NOVEMBER 2011 • VOL. 27 • NO. 11 • $9.90 features p. 70 p. 81 34 THE WINTER SEASON IS THE PERFECT TIME TO HEAT THINGS UP IN THE PRODUCE DEPARTMENT With excellent availability and plenty of food-focused holidays, winter becomes a prime time for produce. 70 IMPORTED SWEET ONIONS: HANDLE AND MERCHANDISE WITH CARE While many American sweet onion growers have a fond place in their hearts for Vidalias, imported cover story sweets from countries south of the Equator provide a year-round sweet onion supply. 24 PREPARE NOW FOR A 76 EIGHT “TIPS” TO MERCHANDISING PERUVIAN ASPARAGUS GLOBAL FUTURE Adding a little creativity when merchandising Peruvian asparagus can lead to a profitable win. Across the globe, new and growing sources of fresh produce are finding their 81 MEXICAN AVOCADOS: STORES AND CUSTOMERS RELY ON A SOLID SUPPLY way onto North American supermarket Mexico offers a dependable climate and high standards for providing a consistently good shelves. avocado, but moving more avocados doesn’t rely on geography — just knowledge. commentary departments 8 THE FRUITS OF THOUGHT Cantaloupe Crisis Reveals FOODSERVICE MARKETING FDA’s Lack Of Leadership 68 A Longtime Family Restaurant Benefits From The New Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market 108 RETAIL PERSPECTIVE The recently opened foodservice establishment at Philadelphia’s new wholesale All About Customers produce market, Norm & Lou’s Café, attempts to balance history and progress. 110 EUROPEAN MARKET Spotlight On The Port Of ANTWERP MERCHANDISING REVIEWS 88 Banana Basics in this issue Focusing on a few merchandising basics promises an increase in banana sales. 4 THE QUIZ 93 10 Ways To Sweeten Citrus Sales With a year-round supply thanks to a strong domestic program and plenty of imports, retailers 6 WASHINGTON GRAPEVINE can take advantage of plentiful fruit with big, bold displays and smart marketing techniques. 18 TRADE SHOW CALENDAR 10 RESEARCH PERSPECTIVES DRIED FRUIT AND NUTS 101 ‘Tis The Season For Dried Fruits And Nuts COMMENTS AND ANALYSIS 11 Increased variety helps build holiday sales of dried fruit and nuts. 12 PRODUCE WATCH special features 23 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR p. 43 15 RISING STAR RECEPTION 104 FLORAL WATCH 112 INFORMATION SHOWCASE 19 Q&A WITH JUAN FERNANDEZ DEL VALLE BICKEL Mexico’s Commitment To Continued Growth 114 BLAST FROM THE PAST 20 FROM THE PAGES OF THE PERISHABLE PUNDIT p. 114 Looking For Clarity On Immigration Policy 43 NEW YORK FOOD SCENE In what some call the produce capital of the country, fresh fruit and vegetables are experiencing resurgence in greenmarkets, restaurants, retail outlets, and most importantly, consumers’ plates. 67 Q&A WITH TAD THOMPSON A Youthful Approach To The PWPM Change Service requested: POSTMASTER: Send address changes to PRODUCE BUSINESS, P.O. Box 810425, Boca Raton, FL 33481-0425. PRODUCE BUSINESS (ISSN 0886-5663) is published monthly for $58.40 per year by Phoenix Media Network, Inc., P.O. Box 810425, Boca Raton, FL 33481-0425. NOVEMEBR 2011 • PRODUCE BUSINESS 3 PRODUCE QUIZ THIS MONTH’S WINNER Jackie Parisi NOVEMBER 2011 • VOL. 27 • NO. 11 • $9.90 Manager P.O. Box 810425 • Boca Raton • FL 33481-0425 Phone: 561-994-1118 • Fax: 561-994-1610 Tony Diamond’s Farm Market Inc. [email protected] Camden, NJ As Jackie Parisi, manager ket. “The new facility is incredible.” for the single-unit, family- While Parisi’s grandfather was a mason PRESIDENT &EDITOR-IN-CHIEF James E. Prevor owned and operated Tony’s man by trade, he sold produce on the side. [email protected] Diamond Farm Market Inc., “That continued with my father, and after many would say, “Produce is in produce carts, he finally decided to open a PUBLISHER/EDITORIAL DIRECTOR my blood. It’s what I have always done. I brick-and-mortar store with my mom in 1950s,” Ken Whitacre run the store with my brother. He buys Parisi says. “We’re a neighborhood store. Cus- [email protected] everything and trucks it in himself. I set the tomers who used to come in as children with SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR store and manage the sales floor.” their parents now come in with their kids.” Mira Slott The family business, named after Parisi’s Parisi has been receiving PRODUCE BUSI- [email protected] grandfather, Tony “Diamond” — “He was NESS for quite some time. “I remember it known for wearing a huge diamond ring,” she coming to the house when I was younger,” ASSISTANT EDITOR Jennifer Leslie Kramer recollects — specializes in tropicals. Every- she recollects. “It’s very helpful and defi- [email protected] thing in the store, which is nearly all produce, nitely puts you in touch with what’s going comes from the Philadelphia Wholesale Mar- on in the industry.” CIRCULATION MANAGER Kelly Roskin How To Win! To