Naples, FL-based Global Berry Farms LLC has reached an agreement through its Naturipe Berry Growers arm to market strawberries grown by Watsonville, CA-based Pacific Gold Farms. Pacific Gold's strawberries will be marketed under Global's "Naturipe" label. Pacific Gold Farms will continue to grow berries but will no longer market them itself. The agreement becomes effective with the 2006 harvest beginning in Orange County. Pacific Gold has over 700 acres of ranches in Orange County, Watsonville and Salinas. With the agreement in place, "Naturipe" brand conventional strawberry volume will grow

Do these statements sound familiar to you? CEO: "We're going to give our customers the best products all of the time at the lowest prices along with superior service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Blah, blah, blah ..." Division vice president: "This new corporate produce program is one of the best ever and supervision will get behind it all the way. We'll support any extra labor it needs to make it work. I'm not just saying this because company officers are here at our meeting. Blah, blah, blah ..." Senior operating officer: "This year, we plan to train every employee in our company to

Sun World International LLC in Bakersfield, CA, and the Plant Board of Israel in Tel Aviv reached a definitive agreement Nov. 21 relative to the licensed production and marketing of Suplumeleven and Suplumtwelve variety plums in Israel. The agreement was announced by the plant board manager, Gadi Horvitz, and Sun World Senior Vice President David Marguleas. The agreement settles a longstanding dispute between Sun World and the Israeli fruit industry over unauthorized plantings of various proprietary plum varieties bred and owned by Sun World. The plum varieties feature black-skin and red flesh

Rosenthal & Klein Inc., a fixture at New York's Hunts Point Terminal Market in the Bronx, NY, for nearly 30 years, has ceased operations and filed for reorganization in federal bankruptcy court under Chapter 11. According to Ken Schultz, vice president of rating services for The Blue Book, based in Carol Stream, IL, Rosenthal & Klein, which was incorporated in 1977 and had been a Blue Book trading member since 1982, had a temporary restraining order filed against it and its owners, Alec Rosenthal and Burt Klein, on Sept. 30 by Deerfield, FL-based Astern International Inc. for $73,590.20

Minneapolis-based Wholesale Produce Supply announced that it has opened an affiliated sales office in Winnipeg, Manitoba. "With the opening of this sales office, we are demonstrating our commitment to better serve our customers in Canada," said Brian Hauge, president of Wholesale Produce. "Our future goals are to further expand our business in Canada, which will enable us to provide even greater customer service. We are very excited and optimistic to commence this new connection, and we believe we will continue to develop and increase our business in Canada." The office, which opened Oct. 1

Golden Farms Express, a top-quality fresh citrus independent grower and packer from the Dinuba area in the San Joaquin Valley, is the latest California producer to affiliate with DNE California Inc. beginning with this fall's Navel packing season. "Experience counts, and in this instance, it works both ways," DNE World Fruit Sales President Greg Nelson said in a statement. "The producer team has more than 80 years in the business, and our own experienced California division's sales team has been acquainted with them for more than four decades. We rely on that combination of support and trust