SACRAMENTO, CA -- Mexico has announced that it will once again allow imports of California spinach but is requiring that any imported spinach products must by grown and shipped by member-companies of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement. Mexico's Federal Commission for the Protection Against Sanitary Risks announced the import requirements in late November. Canada issued similar import requirements earlier this year. The California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement was established in 2007 and operates with oversight from the California Department of Food & Agriculture. This newly

Dayka & Hackett LLC in Reedley, CA, has expanded its sales team with the hiring of two high-profile industry veterans, Julian Lipschitz and Mike Weaver, in what the company characterized as "a dramatic shift within the California grape and tree fruit marketing community." According to a company press release, "the move is expected to significantly bolster Dayka & Hackett's market share" in the grape and tree fruit categories. Mr. Lipschitz and Mr. Weaver, who started with Dayka & Hackett on Dec. 7, were previously with Fruit Patch Sales LLC in Dinuba, CA, the largest marketer of tree fruit in

WASHINGTON -- After the measure seemed hopelessly stalled, the Senate passed the 2007 farm bill Dec. 14, which will benefit fruit and vegetable growers, not in direct subsidies but in new funding for marketing, research and nutrition programs. "After months of negotiations, we were able to work within a very strict budget allocation to complete our work and pass a farm bill that is good for agriculture, good for rural areas and good for the health of Americans," Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) said Dec. 14. The Senate passed the bill by a 79-14 vote after the bill was

The Chilean fresh fruit season is kicking into high gear as the first ships from Valparaiso arrive in U.S. ports. Cherries and apricots are already arriving in significant volume, and quality is outstanding, according to a mid-December press release from Lewis & Neale Inc. in New York, which handles public relations for the Chilean Fresh Fruit Association. Cherry orchards benefited from a cold winter with good dormancy and a heavy bloom in the spring. Air shipments of other stone fruit (peaches, plums and nectarines) have been light, but with the arrival of the first ships in mid-December

WASHINGTON -- A federal court has given the Bush administration until March 24 to revise its "no-match letter" regulation, and the Department of Homeland Security said it plans to publish a new proposal this month. A coalition of labor and business groups has been trying to block DHS from applying the new rule and a federal judge agreed in October to put it on hold. At issue is a rule that would require employers to resolve discrepancies with employees whose records do not match those from the Social Security Administration within 90 days of receipt of a no-match letter. DHS said it plans to

IRVINE, CA -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture appointed new members to the federal Hass Avocado Board during the board's Nov. 28 meeting. The HAB board of directors then elected the new term's officers: Len Francis as chairman, Jim Donovan as vice chairman, Don Reeder as treasurer (re-elected) and Ed Figueroa as secretary (re-elected). The officers will serve a one-year term ending November 2008. Mr. Francis has served on the Hass Avocado Board since its inception in 2002, fulfilling the role of the board's treasurer in 2005-06 and vice chairman in 2006-07. In addition to his duties with