Crown Jewels Produce LLC in Fresno, CA, has been involved in the Sonora, Mexico, grape deal since it’s present ownership acquired the company in 1999, according to Atomic Torosian, a partner in the enterprise.

“We have been working with the same grape growers since we started,” he told The Produce News April 1.

Torosian, himself, has been involved with Sonora grapes for almost twice that long. “This is my 29th year working in the grape deal out of Mexico,” he said. “I’ve been in the produce business a lot longer than that, but that long in Mexican grapes.”

Mexico will have the earliest start on its grape deal in at least five years, according to Jerry Havel, director of sales and marketing for Fresh Farms, located in Rio Rico, AZ.

By May 15, Mexico will be shipping a full volume of table grapes and retailers will certainly have plenty of promotable volumes for the Memorial Day holiday.

On April 2, Havel told The Produce News that, as of May 1, Fresh Farms will be shipping Perlette and Prime green seedless grapes. There will be very small volumes on the market in the last days of April, he added.

This year, the Mexican grape program for Los Angeles-based Stevco Inc., “is probably going to mirror the last couple of years. We will probably be around a million six [1.6 million boxes] in volume.” With minor exceptions, “Variety makeup will stay the same,” said Jared Lane, vice president of sales and marketing, in the company’s Bakersfield, CA, branch.

It appeared that the season would be “extremely early, 12 to 14 days early,” said Lane March 31. “As it looks right now, Stevco should start Perlettes May 1 and Flames May 5.”

William Watson, who has served as executive director of the National Mango Board since its inception in 2005, will resign from that post at the end of this year, the board announced in an April 10 press release.

Vignolo Farms and Top Brass Marketing announced the completion of a one-megawatt solar energy system with REC Solar. The new solar array system will offset 75 percent of power needs for its cold storage facility while significantly reducing its carbon footprint.

The installation of the solar energy system is the capstone in the farm's comprehensive sustainability portfolio, which includes on-site recycling of growing materials, drip irrigation to preserve water and composting to enrich crops and reduce waste.

Shaw’s and Star Market announced that all 155 of their stores throughout New England will be collecting donations from customers to benefit The One Fund in honor of the organization’s one-year anniversary of providing assistance to survivors whose lives were changed by the tragedy at the Boston Marathon in 2013.