The online grocery market finished November with $7.7 billion in total sales, down 10 percent compared to a year ago, but only 2 percent lower than the $7.8 billion reported for the two prior months, according to the monthly Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey.

The year-over-year decline in total sales was driven by fewer households buying groceries online, combined with lower order frequency and constrained spending per order among monthly active users. Delivery was the only method to maintain sales versus a year ago, and the downward pressures were more present in grocery

Fresh Farms, a grower-shipper of Mexican produce items based in Rio Rico, AZ, is seeing light volumes on Bell peppers and sweet corn due to earlier weather in both the Florida and Mexico growing regions, but overall quality has been outstanding mostly in part due to more temperate growing conditions.

Conditions are expected to remain the same through the first of the new year, according to Marco Serrano, a sales representative for Fresh Farms.

“If we had to use a term for the markets, we would say steady,” said Serrano. “We won't see any promotable volumes until mid-January with green Bell

With the holiday season in full swing, the FMI Foundation announced its 2022 Gold Plate Award winners via livestream earlier this week, highlighting outstanding family meal programs implemented by the food industry and community organizations. In the category of Industry Supplier, greenhouse fruit and vegetable company Pure Flavor won the Gold Plate Award for its Eat Well Together to Be Well Together campaign that supported FMI’s National Family Meals Month.

“The recipients of the 2022 Gold Plate Awards represent a collective industry effort to help families stay strong with family meals,”

Santa came early for Los Angeles-based Volcano Produce Inc., delivering a total rebrand, a new website and some Fugly Fruits under the tree.

“It is so cool to see this new brand look," said Toni Rodosta, CEO and founder of Volcano Produce. “Our new logo and website better reflect how our heart and spirit are involved with everything we do. Even the website has a volcano erupting with hearts.”

The company is a year-round shipper, having established an extensive line of fruits and vegetables poised to support local, regional and national retailers’ fresh categories.

Rodosta said the company

Much of the country may be impacted by winter weather as produce prices are softening and heavy-weight commodities, such as berries, decrease in price.

“For the first time in what feels like eons, strawberry prices are down over the previous week," said Mark Campbell, founder and CEO of ProduceIQ. He reported that strawberries fell 16 percent after reaching record highs.

He added that celery markets are tightening up drastically: “Salinas, CA, is finishing production, and Oxnard, CA, is producing lower-than-expected volumes. Prices are up a shocking 38 percent to $43, a 10-year high. Mexico

Continental Fresh, operating in Miami, specializes in tropical imports from Latin America, servicing retail, foodservice, wholesale and process customers throughout the United States.

Utilizing its Water For All label, the company promotes awareness of water issues globally. In fact, with every box of produce sold under the label, a percent of proceeds is donated to BLUE (Building Love, Uniting Everyone) Missions to fund clean water and sanitation projects in Latin America.

BLUE Missions is a clean water charity dedicated to connecting rural communities to clean water, which Continental