Square Roots, a technology leader in indoor farming, and Gordon Food Service, one of the largest food distributors in North America, today announced the opening of a new climate-controlled, indoor farm in Kenosha, WI.

“Our partnership with Gordon Food Service, combined with our modular, smart-farm platform, means we can rapidly deploy new indoor farms in strategically located cities like Kenosha,” said Tobias Peggs, co-founder and CEO of Square Roots. “We are also able to create exciting jobs in the community, while making locally grown food available, all year round, to new consumers in

Carlos Cortes Sr., the grower who commercially introduced organic bananas to the United States in 1974, has died. Mr. Cortes was the father of Mayra Velazquez de León, president and CEO of Organics Unlimited and GROW.

In 1974, Mr. Cortes founded the Mexican-American Fruit Co., better known as MexAm. He began marketing organic bananas, which was an industry first for the U.S. market.

A letter from Mr. Cortes received by his daughter upon his passing encapsulates the way he did business and the teachings he leaves for future generations: “A company without clear values cannot develop a

SpartanNash is expanding its distribution footprint with new operations out of a facility in Stockton, CA. The expansion — executed through SpartanNash's long-standing partnership with Coastal Pacific Food Distributors Inc. — enhances SpartanNash's coast-to-coast supply chain capabilities, in addition to supporting the company's Environmental, Social and Governance priority to reduce fleet mileage and greenhouse gas emissions.

"Many of the national food retailers we distribute to are experiencing tremendous growth, which has been further propelled over the last two years due to COVID," said

Strawberries have been tight for the past couple of months. This has made it difficult for retailers to meet their berry sales versus last year. Florida has been the main supplier thus far, placing pressure on the demand. But there is some relief in sight as California and Mexico will start to improve by harvesting more volume. Even though a strong demand will still be an issue, the period of affliction is nearing an end.

Varietal berry supply is a mixed bag. Blueberries are seeing port delays limiting some supplies. More product is expected in February out of Mexico, Peru and Chile

BJ's Wholesale Club, a leading operator of membership warehouse clubs in the Eastern United States, has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets and operations of four distribution centers and the related private transportation fleet from longtime partner Burris Logistics. The transaction will allow BJ’s to insource its perishable supply chain. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“For more than 20 years, we have enjoyed a true partnership with the Burris Logistics team as we distribute the freshest perishable products to clubs throughout our chain. As we continue to

As shoppers walk through almost any supermarket these days, more often than not they are greeted with an unwelcome site — empty shelf space.  

It’s not only supply chain issues impacting the dearth of product. A real issue for most retailers is labor. Sometimes grocers simply don’t have the requisite number of employees to do what needs to be done throughout the store. Other times store managers may think they are fully staffed for the day — until the “out sick” emails start rolling in and the store is short staffed again — just another gift COVID-19 keeps providing. Despite the hope that