Aanika Biosciences, a Brooklyn, NY-based biotechnology startup focused on bringing trust, transparency and traceability to the food system, will be entering into a first-of-its-kind bio-backed insurance agreement with Satur Farms, a specialty crop producer with operations in New York and Arizona.

The Strengthening Organic Enforcement final rule establishes additional risk-based requirements intended to maintain integrity of the organic supply chain through fraud prevention. Specific aspects of the SOE final rule will reduce the types of uncertified operations in the organic handling supply chain, require import certificates for all organic products entering the United States, and provide additional oversight authority to the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Organic Program.

Metro Inc. donated $50 million worth of food in 2022, the equivalent of 9.9 million pounds of food or 9 million meals to food banks in Ontario and Quebec. In addition, Metro also made a financial contribution of $5.5 million to various causes.

Albertsons Cos. completed a rollout of the Afresh predictive ordering and inventory management platform. The system was implemented in more than 2,200 Albertsons Cos. banner stores, including Safeway, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, Vons and ACME. The new platform allows store teams to better order and plan fresh produce inventory, reducing food waste and achieving superior freshness in their stores.

It was four years ago when Glenmont, NY-based New York Apple Sales launched Yes! Apples, a consumer-friendly apple brand rooted in quality.

“Yes! Apples maintains a steady supply of apples throughout the year, and winter apples are a big part of that mix,” said Tenley Fitzgerald, vice president of marketing for the company. “While apples are traditionally associated with the fall season, now consumers have access to a variety of apples all year round.”

FirstFruits Farms is applying data-science to the apple category, investing heavily with its newly-formed Data Science Center of Excellence. “The center allows us to merge two important parts of our company into one cohesive and collaborative team,” said Melissa Hunter, data analyst at FirstFruits Farms. The newly formed department is a intentional move to not only embrace, but equip FirstFruits Farms’ sales and marketing teams with live analysis from their in-house data team.