It is a little-known fact that Mastronardi Produce, the company behind one of the world’s first branded tomatoes, actually has its roots in lettuce. In the 1940s, when Armando Mastronardi bought a farm after his arrival in Canada, his first crop was not tomatoes — it was lettuce. Now the company is returning to its roots and launching a new lettuce brand, Queen of Greens.

The recent launch of new grape varietal logos by International Fruit Genetics has helped the Bakersfield, CA-based breeder improve clarity in a category where differing names for the same fruit often persist. “It’s a prescriptive approach,” explained Andy Higgins, CEO of IFG. “Let’s clean it up to help all involved understand what we're offering, and consumers know what they’re buying.” The program is intended to provide value for all involved, with IFG providing graphic files and logo use guidelines, and placing it in the hands of growers and marketers to bring them forward.

With consumers cooking at home more than ever, Progressive Produce is looking forward to working with its partners throughout the supply chain to bring fresh, nutritious asparagus to dinner tables around the country.

The Wonderful Company, a global company dedicated to harvesting health and happiness around the world through its iconic consumer brands, announced the launch of the Wonderful Innovation Challenge. Offering up to $1 million in funding and development resources to innovators, the competition seeks to discover economic and environmentally friendly pilot ready solutions for the 50,000 tons of pomegranate husks generated each year by juicing POM Wonderful pomegranates.

Baja Son Growers has doubled its production for organic green onions — just in time to celebrate its 10-year anniversary.

“The Baja Son family is thankful for our customers and their patronage and trust over the past 10 years. As a vertically integrated company we are able to control all aspects of the growing process from seed to store 52 weeks per year,” said Robert Leonard, director of sales, Baja Son Growers.

The Kroger Co. and Ocado announced Romulus, MI, as the latest location for a Customer Fulfillment Center. The location confirms a previous announcement stating Kroger and Ocado would construct a CFC in the Great Lakes region.

This new 135,000-square-foot CFC will accelerate Kroger's ability to expand its products to a larger footprint. This facility will create 250 new jobs, benefitting the region, and it is expected to become operational 18 months after the site breaks ground and will support customers in several markets, including Michigan, northern Ohio, and Indiana.