SALINAS, CA -- Kim Greer, president and chief executive officer of the National Steinbeck Center, died March 28 at his home in Monterey. He was 49.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced March 23 that it was delaying the decision on import duties for Chinese garlic for the 2006-07 season for at least one month as it was not "practicable" to complete the analysis in the time initially allotted.

Philadelphia-area importers of Chilean apples said that while the Chilean deal is behind schedule, the storage apple deal of Washington state is also running behind. So it is expected that the Chilean apple imports will begin to increase as Washington cold storages clean up.

WASHINGTON -- The produce industry welcomed news that a Senate committee approved a guest worker program for agricultural workers last week, but the battle is far from over.

Racing against the clock, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved a comprehensive guest worker bill during a day- long session that included an amendment sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) designed to maintain an agricultural workforce. By an 11-5 vote, the Feinstein amendment was attached to a bill destined for the Senate floor in the coming days.

VANCOUVER, BC -- The Canadian Produce Marketing Association's 81st annual convention and exposition held here March 22-25 drew record attendance for the second straight year.

In 2005, when the CPMA event was held in Toronto, overall attendance -- including exhibitors and patrons -- stood at a record 3,400. This year the show drew 4,100 registered attendees, said Ron Lemaire, CPMA's executive vice president and director of marketing. There were 321 exhibitor booths at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre.

GUATEMALA CITY -- The faces of Agritrade have changed in the 18 years since the Guatemalan trade show was launched.