WASHINGTON — The produce industry is pulling support for a food-safety bill slated for a Nov. 29 vote after news that a compromise had been reached allowing certain small producers to be exempted from the federal food-safety requirements.

The Senate failed to vote on food-safety legislation Nov. 18, but an agreement was reached to vote on the bill Nov. 29 once lawmakers return from the Thanksgiving holiday break. The vote on S. 510 is expected to be held Monday, Nov. 29, in the evening.

WASHINGTON -- The United Fresh Produce Association Foundation joined first lady Michelle Obama Nov. 22 at the Riverside Elementary School in Miami as a new coalition of public and private sector partners launched the Let's Move Salad Bars to Schools initiative.

The new initiative builds on the pioneering work done by United Fresh to spearhead public health attention on the power of school salad bars as an effective strategy for increasing children's consumption of fruits and vegetables.

The first New York Produce Show & Conference drew lots of people to the Big Apple. Additional photos from the event appear in the Nov. 22 issue of The Produce News.
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A late start to the California clementine season, a good market and exceptional demand have DNE Imports Inc.'s Spanish clementine program starting with a bang.

"It’s starting off good," John Lazopoulos, DNE Imports’ sales manager for Spain and Morocco, told The Produce News Nov. 15. “Spain has been fortunate that California has a late start, prices are good, demand is exceptional — demand far exceeds supply — and we’re getting into the better varieties now from Spain.”

Florida authorities announced Nov. 15 that a peach fruit fly — Bactrocera zonata — was found earlier this month during routine surveillance activities in Miami-Dade County. It is the first time the species has been found in the state.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Nov. 15 that it will delay by 15 months implementation of a new set of numeric nutrient criteria water regulations for Florida's lakes, springs and rivers that the state’s farmers claim could drown them in a sea of red tape and increased costs.

The new rules, initially intended to go into effect Oct. 15, were first delayed until Nov. 15 and have now been pushed back until February 2012.