Even before the trade show doors opened to anticipated record numbers, a lot went on at the CPMA Convention & Trade Show in Toronto. Whether in formal meeting rooms, in hotel lobbies or on the shuttle buses to and from the Direct Energy Centre, business relationships are being formed, renewed and strengthened.

The 2013 Mexican grape season is expected to start out a little later and a little lighter than normal, but with full crops, abundant promotional opportunities and normal timing from late May or early June through the end of June, according to most of the growers, shippers and marketers The Produce News talked to about the deal.

WASHINGTON — The Food & Drug Administration plans to extend the May 16 comment period on two food-safety rules by another 120 days, FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg announced at an April 18 congressional hearing on FDA's spending plan for fiscal 2014.

Ms. Hamburg appeared before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee to defend the administration's budget proposal when she was asked by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) whether FDA would extend the comment period on the produce safety and preventive controls proposals.

A survey of shoppers in 58 countries across the globe revealed that fresh food continues to play an increasingly important role in the shopping decisions of most consumers.

The Nielsen Shopper Trends Survey was a global study covering 54 markets with a total sample size of 87,000 respondents. The survey was conducted online or with face-to-face follow-up in home interviews.

Valhalla Sales & Marketing, Inc., based in Kingsbury, CA, added GERRY SCHEIDT to its sales and customer development team.

Consumers are always shopping for sweet onions, and Curry & Co. is pleased to include Texas 1015s as part of its year-round sweet onion program. “We believe that the demand for sweet onions is year-round,” President Matt Curry told The Produce News on March 24. “The Texas sweet onion crop is an important part of this year round mix. It is the first domestic sweet available in the new year and helps set the stage for the season.”