CHICAGO -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture is forecasting the 2010 U.S. apple crop at 226 million bushels (42-pound equivalents), 10.4 million bushels fewer than last year's production and 3.7 million bushels below the five-year average.

On a percentage basis, USDA is forecasting 2010’s national apple volume at 4 percent below last year and 1 percent below the five-year average.

The USDA released its estimate Aug. 12 and was noted in literature distributed at the U.S. Apple Association’s annual Apple Crop Outlook & Marketing Conference, held here Aug. 19-20.

Taylor Fresh Foods, a Salinas, CA-based firm that bills itself as "America's largest producer of salads and fresh-cut vegetables," has purchased River Ranch Fresh Foods LLC, another significant fresh vegetable processor in the Salinas Valley.

River Ranch will continue to operate under that name as a wholly owned subsidiary of Taylor Fresh Foods, with Bruce Knobeloch most likely serving as the firm's president.