The 8.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Chile at 3:34 a.m. on Feb. 27 has seriously affected Chile's fruit exports.

In an e-mail exchange with The Produce News Feb. 28, Robert Palaima, president of Delaware River Stevedores, based in Philadelphia, said that he had not had messages returned from Chile. However, he did speak with Andrés Montecinos, who heads the reefer division for CSAV, the Chilean that carries Chilean fruit to Philadelphia’s Tioga Marine Fruit Terminal, which is managed by Delaware River Stevedores.

PHILADELPHIA - A labor strike, which began at 12:01 a.m. on March 1, has slowed business at the Philadelphia Regional Produce Market as members of Teamsters Local 929 were picketing at the market's gates.

The Produce News spoke with the strikers and met in the market’s board room March 1 with Sonny DiCrecchio, executive director of the market, as well as Dan Kane, the market’s assistant manager, and John Widman of Susanin Widman & Brennan, PC, which is based in Wayne, PA, and who is the market’s legal counsel.

California fresh-market carrot production in 2009 was 19.25 million hundredweight, a decline of slightly more than 5 percent from 2008 production figures, said Jerry Munson, manager of the California Fresh Carrot Advisory Board in Dinuba, CA.

The drop in production last year marked the most pronounced year-over- year change in some time. California fresh-market carrot production had held relatively steady for the past several years.

Misionero Vegetable Sales has launched a new salad kit line that looks to provide consumers with a restaurant-style salad experience at home.

The line, which shares the name of the company's popular "Garden Cuts" brand washed and trimmed heads of lettuce, contains four items: Iceberg wedge, Romaine leaves, Cosmopolitan and Butter wedge.

Visions of the record-breaking 2007 spring onion deal are dancing in the heads of growers and shippers as they are watching this season unfold.

With supplies short, the prices on all onions have skyrocketed over the last couple of weeks -- and there is no break in sight.

"I think we could have a very good market for the next four to six months," said Derrell Kelso Jr., chief executive officer of Onions Etc. Inc. in Stockton, CA.

Gourmet Trading Co., based in Los Angeles, has joined with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment to promote the animated family adventure comedy Planet 51, coming to DVD and Blu-ray March 9.

As part of the promotion, iconic characters from the film will be featured on Gourmet Trading's asparagus tags for a month.