Recently, publicly traded Safeway Stores put itself up for sale and found a suitor. Many looked at the sale and opined that the mega-supermarket format has passed it prime, with the firm being worth more to investors if it is sold and broken into pieces than if it continues to operate as one of the nation’s largest supermarket chains.

John Moore, branding expert and former Starbucks marketing manager and Whole Foods director of marketing, will be the keynote speaker at the International Floriculture Expo on June 12, according to a news release from the show organizers, Diversified Communications. Moore’s presentation, “Espresso Shots of Business Wisdom,” will provide industry insights that all floral professionals can apply to their floral businesses.

Congratulations — you did it. The spring holidays have passed and you are still alive. The reports coming in from around the country show that April and May were strong floral sales months, and hopefully that will reverse the flat sales trend from the first quarter of 2014.

So now that we are into June, what happens next?

The Western Growers Association board of directors, who descended upon Washington, DC, for the association's board meeting the third week of May, left town believing there still remains a window of opportunity for action on immigration reform this year.

“There are many new things going on at Trucco,” said Nick Pacia, vice president of A.J. Trucco Inc., located on the Hunts Point Produce Market in the Bronx, NY.

“One is our new domestic blueberry program. We are excited to announce that this summer we are launching this program for the first time,” he continued. “We currently have a strong Chilean blueberry program, and we are now happy to offer our customers an additional supply of blueberries during June. Our plans also include an expansion of our domestic program so that we can continue to lengthen our blueberry season.”

At age 28, TJ Murphy, chief executive officer for Baldor Specialty Foods Inc., in the Bronx, NY, already has a vision of what the future landscape of the food industry will look like decades down the road.

Murphy is the son of Kevin Murphy, founder of the company, who died last year at age 58 from cancer. But TJ has worked for the company since 2002, given a couple of gaps to study at school.