The Hass Avocado Board in Irvine, CA, which represents growers and importers of Hass avocados in the U.S. market, continues, as it has for about the past two and a half years, to focus primarily on nutrition research and nutrition marketing “in a way that supports the category as a whole,” according to Emiliano Escobedo, executive director.

Bigger is not always better, and when someone wants a few fresh slices of avocados on a sandwich or salad, for example, the average sized avocado is often just about twice too big, and half of it winds up in the fridge, sometimes to be forgotten until it no longer looks appealing. For such single serving uses, what would be better than a single serving avocado.

Tony Wisdom, along with fellow Partners Norm Nelson Jr. and Jim Nelson, is thrilled with the results of Sterling Hill Farms’ first year of business in Washington’s Skagit Valley and is looking forward to continued success and business growth in 2014. “We wish to thank all of our customers for supporting us in our inaugural year,” he told The Produce News. “The partnerships we develop with our customers are an integral part of our holistic marketing program and the key to our long term success.”

Irwindale, CA-based Ready Pac announced Stephanie Santiago as its director of national accounts-Costco team lead.

Potato growers in Oregon and Washington are in wait-and-see mode following a heat wave that hit the Pacific Northwest in July.

“Spring and early summer were excellent,” said Bill Brewer, executive director of the Oregon Potato Commission, in late July. “The last two weeks’ hot spell across Oregon may reduce potential fall harvest yield.”

Shipments of Peruvian asparagus to the U.S. market are expected to follow the normal pattern of increasing in September with the peak shipping weeks occurring in the October-November time frame.

It was the middle of winter when most importers were asked to discuss the crop by The Produce News, so many used the same caveat as Tracy Wood of Keystone Fruit Marketing’s Southeast Division in Vero Beach, FL, when he said, “It’s just too early to tell.”