The Produce Marketing Association announced that John Raudabaugh, vice president of systems implementation for Albertsons, will discuss the implementation and benefits of radio frequency identification technology and discuss his expectations of how the growth of this technology will affect members of the produce supply chain during PMA?s RFID Fresh Produce Academy & Expo on June 2 in Monterey, CA. This event is scheduled in conjunction with the June 2-4 PMA Retail Produce Solutions Conference, also in Monterey. Albertsons, a $40 billion retailer with more than 2,500 stores, has made a strong

Mauro Suazo has struggled to recover from Hurricane Mitch since the storm dumped up to four feet of rain on Honduras between Oct. 25 and Nov. 1, 1998. Always an active industry leader, Mr. Suazo has served as a consultant for Honduras' Department of Agriculture. He headed the Central American Melon Conference, hosted by Honduras, last summer. Speaking with The Produce News April 5 about Honduras? status in post-Mitch redevelopment, and the progress of Honduran produce exports, Mr. Suazo provided a mixed review. He said the national economy has grown by 3 percent for each of the last three

COLUMBIA, SC " Hugh Weathers, South Carolina?s commissioner of agriculture, announced that plans are coming together for relocating the Columbia State Farmers Market. The market has been located on a 50-acre site here on Bluff Road since the fall of 1951. It ranks second in the nation behind the Atlanta market and seventh in the United States and Canada in the volume of produce handled. The new market will be built on a "total land package of 196 acres," according to Wayne Mack, the department?s director of marketing, although he noted that "some of that is non-useable." The new site, off

Since 1901, The Blue Book has been considered the financial bible by members of the produce industry, who refer to it for comprehensive information regarding current and prospective clients and business partnerships. In 1905, The Blue Book, published by the Produce Reporter Co. in Carol Stream, IL, implemented its Trading Membership designation as a way to recognize firms that have demonstrated themselves to be financially sound and in possession of an exceptional reputation for honest trading policies and payment practices. In the century that has passed since the Trading Member designation

The Pride of New York Program?s marketing campaign, entitled "Portraits in Pride," promotes consumer awareness of the Pride of New York brand through the generations of family farms and food processors that have made New York state one of America?s leading suppliers of food and agricultural products. ?There is no question that the "pride? in Pride of New York emanates from our more than 1,200 members," said Nathan L. Rudgers, agriculture commissioner of New York. "The "Portraits in Pride? campaign enables the program to showcase the diversity of New York state?s growers and food processors and

Sy Katz Produce Inc. has moved its sales and administrative departments into new offices in Boone, NC. Sy Katz founded the company in the early 1940s; in 1984, Owen Margolis took over ownership. Although the firm is a substantial force in the Florida fresh produce market, it maintains its headquarters in Boone. ?My home is in North Carolina," said Mr. Margolis. "And we have maintained offices here for the past several years. At the beginning of April, we moved our administrative and sales offices into new headquarters, also in Boone. Our goal is to streamline our operation, eliminate