win the PRODUCE BUSINESS Quiz, the first thing you have to do is enter. The rules are simple: Read through the articles and advertisements in this issue to find the answers. Fill in the blanks corresponding to the [email protected] questions below, and either cut along the dotted line or photocopy the page, and send your answers along with a business card or company letterhead to the address listed on the coupon. The winner will be chosen by drawing from EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT the responses received before the publication of our January issue of PRODUCE BUSINESS. The winner must agree to sub- Fran Gruskin mit a color photo to be published in that issue. [email protected] PRODUCTION DIRECTOR IN A KEURIG SINGLE-CUP BREWING SYSTEM Diana Levine The popular single-serve home brewing system brews individual cups [email protected] of gourmet coffee or tea in less than a minute. The unit uses Keurig’s PRODUCTION LEADER patented K-cup, which offers more than 70 varieties of pre-measured cof- Jackie Tucker fee and tea from a slew of premium brands. Also included is a My K-Cup Reusable Coffee Filter, which allows coffee drinkers to use their own PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT ground coffee, as well as 22 Green Mountain Regular Variety K-Cups. SUNSHINE GORMAN FREDDY PULIDO QUESTIONS FOR THE NOVEMBER ISSUE TRADE SHOW COORDINATOR Jackie LoMonte 1) Who started Booth Ranches in 1957? ______________________________________________ [email protected] 2) What is Crunch Pak’s booth number at the New York Produce Show? _____________________ CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Carol Bareuther, Julie Cook Ramirez, ______________________________________________________________________________ Bob Johnson, Jodean Robbins, Barbara Robison, Trish Wooldridge 3) What three social networking sites does Duda Farm Fresh Foods use? _____________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ADVERTISING Eric Nieman, Associate Publisher 4) What is the contact number for Locus Traxx? ________________________________________ [email protected] Sandy Lee ______________________________________________________________________________ [email protected] Bill Martin 5) What kinds of POS does Sunlight International Sales offer for its Pretty Lady brand of grapes?__ [email protected] Colleen Morelli ______________________________________________________________________________ [email protected] 6) What is Wayne E. Bailey’s fastest growing sweet potato category? _________________________ Ellen Rosenthal [email protected] ______________________________________________________________________________ FLORAL DEPARTMENT MARKETING E. Shaunn Alderman [email protected] This issue was: ❏ Personally addressed to me ❏ Addressed to someone else Send insertion orders, payments, press releases, photos, letters to the editor, etc., to PRODUCE BUSINESS, P.O. Box 810425 Name ______________________________ Position ______________________________ Boca Raton, FL 33481-0425 PH: 561.994.1118 FAX: 561.994.1610 Company __________________________________________________________________ PRODUCE BUSINESS is published by Phoenix Media Network, Inc. James E. Prevor, Chairman of the Board Address ____________________________________________________________________ P.O. Box 810425, Boca Raton, FL 33481-0425. Entire contents © Copyright 2011 City _______________________________________________________________________ Phoenix Media Network, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. State _____________________________________ Zip _____________________________ Publication Agreement No. 40047928 Phone ______________________________ Fax __________________________________ Photocopies of this form are acceptable. Please send answers to: NOVEMBER QUIZ PRODUCE BUSINESS • P.O. Box 810425 • Boca Raton, FL 33481-0425 4 PRODUCE BUSINESS • NOVEMBER 2011 Industry Makes a Difference At 2011 Washington Public Policy Conference By Patrick Delaney, communications manager, United Fresh Produce Association Over 180 Congressional ore than 500 members of the offices were visited by fresh produce industry joined 500-plus United M members. United Fresh early last month at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill for the 2011 Washington Public Policy Confer- ence. Here’s a look at some of the highlights from this year’s WPPC. The annual conference kicked off on Monday, October 3, with the Fresh Impact Panel, an inside look at ways the industry can commu- nicate more effectively with lawmakers in Washington. The panel provided attendees with a youthful look at lobbying and government relations, and even explored how Washington has changed with the advent of the BlackBerry. The annual Welcome Reception followed