Choptank Transport, based in Preston, MD, announced Jacob Griffith as its new general manager of the company’s Tampa, FL, office.

The 2015 Jersey Fresh produce season is underway and should be highlighted by good quantities of high-quality produce. According to the New Jersey state climatologist, this winter was a cold and snowy season with below-average temperatures. March temperatures averaged 35.8 degrees, which is 5.3 degrees below normal and ranks as the 14th coldest winter since 1895. March 2015 was 0.5 degrees “milder” than March 2014. With the exception of 1914-15 and 1940-41, no other consecutive months of March have averaged such cold temperatures in the past 121 years.

MILWAUKEE — “Consistency, quality and a wonderful eating experience” are the qualities demanded for retail stores united under Roundy’s Supermarkets Inc. Steve Jarzombek, vice president of produce, noted that eating habits of Americans are changing toward a healthier lifestyle. With that, retail produce departments with “great quality day in and day out” will benefit, he said. “It’s exciting to see people eating arugula, kale and herbs. It’s a really fun time in this industry.”

EGG HARBOR CITY, NJ — Warm weather in early May has brought on spring crops that were running a week or more late, which is music to the ears of many growers in South Jersey.

“We were about five to 10 days late, depending on the item, but the warm weather has brought on the crops, allowing us to start catching up,” said Tom Consalo of The Fresh Wave, the sales arm of Consalo Family Farms, based in Vineland, NJ.

Although Florida weather has been warmer than Arnold Mack, president and chief executive officer of McMelon Inc., would like to see it for watermelon production, he said the news isn’t all that bad.

“It’s been a little warm,” he told The Produce News in mid-May. “But I’ll take the heat as long as it doesn’t rain.” Heat means sweet when it comes to watermelon production, he commented.

All indications are that the 2015 spring-summer mango season is shaping up to be a record breaker. The short supplies of 2014 are long forgotten as suppliers are reporting a flood of mangos in the marketplace and unbelievable volumes shipping each week.