In early October, The Oppenheimer Group welcomed Barry Parisotto to its Los Angeles sales team. He fills the newly created position of organics category manager for the Vancouver, BC-based marketer. And, sales representative Josh Leichter was promoted to become Oppenheimer's director of sales-East Coast, another new position.

"Expanding our organic product line has been part of our strategic vision for a long time," John Anderson, Oppenheimer's president, chairman and CEO, said in a statement. "Barry's expertise can help take us to the next level."

No Wimpy allowed. No Olive Oyl, Swee'Pea or Nana Oyl either. Just Popeye.

Salinas, CA-based River Ranch Fresh Foods has decided to pin its hopes on Popeye's massive forearms by introducing a repackaged line of Popeye Fresh! Foods using Popeye's image only.

Unlike the old packaging, the redesigned packaging will allow the consumer an ample view of the product inside the bag. There's also a new color scheme and consumer-friendly descriptions of product that make it easy to understand what's in the bag and how the product is used.

The 2005-06 California Navel orange crop is estimated at 84 million cartons, just 2 percent below last year's 86- million carton crop, according to the California Agricultural Statistics Service. The Central Valley crop is estimated at 82 million cartons, with Southern California, mostly Riverside County, accounting for the remaining 2 million cartons of the total.

PHILADELPHIA -- The annual Chilean Fruit Importers meeting, presented by the Chilean & American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia, was held here Oct. 21 and included a variety of relevant discussions surrounding the upcoming Chilean season. But standing out in urgency and long-term implications for the Chilean import deal was a presentation by Washington, DC-based attorney David Holzworth of Lepon Holzworth & Kato PLLC.

Charlie Sciara & Son Produce Co. Inc., which operates in the greater Memphis, TN, market, has become the newest member of Produce Alliance.

For 64 years, Charlie Sciara & Son Produce Co. Inc. has held the philosophy that superior quality and total commitment to customer satisfaction have only been achieved by maintaining absolute control over all aspects of the business and by paying attention to detail.