In preparation for the upcoming corn season, Pioneer Growers is launching two new packaged sweet corn products that provide consumers with more convenience and value-added options in-store.

The items are a tray package with eight ears of corn sold in a 10-count case instead of the 12-count industry standard, and a grab-and-go microwavable bag package.

The Produce Marketing Association held its Fresh Connections: China event in Shanghai on March 20 to bring supply chain members in China and across the globe to network and learn about emerging trends and topics. More than 130 people — from various countries, including Australia, Canada, Chile, China, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States — were in attendance.

With a 2014 California Hass avocado crop estimated at around 300 million pounds, down from 505 million the prior year, the California Avocado Commission anticipates that the bulk of the crop will be shipped during a more condensed marketing window this year. "We project that we will have volume availability in the mid- to late April timeframe leading into Cinco de Mayo," with the peak harvest period continuing through Labor Day, said Jan DeLyser, vice president of marketing for the commission.

When it comes to supermarkets, biggest isn't always best. In Consumer Reports' latest survey, Wegmans, Trader Joe's, Publix, Costco and Sprouts earned the highest scores overall among 55 of the nation's major grocery stores; Walmart, the largest grocer in the United States, landed at the bottom of the ratings, based on a survey of 27,208 subscribers.

RIO RICO, AZ — As the Nogales vegetable deal winds down for the season, shippers who handle watermelons from south of the border are gearing up for good volume to meet Easter promotions.

Mike Smith, president of Sigma Sales Inc., based here, said the Mexican watermelon deal is "very early" for all shippers.

Beachside Produce LLC, a grower-shipper located in Guadalupe, CA, is gearing up for its much-anticipated Lyon artichoke season. The Lyon artichokes are grown primarily in California’s Lompoc and Santa Maria valleys, where there is a cool microclimate to grow the European-style Lyon artichoke, which has a French heritage.