Rivermaid Trading Co., a Lodi, CA,-based cherry and pear packer, has installed a GP Graders AirJet Defect Grader in its Lodi facility. The 40-lane cherry line is the largest ever installed by GP Graders.

Patrick Archibeque, chief executive officer of Rivermaid, and his team traveled extensively last year to evaluate all the cherry grading machines and software on the market and found the GP Graders AirJet Defect Grader with Ellips software to be the most impressive.

Despite years of effort by numerous organizations to help the public understand the pros and cons of consuming different types of dietary fats, a new survey by the Hass Avocado Board reveals that most Americans are still unclear about the definition and role of "good" and "bad" fats.

In the HAB survey of more than 1,000 adults, nearly half (42 percent) of people incorrectly thought that all fats play a role in increased cholesterol levels, and if the "don't know/unsure" responses are included, the number increases to 51 percent of people.

Are your produce sales vs. a year ago kind of flat? If so, then it may be time to take a good wise look at where your operation has been for the past five years and where it now needs to start heading. After doing that, plan on how you will start turning those flat sales around.

BRENDAN KEATING joined wholesale grocer Bozzuto’s Inc. April 7 as a perishables account manager. He replaces Kenny Brickel, who has joined Nicholas Markets in Colonia, NJ, as store manager.

Keating, a resident of Bergen County, NJ, has many years of experience in the fresh produce industry, including five-and-a-half years at ShopRite Stores Inc. and 24 years at Kings Super Markets (now Kings Food Markets). Keating, 46, will concentrate on the mid-Atlantic territory for Bozzuto’s, which is headquartered in Cheshire, CT.

With favorable weather during the growing season, onion growers in California’s Imperial Valley are expecting good yields, good size and good quality this year. Anticipating start dates for harvest in truckload volumes range from April 21 to May 1, although some early harvesting had already begun as of the second week of April.

“As you drive through the valley right now, you can really smell the onions,” said Kay Pricola, executive director of the Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association, April 11. “It smells wonderful.”

L&M Cos. Inc., which is based in Raleigh, NC, and has offices in eight other locations around the country, is a diversified grower, shipper, broker, distributor, importer and exporter of produce, offering a wide assortment of products.

Onions are an important component in the mix, and the company grows onions in various locations throughout the United States, including California’s Imperial Valley, giving L&M’s customers year-round availability.