Do not reply to this email. Send your response to info@freshplaza.com.

Thursday, December 24, 2020
NORTH AMERICA

Our team

Marieke Hemmes
Email

Annika Durinck
Email

Astrid van den Broek
Email

Sander Bruins Slot
Email

Job Offers

Chief Executive Officer

Greenhouse grower / production manager

Assistant Professor of Protected Agricultural Systems Design (Tenure-Track) - USA

Grower Tomato Crops - Huron (Ohio) USA

(Junior) Grower - King George (VA) USA

Commercial Manager | Fresh Produce | Germany

Technical Manager - Fresno or Bakersfield (CA) USA

Retail Account Manager Italië

Grower / Head Grower Canada

Maintenance Engineer (CA, USA)

Message

We will be back on January 4th

Happy Christmas from the FreshPlaza team!!

As 2020 comes to an end we can all reflect on a very unusual year. We are hoping that we can get back to some kind of 'normal' in 2021 and hope we will get the opportunity to…

Amazon nut harvest set to start in January in Peru

The Amazon nut, also known as the ‘Brazil nut,’ season is set to start in January, with peak volumes becoming available from February through April, and the harvest wrapping…

More and more off-season cherries make way into North America

Import cherries look to be an increasingly available commodity in the winter months in North America. North Bay Produce in Traverse City, MI is in its first year of shipping…

Milton Calle of Exotic Producers and Packers:

“Drought has caused the Peruvian mangoes to be small this year”

The Peruvian mango season started mid-November, but, due to a sustained drought, the mangoes that are currently being harvested have small sizes, which is putting pressure on…

Citrus demand expected to ramp up even more with New Year’s health resolutions

The California citrus season continues to move along at a steady pace, though some recent rains have slowed down the harvest a bit. Jesse Silva of Kings River Packing shares:…

Searching for new markets for socially conscious exotics

With the new year comes potentially new opportunities—that’s what Sharleen and Gerry Moodie are hoping for. Farmers harvesting dragon fruit in Vietnam. The couple, who’ve worked…

Daniel Ghadiri and Nick Maglio, ProEx Food, LLC:

"Cost and availability of labor, and now concerns about pathogen transmission will be the big issues in 2021"

It’s been a complicated year for many businesses in the fruit and vegetable sector. One of the big trends that became even more obvious during this pandemic was automation. We…

Collectors very interested in Del Monte-stickered $20 bill

Heritage Auctions will offer the famed “Del Monte note”, considered to be the most famous of all US ‘obstructed error banknotes’, at auction January 22 for the first time…

Vegetable grower-shipper honors veterans this holiday season

Leafy greens grower, processor and shipper WP Rawl, honored fallen military heroes by participating in Wreaths Across America Day earlier this month. WP Rawl’s dedicated truck…

University of California research

Scientists examine citrus hybrids in fight against Citrus Greening Disease

Researchers, working to address the largest problem among citrus growers – Huanglongbing, or HLB- are investing in an old technique by creating new fruit…

Special Year Overview

Year overview 2020: December

We have arrived at the final overview of the year: December. Cherry, citrus, grape and blueberry seasons are all in full swing. In Russia, imports of tomatoes and peppers from…

Global Focus Exotic/Tropical Fruit

Carel van Krimpen, Greenpoint Trading, the Netherlands

"Christmas doesn't affect avocado sales; they're good all year long"

Of all the exotics on the market, avocados are the top seller. Greenpoint Trading has been focusing on this product in recent years. This Dutch company sells it under its…

Retail

US: Amazon to face U.S. union push in year ahead

Aldi close to closing deal at one Tallahassee location as hiring begins for anotherAldi is setting its sights on a new grocery store at the University Village on Tallahassee's…

Guatemala's mango production increases by 10% a year

In an interview, agronomist Eddy Martinez -the Founding Partner and current General Manager in Guatemala of the Distribuidora de Frutas Tropicales SA (DFT), Agroindustrias del…

One reparation order satisfied

USDA restricts PACA violators in Michigan and Texas

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that Fernando McIntyre, doing business as Morning Star Produce, satisfied an $8,640 reparation order issued…

The price of Argentine garlic #1 sizes is expected to increase

Forecasts for Argentina's garlic industry are promising. Demand is expected to increase in the holiday season. In 2021, the foodservice industry is expected to…

Peru is expected to produce more than 20,000 tons of ginger in 2020

According to Peruvian ginger or kion, the return of a star, a study prepared by the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (Midagri), national ginger…

Colombia's banana sector aspires to achieve exports of $1 billion in 2021

According to Emerson Aguirre Medina, the president of the Association of Banana Growers of Colombia (Augura), despite the challenges that the Colombian banana…

Stuart Payne - GP Graders

"The core of our business is to replace the human hand and the human eye with automation and vision technology"

Despite the pandemic or perhaps because of it, domestic sales have been very strong this year for Australian automation company GP Graders. "We had a number of sales for…

Sparacino Farms - Reemoon Fruit Sorting Machine

"This system was as good or better than anyone else's and the price is much better"

COVID-19 has provided many challenges for fresh produce companies in 2020, but one Australian avocado and citrus producer has self-installed its new fruit sorting machine over…

Dammis vna der Staaij, Staay Food Group:

"Keep going and take your chance!"

