The U.S. Food & Drug Administration indicated that one traceback in the foodborne illness outbreak linked to red round and Roma/plum tomatoes is complete to certain farms in both Mexico and Florida, but stressed that the contamination may not have occurred on the farm, according to a June 20 Issue Alert from the Produce Marketing Association. FDA is sending investigators to Florida and Mexico to look at the entire distribution chain to determine where contamination might have occurred. FDA indicated it believes the tomatoes were contaminated at a single point. FDA indicated that this will be a

The Maine Potato Board, Wal-Mart supercenters, Bushwick Potato Co. and Guerrette Farms embarked on a campaign to bring the freshest tablestock potatoes to Maine consumers. Maine Commissioner of Agriculture Seth Bradstreet III was on hand late last month to kick off the campaign at the Waterville [ME] Wal-Mart supercenter. Wal-Mart supercenters across the state featured 10-pound bags of potatoes with the "Get Real, Get Maine!" logo. DiMare Fresh and Backyard Farms also participated in providing fresh, fully vine-ripened tomatoes right from their state-of-the-art greenhouse in Madison, ME. The

Table grape growers in the San Joaquin Valley generally are expecting their earliest varieties to start a week or more later this year than they did last year. Some call it "later than normal"; others say that last year was early and that this year is closer to normal. But with just a few exceptions, most growers who have grapes in early districts do not expect to start harvesting in any significant volume before the Fourth of July. Almost without exception, growers are expecting good volume and good to exceptional quality. A freeze in late April did diminish the crop somewhat, but while the

If good things come in threes, then continued success is in store for ENZA's Jazz Apple Cycling Team as it speeds across North America on its third consecutive racing tour that started in May and runs through August. With competitions scheduled throughout the United States and Canada, the group of eight elite and developing riders from New Zealand has already met with applause - not unlike the response consumers have had toward Jazz apples, David Nelley, pipfruit and pineapple category director at The Oppenheimer Group, said in a press release. The Vancouver, BC-based company is the exclusive

Six months after naming Allen Vangelos to the position of president and chief executive officer on an interim basis, the owners and board of directors of Sun World International LLC have made the appointment permanent. The announcement was made in a June 12 press release following a nationwide search for a candidate to fill the position on a permanent basis. "Sun World's board and management team are delighted with Al's decision to accept the position on a permanent basis," board Chairman Christopher Parker said in the release. Mr. Vangelos has brought enthusiasm, valuable industry knowledge

YEADON, PA -- Specializing in serving high-ticket, high-quality specialty produce sales to white tablecloth restaurants in the Philadelphia area is the focus of Killian's Harvest Green Inc., which is headquartered in a red brick warehouse that was once part of the operations of The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. Inc., which is based in Montvale, NJ. The firm is owned by Ed Dever, who described Killian's as "a distributor, mostly of fresh fruits and produce." He added, "We cater to white tablecloth restaurants" in the Philadelphia area. "Seventy-five percent of our customers are restaurants."