The Houston Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Association held its 27th annual Gift of Produce event Dec. 13 and presented the Houston Food Bank with a gift of 2 million pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables, to be distributed to the food bank's 600 partner agencies serving 18 southeastern Texas counties.

This amount is equivalent to more than 4 million servings of fruits and vegetables for those in need of food assistance.

Reaching out to thousands of registered dietitians, or RDs, across the country, Chelan Fresh has developed and released a free digital toolkit that provides regularly updated nutritional information on the company’s fresh apples, cherries and pears.

Suja Juice, based in San Diego, hired ANYA KAATS as its digital marketing director at the beginning of December.

Kathy Hearl, marketing promotions manager for DNE World Fruit LLC, said that the company will be “ringing in the new year” with Honey tangerines.

“The Honey tangerine program will run from mid-January through February,” said Hearl. “The grapefruit season kicked off in October and should extend thru mid-May. We expect the peak promotion period on red grapefruit to run from New Years to March. Star Ruby grapefruit started in mid-November.”

Mini watermelons are a new deal for Central American Produce, headquartered in Pompano Beach, FL.

Meanwhile, “Our cantaloupe and honeydew melon season from Central America is under way [in] Guatemala,” Michael Warren, president of the company, told The Produce News in late November. “It will run through early May.”

Mini watermelons were to begin in mid-December. Volumes will be light this first season, Warren said, but he noted that customers have been requesting the product. The watermelons will be available through April.

After more than 46 years of dedicated service, Publix Super Markets Miami Division Vice President Bill Fauerbach has announced his decision to retire at the end of March 2014. Kevin Murphy will take over the position, effective April 1.

“Bill helped grow our culture and build a solid foundation on which the Miami division will continue to grow," Ed Crenshaw, chief executive officer, said in a press release. "We thank him for his many contributions, and he will be missed by us all.”