Tanimura & Antle, based in Salinas, CA, has introduced a new hydroponic Butter lettuce that is produced at its hydroponic facility in Tennessee.

The lettuce variety is harvested and packed with its roots removed and packaged in a smaller compact clamshell, delivering 35 percent more product per pallet.

"Our study evaluating shelf life of lettuce with roots attached versus roots off showed no difference between the two," Gurmail Mudahar, vice president of food safety and quality assurance at T&A, said in a Jan. 31 press release.

Val Verde Vegetable Co. is helping cauliflower make a comeback in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, and it is also adding other new products to its line, including green onions.

In the past, nearly 90 percent of all U.S. cauliflower production has come from California, with various other states growing only small seasonal tracts. Changes in varieties and increased transportation costs created an opportunity for Texas to re-enter the cauliflower market and work to assume a larger share of commercial volume. The same can be said for products like Romaine and green onions.

David Marguleas, California Table Grape Commission chairman, with Michael Bozick, who served on the commission the 1972.

The California Tabl

Sun Pacific Marketing, a grower and marketer of California citrus, table grapes and tomatoes, and a leading North American grower of kiwifruit, has named industry veteran Bob DiPiazza as president.