"The crop this year is absolutely excellent," said Ivan Noonan, general manager of the PEI Potato Board headquartered in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. "Growers had a perfect growing season and the harvest went smoothly. Volume is what we consider average -- a bit smaller than last year -- but everything grew well because there were no extreme pressures from an overabundant crop." Prince Edward Island, commonly called Spud Island, is a small Canadian province located off the country's eastern mainland. Approximately 600 growers produce potatoes on the island's 2,184 square miles

HOUSTON -- Is there a common market in North America's future with regard to agricultural trade? It is something that Jeffrey Max Jones, Mexico's undersecretary of agriculture, would like to see happen, and it is something he has been working toward for some time. Mr. Jones told The Produce News during an interview recently at the PMA Fresh Summit, here, that while he was in the Mexican senate from 2000 to 2006, before being appointed to his current post, he was "very much involved in the creation of a North American agri-food marketing integration coalition." It is a vision he has had "for a

Salinas, CA-based Growers Express and nearby Moss Landing, CA-based Capurro Farms are in discussions about a possible partnership between the two companies, Growers Express President and Chief Executive Officer Jamie Strachan confirmed to The Produce News Tuesday, Nov. 20. "We're trying to figure out if there's a fit and where there's a fit," said Mr. Strachan, who characterized the discussions as "positive." "We don't have a first draft of a legal document in any way, shape or form," Mr. Strachan said of discussions between the companies. Should a deal materialize, Capurro would become a

PHILADELPHIA -- Bob Paliama is the recipient of the 2007 Friend of Chile Award. Mr. Paliama, who is president of Delaware River Stevedores, based here, received the award, which is presented annually to an outstanding member of the regional community with a strong commitment to fostering increased commercial and trade relations between Chile and greater Philadelphia. The award is presented at the annual award luncheon hosted by the Chilean & American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia. This year, the meeting was held in a ballroom overlooking the Delaware River. About 250 members of

As part of an effort to oppose what it believes is an unwarranted block of late-season Chilean red grapes by Coachella, CA, grape producers, the Chilean Exporters Association, known as ASOEX_and based in Santiago, has requested related market information from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. With this was a request for a 60-day extension on the comment period related to a proposed marketing order change. David Holzworth, who works from Washington, DC, as general counsel for ASOEX, requested this information on Nov. 2 from the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service fruit and vegetable program

The Fresh Demand Working Group is set to launch an important signature campaign Jan. 15. "Potatoes: Goodness Unearthed" is the culmination of several months of in-depth consumer research by a leading New York-based international branding agency. Fresh Demand Working Group Co-Chair Tim O'Connor told The Produce News, "This is a campaign that will engage the entire industry." The Denver-based organization works cooperatively with the U.S. Potato Board's Domestic Marketing Committee, United Potato Growers of America, state industry organizations and grower-shipper representatives. An aggressive