The Rogue Operation At Sysco Of San Francisco Raises The Question: How Can The Industry Use Compensation To Incent For Food Safety?
Sysco got a black eye — and the industry didn’t win any glory — when Sysco of San Francisco was found to be using some outdoor public storage as a kind of improvised warehouse for perishable foods. The hullaballoo has blown over, as it should, since it was clearly an unauthorized departure from Sysco’s quite […]
Time Is Ripe For Reaching Consumers:
New Consumer Magazine Solely About Fruits And Vegetables Available Next Year: PRODUCE ENTHUSIAST
How should the produce industry reach consumers? The method has long been a question. Indeed, for a very long time the thought was that if one couldn’t afford to spend upwards of $20 million a year on network television advertising, there was no point in trying to reach consumers. That attitude is gone. With web […]
Tommy Leighton Named Managing Director For Pundit Sister Company In The UK — A Triumph Of The ‘Do Stuff’ Philosophy!
As we mentioned in this piece about our collaboration with The Fresh Produce Consortium, we just announced a new world-class industry event, the London Produce Show and Conference. Now we have written enough about Tesco and its travails in trying to launch Fresh & Easy in America to know that it would be a bad […]
A Challenge To USDA: Bring Good Delivery Standards Into Line With 21st Century Receivers
Our piece, Making Life Tougher For The Little Guy: USDA Good Delivery Standards Have Not Kept Up With Industry Standards, brought a great deal of response from people searching for answers, including this letter from a respected industry member: Thanks for publicizing Mike Pflueger’s story. We both have known Mike and his business ethics for […]
Pundit’s Mailbag — Are Farmers Lonely? Or Connected On LinkedIn?
Our piece — The End of the Yeoman Farmer? — brought this poignant note: One aspect of the small farm situation is that the lifestyle (for want of a better word: a farmer might puke at the idea of being a fashion statement) is so different from practically any other occupation that the coherent, supporting […]
Making Life Tougher For The Little Guy:
USDA Good Delivery Standards Have Not Kept Up With Industry Standards
We received a bittersweet letter today from a longtime colleague and friend. We think it speaks to an important industry problem, though, one different than the one our correspondent identifies: Effective September 15th, I retired as President of High Point Marketing of NJ, Inc. I have spent over fifty years, most of my adult life, […]
Registration Now Open For The New York Produce Show And Conference
It is amazing but true… the 4th annual edition of The New York Produce Show and Conference is coming up December 10-12, 2013. Presented by the Eastern Produce Council and Pundit sister publication, PRODUCE BUSINESS magazine, the event will, once again, set a record this year with four years of double-digit growth. Of course, in […]
It Surely is A Tragedy, BUT Should Not Be A Crime:
Arrest Of Jensen Farms' Owners Betrays Elemental Principles Of Justice And Sets Stage For Less Investment In Production Of Food
We have written a great deal about the Jensen Farms cantaloupe situation and we are no fans of the farm. As we wrote here, we believe that Wal-Mart had no business buying from this vendor and should have constrained its supply chain to those higher volume vendors who pre-cool cantaloupes and, in other ways, follow […]
Former President Of Trader Joe’s Wants To Conquer Waste Through Daily Table Concept — Will It Work For Expired Produce?
Doug Rauch, who had been with Trader Joe’s for 31 years, his career culminating as President, has announced a new hybrid retail/restaurant concept. An NPR piece on the idea is titled, Trader Joe’s Ex-President To Turn Expired Food into Cheap Meals: Here’s some food for thought: One-third of the world’s food goes to waste every […]
In A Rush To Judgment, Taylor Farms Gets Connected To Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Without Sufficient Evidence
It is important that the industry be willing to discuss food safety issues and, certainly, here at the Pundit we have never been shy. From Botulism & Carrot Juice to Cantaloupe and Listeria to Buyer-Led Food Safety Initiatives, we have analyzed and assessed many of the issues. When the FDA issued an import alert on Honduran cantaloupes, we […]
