts with ongoing "best-in-class" production process improvements, evaluation of new sustainable energy technologies, development of new varietals, exploration of new crop introductions and pursuit of wider geographic reach. Prior to joining Backyard Farms, Mr. Lubetkin was president of Country Products

AgriWorld Exchange, the first live, on-line agri-trading marketplace, announced that Oxnard, CA-based Mission Produce Inc. has signed an agreement to trade fresh produce using AgriWorld Exchange. The agreement enables Mission Produce - one of the world's larger avocado producers and shippers - to offer its grower base the latest technological methods for selling its products. Ross Wileman, vice president of sales and marketing for Mission Produce, said that there is value in the arrangement if trading through Menlo Park, CA- based AgriWorld Exchange speeds up transactions. AgriWorld Exchange

Gilroy, CA-based Christopher Ranch enjoys strong sales of its garlic and ginger items and promotes its "California Grown" brand garlic. Both garlic and ginger are often associated with the Asian palate. Patsy Ross of Christopher's marketing department said that ginger is closer to a specialty item and is not as common as garlic. The firm offers a four-and-a-quarter-ounce bottle of ginger-garlic stir fry mix and a nine-ounce bottle of ginger for retail. "Most ginger comes from our main source in Hawaii," Ms. Ross said. "It's the best quality - its hands are nice and thick." Christopher Ranch

The "we dodged the bullet" clich? came a little too soon following the early January cold front that passed through Florida from the north. While field vegetables and fruits, including citrus, came through relatively unscathed, late reports arrived about a week after stating that strawberries suffered more than originally thought. And it looks like the damage could change the strawberry forecast for the upcoming Valentine's Day holiday -- a typically strong strawberry market time. "The amount of damage reported from grower to grower varies," Lloyd Rosen, vice president and marking director for