The year 2020 is almost over. We asked Dammis van der Staaij of the Staay Food Group about the impact of the Corona year and the biggest challenges for the next five years. An…

New processing factory MSP Onions foresees every customer of programmed quality onions

Video "Internal quality sorting for onions demanded from all European supermarkets within two years"

The new onion processing factory of MSP Onions in Nieuwdorp is almost serene. Nevertheless, an impressive volume passes through the factory every day with a capacity of 1,000…

“We aim to introduce Turkish kiwi to new markets in our very first season”

Turkish kiwis have been cultivated for decades, but recently the volumes of exports have been increasing. One large Turkish fruit exporter will be dipping its toes in the kiwi…

Interest in home cooking drives nut demand up

Bart Van Honsté of Belfrudis brokers dried fruit and nut deals for clients all over Europe. This Belgian agent sees that this market is developing well. Some of these…

Piñata Farms

Favourable weather and season expansion points to a strong end to 2020

Despite the challenges brought by COVID-19, it has been a year of growth and recovery for major Australian fruit producer Piñata Farms. The Queensland-based company has added…

Alexander Schrijvershof (Zest) on ERP system for fruit and vegetable importers

Insider creates ERP system for fresh produce

At the beginning of 2020, Alexander Schrijvershof left the family business Schrijvershof after more than 15 years to found Zest. It is his answer to the demand…

Deal or no deal: an agreement seems to be within reach...

The final deal between the UK and the EU is a document consisting of 2000 pages. A press conference was expected from Prime Minister Boris Johnson for Thursday…

Corona crisis making meal boxes more popular

The Nuts and Dried Fruits Company (NDFC) has used this coronavirus pandemic as a time of reflection. That's according to Jan Jelders. "COVID-19 has affected us, but it's also…

Interview to Cristian Moretti, General Manager at Agrintesa

An overview of year 2020 and what to expect in 2021

In 2020, Agrintesa and all the members of the cooperative faced a very complex year filled with challenges, from the pandemic to the spring frosts. During these months the…

Jasper Slaghekke, Sismatec:

“More tomatoes being top sealed”

In the fruit and vegetable sector, top seal packaging is mostly used for soft fruit. However, lately, it's becoming increasingly common to package other types of fruit and…

Mathijs Segeren, Antares Commodities, the Netherlands:

"You're allowed to serve something nicer at Christmas"

"It's been a trend for years that nuts are healthy," says Mathijs Segeren of Antares Commodities. This Dutch company focuses on importing and selling almonds,…

Increased demand for dates and date products

The anti-corona measures have been having a yo-yo effect on consumer spending. Date trader Mustapha Chihabi of Tomoor in Belgium has, therefore, noticed that…

Michel van den Berg, VOF de Best, the Netherlands

"Hospitality sector closure puts exotics prices under pressure"

The Dutch wholesaler, VOF De Best, has seen the demand for exotics rise as Christmas draw nears. But Michel van den Berg adds that market prices for many of…

Florus Zwartbol, Floor Foods:

"Consumer trends lean toward innovative, responsibly produced snacks"

"People are far more aware of what they eat and drink than they were five or ten years ago," says Florus Zwartbol of Floor Foods. This Dutch company focuses on nut product…

Rick Briston, Redpack: "We are fully prepared for Brexit"

"We are happy that our machines could help providing front-line workers with safely packaged supplies"

“This year hasn’t been great but considering the circumstances, we were quite lucky”, says Rick Briston, business development manager for UK-based machinery manufacturer…

Implementations for the asparagus harvesting machines by Bagioni Technology

An innovative 4.0 machine remote-controlled

Thanks to a specific control unit that detects approximately fifty parameters at once, the new green asparagus harvesting machines by Bagioni Technology can be controlled…

Worker housing high priority of Namibian table grape industry, but government inaction holds back new town

There are roughly 12,000 to 15,000 permanent and seasonal workers in the Aussenkehr Valley and Noordoewer to grow, harvest and pack Namibia’s 7.5 million 4.5kg cartons of…

James Lonsdale – SPAR Rural Hub Initiative

GlobalG.A.P enables small-scale Limpopo farmers to compete with commercial farmers

This year, despite Covid, saw the culmination of four years of advancement through the three levels of a localG.A.P programme (specially customized for South African retailer…

South African mango season starts early with big volumes, lower prices

The South African mango harvest is in full swing, and the increases in volumes on the market have led to pressure on prices. According to Johann du Preez,…

The benefits of vacuum cooling in mushrooms

In the past few years more and more systems have been installed at mushroom farms using vacuum cooling as a rapid cooling method for mushrooms. Having the correct cooling…

How to choose the best packaging for a product?

It is the inside that counts, one often says. Although appropriate packaging can give fruit and vegetables an enormous boost. Is your decision based on sustainability, longer…

New Chinese lychee season facing challenges due to La Niña

China is the world’s largest producer of lychee. Over recent years, lychees from this country have been gaining access to more and more countries, and the export volume is…

USDA GAIN Report

China: Fresh citrus production and consumption forecast to continue upward

In line with historical trends, fresh citrus production and consumption are forecast to continue upward in MY2020/21 to 35.6 million tons and 34 million tons, respectively.…

Maharashtra, India

Kesar mango to be branded as Maha Kesar

Maharashtra Kesar mango cultivating farmers have joined efforts to brand the fruit as Maha Kesar after the successful branding of Happus (Alphonso). The Kesar…

Export market for Indian grapes set to shrink in 2021

Grape exporters from India predict a drop in the 2020-21 shipments to Europe because of the ongoing pandemic, as demand is staying restrained. Increments in export…

Agrowing Ltd. and VetorGEO announce breakthrough in multispectral leaf-level and aerial HLB detection

Agrowing Ltd., an Israeli world leading provider of award-winning AI-Enabling multispectral sensors, and VetorGEO, a Brazilian startup focused on Agriculture…

Global durian fruit market to hit $28.6 billion by 2025

In a recent report from Million Insights, the global durian fruit industry report provided a detailed evaluation of the industry by highlighting information on different…

FreshPlaza Funny

Gordon Ramsey's smallest pupil