“We are really on pace to finish early,” David Moquist said of his potato company, O.C. Schulz & Sons Inc., which is located in Crystal, ND. “It seems we’re going at a good pace,” he said prior to Christmas.

“The price has been steady all season. Except for being short on volume to begin with, it’s all gone pretty well. We expect to be done one month earlier than usual. We will be done toward the end of March or in early April — versus our usual finish in late April or early May.”

Chelan Fresh Marketing continues to provide its retail partners with category management expertise designed to increase sales and promote premium product. Serving as a link between growers and retailers, the company — which represents more than 419 growers from its headquarters in Chelan, WA — has been moving quality tree fruit since 2004.

Jim Richter has been promoted to chief executive officer at Wilcox Fresh, based in Rexburg, ID. Richter has worked at Wilcox for seven years, most recently as executive vice president of sales and marketing.

About 15 years ago, when Mexican avocados began to gain partial entry to the U.S. marketplace, the only groves and packingsheds eligible to export were those located in the west-central state of Michoacán.

Access to the United States has increased to all 50 states, but the point of origin still must only be groves and packing plants in Michoacán. While Michoacán is the largest producing area for Mexican avocados, it is not the only area.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry put a smile on the faces of everyone on both sides of the table at the Syrian peace talks at the U.S. Ambassador's home in Paris Jan. 13 when he presented Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with two large "Famous Idaho Potatoes."

Just as the meeting was about to get down to serious discussions over a tense situation, Kerry lightened the atmosphere with the gift, inviting reporters into the room to record the moment.

Eric and Ryan Jensen, the owners of the defunct Jensen Farms in Holly, CO, have asked that a federal judge sentence them to probation. The company produced cantaloupes that were tainted with Listeria in 2011. During the outbreak, 33 people died and another 147 were sickened in the United States.

Last October, the Jensens pleaded guilty to six counts of introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce. Each of the brothers may each face up to one-year prison sentences and a fine of $250,000 per charge.