Protesting truckers have shut down cargo operations at the port of Oakland, one of the biggest gateways for California’s agricultural exporters. The shutdown will further exacerbate the congestion of containers dwelling at the Oakland Seaport as port officials urge terminal operations to resume. Today marks the fourth day of protests over AB5, a state labor law that reclassifies independent contractors as employees.

While some celebrated the law, the California Trucking Association sued California State Attorney General Bonta over its implementation, saying it is problematic for the

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has imposed sanctions on four produce businesses for failing to meet contractual obligations to the sellers of produce they purchased and failing to pay reparation awards issued under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act.

The following businesses and individuals are currently restricted from operating in the produce industry:

• Fresh Florida Products Inc., operating out of Tampa, FL, for failing to pay a $70,617 award in favor of a Texas seller. As of the issuance date of the reparation order, Tareq Damra was listed as the officer, director and major

Recently the International Fresh Produce Association submitted an eight-point plan of recommendations illustrating how fresh fruits and vegetables must be an integral part of the U.S. nutrition security blueprint to be unveiled at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health in September.

“IFPA and its board of directors believe our nation’s overweight and obesity epidemic cannot be reversed without a bold, targeted, systemic approach — a ‘fruit and vegetable nutrition moonshot’ by 2030 — to increase Americans’ fruit and vegetable consumption,” said IFPA CEO Cathy Burns. “Now is

Harvests of local growing area vegetables are starting to add volume to the general market. However, the continued excessive temperatures in many fields are placing pressure on sensitive vegetables such as lettuce, spinach, eggplant and corn. Also, some water restrictions in California could hamper selected crops from the heat impact. Make sure you check with your suppliers on specific item availability before committing to ad programs.

California broccoli demand is currently fairly light with a lower market as a result of the startup harvest in Maine and Quebec. The broccoli market out of

The most recent Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey revealed that total online grocery sales in June climbed 6 percent year over year to $7.2 billion. For the second quarter, eGrocery posted $22.4 billion in sales, a gain of 1 percent compared to Q2 in 2021.

“Inflation and COVID-19 are creating cross-currents in the market as higher prices motivate customers to look for ways to avoid paying more than necessary, and ongoing concerns about contracting the virus motivate shoppers to use online grocery as a way to stay healthy,” said David Bishop, partner at Brick Meets Click.

A few weeks ago, my husband’s uncle Sam passed away. The funeral was a beautiful, caring expression by his friends and family. There was, however, one very unexpected product placement: a single can of Pepsi. Sam loved his Pepsi so much that his wife, Harriett, placed a can in the casket with him. I don’t think any of us who attended this beautiful service filled with stories of innocent pranks and Pepsi-induced fun will ever look at a can and not think lovingly of uncle Sam and his kid-like approach to life.

Sam was a Pepsi brand advocate. This touching personal moment wasn’t #sponsored, it