While Wada Farms has expanded in recent years to include watermelon and some veg items, it is still very much known as a potato and onion house, and that is particularly true with its organic offerings. Wada’s organic line includes russet and varietal potatoes from late July through mid-April; onions from September to April; and sweet potatoes from October to early September.

After tripling the company’s acreage on its home site in Leamington, ON, over the last two years, Pure Flavor has begun construction of a new 40-acre high-tech, fully lit facility as well as a new 210,000-square-foot centralized packhouse distribution center on the same site.

Lakeside Organic Gardens, which has been growing and shipping organic vegetables for more than 25 years, has added organic artichokes to its product mix.

“We are super happy to be growing artichokes in the Lakeside label along the Central California coast,” said Sales Manager Brian Peixoto. “Our volume and quality are fantastic as artichokes thrive in this California coastal climate.”

Mount Adams Fruit entered into a deal to acquire the majority of the Oregon pear assets formerly owned by Stadelman Fruit Co. LLC, based in Zillah, WA, from the S.S. Steiner Co. As a part of the transaction, Mount Adams Fruit also expects to employ all of the employees in this division, as well.

Boskovich Fresh Food Group’s subsidiary Fresh Prep LLC launched its next innovative retail line, Fair Earth Farms, to the industry this month with six SKUs. Fair Earth Farms will package organic salad kits and salad blends in plant-based, fully compostable bags, printed using water-based inks that will break down into rich, organic soil — this unique fully compostable packaging is patent pending. Building a new model for the future, Fair Earth Farms maintains that the foods we eat come from an earth we must nurture in return.  

We are now in the hottest temperature period of summer. Excessive heat in several farming areas is causing a stress impact on various vegetable crops. Triple-digit temperatures are expected in many parts of the country. This is putting a lot of pressure on some of the produce markets.