If 2020 revealed anything, it was the importance of our nation’s retailers and their dedicated front-line produce department workers. These underappreciated people maintained a steady supply of fresh and nutritious fruits and vegetables on store shelves despite supply chain challenges and the risks to their own health. This month, Del Rey Avocado and The Produce News salute the Gelson’s Markets produce department.

Last year showed us that working from home during a pandemic can be pretty tricky, with dinner table desks and new responsibilities to juggle. While some officemates made the workday harder to get through, these four-legged friends help spread the joys of Caturday and Sundog throughout the work week. Staying in touch can be a real challenge with travel restrictions and limited networking opportunities. Keep an eye out for your industry friends and colleagues — and have a little fun in the process — with our Sightings: Face to Face with the Produce Industry series. Be sure to get yourself out

As this most unusual year draws to a close, members of the produce industry are taking stock in the importance of celebrating the holidays and time spent with loved ones. In this Holiday Sightings series, we highlight this very special time of year and wish all a very happy and healthy holiday season. Help us spread the holiday cheer by submitting your own photo to newsdesk@theproducenews.com.

This Thanksgiving was like no other, with limited traveling, smaller group sizes and no morning touch football games. But food was still the star of the show — and it goes beyond the time-consuming turkey. Produce was the main ingredient in many of the side dishes and desserts that make this holiday so great.

With a record turnout, the Fresh Produce & Floral Council held a socially-distanced golf tournament in the Northern California town of Pleasanton on Thursday, Oct. 30. The Castlewood Country Club served as the venue as scores of golfers teed off in a scramble format. The record crowd and mask-wearing environment spoke to both the industry’s need for in-person contact and the seriousness of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The Southeast Produce Council, in partnership with Orlando Health and the Society for St. Andrew, held a food distribution event Saturday morning, Oct. 24, to help those in need in the Orlando, FL, area. About a dozen members of the produce industry volunteered for the farmer-to family event, which distributed fresh produce as well as meat and dairy items to those most affected during these unsettling times. "It was really nice to be able to help that community, which really needs the help right now," said David Sherrod, president and chief executive officer of the council. More than 2,500