With Mexico ending a bit early, Brazil and then Ecuador will be the main sources for mango supplies for the last third of the 2014 calendar year.

Typically, Mexico lasts well into September overlapping the Brazilian deal, which usually gets underway in August and has an eight- to 10-week shipping window before greater volume from Ecuador hits the market in late October and early November.

But this year cold August weather from Mexico to South America resulted in an early end to the Mexican deal and a late start for Brazil.

“The crop is starting early this year,” said Lori Cooper,  manager of the California Date Administrative Committee in Indio, CA, in an interview with The Produce News Sept. 3. It is running anywhere from seven days to 14 days ahead of normal, “depending on where you are in the valley.”

L&M’s Washington state team announced the hire of Craig Barnes as sales specialist and the promotion of Donna Feltrup to the position of sales manager on Sept. 9.

Barnes brings experience in wholesale and domestic retail sales, along with specific expertise in export sales to the L&M team. He was previously with Rainier Fruit and has been in the produce industry since 2010.

Stellar Distributing Inc. anticipates beginning its California kiwifruit harvest around Oct. 3 with an ending date in early November.

The company, headquartered in Madera, CA, provides its customers with a mix of fruit that includes kiwi, limes, grapes, figs, pomegranates, persimmons and chestnuts.

As with many commodities, the California kiwifruit season is running early this year. But Chris Kragie, deciduous fruit manager at Western Fresh Marketing in Madera, CA, is of the opinion that some shippers are pushing to get the fruit off the vines and in the market before it is really ready.

More than 40 retailers — representing more than 19,000 stores across the United States and Canada — support the ‘eat brighter!’ movement, and the fresh produce marketing initiative is growing both in support and offerings.