Columbia Marketing International Vice President Mike Hambelton was honored in February as the 2007 Apple Citizen of the Year, an annual award presented at the Wenatchee, WA, Apple Blossom Festival. Mr. Hambelton was formally recognized Feb. 21 by Apple Blossom Queen Laura DeCamp and her attendants, Mikel Stanaway and Courtney Roberts. The award was first presented in 1981 in recognition of the Apple Blossom Festival's roots as well as apple industry leaders who have proclaimed Wenatchee as the "Apple Capital of the World." According to Bob Mast, CMI director of marketing, the Apple Citizen of

With the San Joaquin Valley grape season just a few months away, the Vancouver, BC-based Oppenheimer Group has strengthened its link with one of the region's top growers. Oppenheimer will market a full range of grape varieties produced by Garcia Family Farms Inc. in Arvin, CA, starting in mid-June, according to Josh Leichter, Oppenheimer's grape category director. "Garcia Family Farms grows excellent-quality grapes," Mr. Leichter said in a press release. "They also produce some of the earliest fruit in the San Joaquin Valley, so we can seamlessly supply our customers as the Mexican grape

The Vancouver, BC-based Oppenheimer Group announced that Simone Naggiar has joined the company as a business development representative serving retail, wholesale and foodservice clients in western Canada. Ms. Naggiar, who joined the company in late January, is responsible for implementing effective promotions for Oppenheimer products in partnership with customers in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Yukon and Northwest Territories. With a strong background in customer service and sales in the food and beverage industry, Ms. Naggiar most recently was a territory manager

The California Department of Food & Agriculture announced the results of the continuation referendum for the California Pistachio Commission and confirmed that California pistachio producers did not achieve the required threshold vote to continue the commission. "The CPC has served the industry extremely well for the past 26 years, and I know that many of my fellow growers share my profound disappointment that we could not resolve our differences that have ultimately resulted in this vote that terminates the CPC," commission Chairman Kevin Herman said in a statement. "I have always been a

At least one day a week, Brandon Gritters, a produce salesman at Interfresh in Fullerton, CA, takes the train to work specifically so he can ride his bike 25 miles back home. When one is trying to combine 20 hours of bike riding a week with a full-time job of selling produce, creativity is key. "I ride pretty much every afternoon when I get home until the evening," he said. "I like it when the days start getting longer so I don't have to ride in the dark." Such is the life of a Category 1 road bike racer who starts every morning in the dark selling produce to his accounts in northern

TAMPA, FL -- As the trend toward organic produce continues to grow, produce suppliers and retailers are well served to gain a better understanding about what drives consumer decisions to buy organic produce. A panel discussion held here Feb. 24 during the Southeast Produce Council conference set out to examine some of the buying habits of organic consumers. Moderated by Steve Lutz, executive vice president of the Perishables Group, the panel was comprised of representatives from three retailers that have made a concerted effort in marketing organic produce and two suppliers that expect to