New Zealand cuisine took center stage recently at the Culinary Institute of America, when about 150 future chefs at the prestigious Hyde Park, NY, campus attended a New Zealand food and beverage master class featuring Zespri green and gold kiwifruit.

The two-evening class, "New Thinking, New Zealand," brought together the flavors for which the South Pacific country is renowned. Experts on kiwifruit, venison, shellfish, apples and wine shared key culinary information, while New Zealand chefs Grant Jackson and Graham Brown prepared signature dishes.

Maine Gov. John E. Baldacci announced that Robert W. Spear would be stepping down as commissioner of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Food & Rural Resources.

"During Bob's tenure as commissioner, he has shepherded the department's development of some bold and important programs, whether Senior Farm Share, Farms for the Future, or the dairy stabilization," Gov. Baldacci said in a statement. "Maine's farmers have certainly benefited from his leadership and I have enjoyed working with him."

"First and foremost in importance, I am happy to report that none of our people were injured by Hurricane Wilma," said Billy Heller, chief operating officer of Pacific Tomato Growers Ltd. in Palmetto, FL. "Regarding crop conditions, however, some of our growing regions in the state fared better than others. We will be harvesting as planned in the Palmetto and Ruskin areas [of Florida], but it is too early to tell the exact extent of damage done in this region.

"When Hurricane Wilma moved across the state, it was followed by a cold front," said Ray Gilmer, director of public affairs for the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association in Maitland. "That front turned into what is today [Tuesday, Oct. 25] an absolutely beautiful day. It's 65 degrees and crystal clear."

It is the kind of day that draws thousands of visitors and winter residents to the state in increasing numbers each year. But that is also part of the problem.

In Fresno, CA, community activists cajoled the city council into spending $11 million in redevelopment funds on a Food Maxx supermarket.

In Newark, NJ, it took six years of lobbying and two years of legal battles to turn 62 blighted parcels into a Pathmark supermarket.

In rural Chinle, AZ, a community development corporation on the Navajo Nation built a Basha's Market to serve the local Native Americans, and in so doing created more than 170 jobs for local residents.

Looking after a large portion of a major apple orchard takes more than brawn, but four generations of Forrence family members have taken any "brains or brawn" analogies you may have heard in the past to new levels.