Fresh Cut Magazine

Zappala Family Builds on Growing Taste for Mild, Sweet Onions

When the Zappalas entered the onion business in 1927, history was on their side. Onions, after all, have been a key part of good eating, worldwide, for more than 5,000 years. Zappala Farms evolved to become the largest onion producer in New York state, in part by realizing an onion is not just an onion. During the 1980s, Jim Zappala, seeing demand growing for sweeter, milder onions, worked with researchers and seed companies to develop a unique variety that ripened in the fall. That onion, called Empire Sweet, propelled Zappala Farms to even greater prominence. In 2003, in another giant step forward, brothers Sam and Jim Zappala started Empire Fresh-Cuts and ventured into the world of cold-chain management and marketing to new customers, “who wanted to take the onion category out of their kitchens,” as Sam put it. They now sell sliced, diced and whole…  » Read more

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United, IFPA Announce Intent to Merge

The United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association and the International Fresh-cut Produce Association announced April 19 that they intend to merge. The new entity, if approved by the memberships of each association, would be called United Fresh Produce Association. The new association would have an annual budget of about $7.5 million. The boards of directors of IFPA and UFFVA voted unanimously April 12 and April 14, respectively, to support the merger. “IFPA was founded to meet the unique needs of the fresh-cut processor,” said Mark Miller, IFPA chairman. “The processor industry has become more and more mainstream than it was 20 years ago when it (IFPA) was founded. We’re looking to go back one step to the grower level and one step forward to the retail level, which is representation we currently do not have.” The next step before moving forward with a merger is a vote by the…  » Read more

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Industry Resources Help When Handling a Crisis

A crisis can strike any company at any time. The fresh-cut produce industry is especially vulnerable to potential emergencies and the media frenzies they can incite. Preparing for a crisis before it happens is the best way to prevent it. That’s why the International Fresh-cut Produce Association (IFPA) released its “Crisis Communications Manual and Guide for Handling the News Media” last year. The manual was intended as a template for IFPA members, who were encouraged to develop specific crisis communication plans of their own. “There are a lot of companies out there that don’t think about this until it’s too late,” said Jerry Welcome, IFPA’s president. “It’s a good idea for them to prepare themselves.” The 24-page manual took two or three months to put together. It wasn’t written from scratch. The information was pulled together from many sources and synthesized into an easy-to-use format, Welcome said. “There are…  » Read more

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Fresh Focus: Disaster Plans

Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Rita. Hurricane Wilma. Just a few months ago, these storms changed the lives of millions of people. Even if you did not work in areas affected by those storms, perhaps you shipped produce to – or received produce from – firms in the Gulf region. Think you weren’t affected by these natural disasters? Now, multiply that thought a thousand times and you have some idea about why it is necessary to have a disaster plan ready to go should you face a similar crisis in your hometown. How can you plan for a crisis or disaster when they usually happen unexpectedly? How easy is it to anticipate something that you haven’t experienced? These are two reasons owners and managers may feel paralyzed when faced with planning for a crisis. It may feel alien to some to even try to imagine what to do or…  » Read more

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Value Is In the Eye of the Beholder

What is the perceived value of your value-added? Value can be an overused word at times. All of us are consumers. We know a value when it comes to purchasing. However, when it comes to your own value-added products in the marketplace, what is their perceived value? Perceived value sometimes gets confusing. In the past, it was packaging that delineated fresh commodities from fresh processed items that were labor saving. The packaged produce saved time and expense, hence there was “value” added to them that justified the higher price. However, with the increasing practice of packaging fresh commodities in a container or some sort of shrink-wrap, does that actually create value? Well, yes. The value of your products is in the mind of your customer. Your products might not be perceived as value-added so much as they could be perceived as safer or of a higher quality…  » Read more

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Retail Sales

I’ve spoken with many processors over the last year, all with a huge variety of products – from apple slices to onions to salad greens to celery. Though they all have different products, they’re all facing similar issues. Everyone in fresh-cut is dealing with product development, food safety and marketing, among other issues. And all processors who sell to the retail market are looking for ways to make their products stand out and be a hit with grocery store consumers. One of the common threads has been processors working closely with retailers to make sure products are displayed and merchandised properly. In April’s issue of Fresh Cut, Steve Dickstein spoke about working with retailers – and the end consumer – to make sure product is safe all through the chain. Ready Pac recognizes that food safety doesn’t stop once product leaves the processing facility, and…  » Read more

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