The Produce Moms Podcast

"Every piece of the supply chain literally is being affected by inflation, from availability issues, to transportation, starting all the way down at the plant material and taking it all the way to the consumer."   Ryan Lockman (23:21-23:45)   In the ladder part of 2021, you've probably experienced several delays in packages or going shopping for items that weren't at your local retailer. It's clea...

"That's our tagline: scratch-made quality with more convenience than a can."   Michelle Huff (22:11-22:17)   'Value added' is a pretty popular term in the produce industry. It's when someone takes a basic commodity, like a fruit or vegetable, and innovates the actual produce itself, its packaging, or turns it into something like a meal kit. But for some reason, no one has come up with a way to inn...

"No one truly needs our groceries in 10 minutes, but we now have the ability to do it and we must embrace the technology and the business models because it's going to improve the quality of life for everyone."   Brittan Ladd (48:03-48:17) You may remember Brittain Ladd from Episode 41, one of our top 20 most downloaded episodes of all time, or Episode 141 where he discussed Amazon divesting Whole...

"Food is culture. Food is what connects us all and food is a catalyst, a magnetic force for bringing people together to have the best day of their life."   Lori Taylor (17:31-17:44) "I have so many, so many mixed emotions. My wish for everyone is peace and joy. I want to tell everyone that is part of our community at The Produce Moms that you've been a huge part of my inner peace, my professional...

"We all need to work together across the entire value chain, even as consumers, to make a difference to ensure that fruit and vegetable consumption really becomes a part of everyone's diet." Kelly Bristow (39:39-40:00)   The UN declared 2021 as the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables. With this declaration, the UN gifted Bayer with an invitation to raise awareness to the importance of frui...

"If we want to continue to see truly organic, truly sustainable produce, we need to be willing to pay a fair price for it." Daniella Velazquez De Leon (23:35-23:51)   Even pre-supply chain crisis, pre-pandemic, banana prices have been unfair and almost unethical. But especially in the past three years the organic banana industry has faced enormous cost pressure. Packing materials, cartons, pallets...

"We never waver in what our message is. We only work with brands and we only convey a message that is sustainable, that is ethical, and that is healthy above all costs ." Ashley Hawk (12:06-12:16)   The Produce Moms and "How Healthy Happens" have so much in common in terms of the message and the mission that they're trying to convey. It's kind of two-fold - increasing fruit and vegetable intake bu...

"For us to take the love that people have for berries and then provide them in additional settings, which allows us to go into non-traditional outlets is a great opportunity. It makes us excited to get up every morning ." Steven Ware (6:02 - 6:16)   Naturipe Farms was founded in 1917 as a strawberry co-op in Salinas, California. Today, they sell many types of berries including fresh and convention...

"Usually when people think of avocados, they think of guacamole. Fortunately we have an avocado that's a little more versatile." Chris Gonzalez (07:02 - 07:09)   Avocados have become household favorites in the United States, as of late. The small Hass avocado is the most popular, but to our neighbors in Latin America, the tropical avocado is the norm. WP Produce was founded to provide these avocad...

Live from Western Growers Annual Meeting in San Diego, California! Lori is joined by Jenny Maloney and Marshal Sewell from Bayer Crop Science to discuss this year's events and the critical issues that America's specialty crop farmers are facing right now.   Founded in 1926,  Western Growers represents local and regional family farmers growing fresh produce in Arizona, California, Colorado and New...

"It's going to take us all to work together to get the food system in a place that we really need it to be." Meg Savage (14:24 - 14:30)   For some food insecure families, it's not a simple task getting access to food, let alone healthy food. Pantries are sometimes in scarce supply, or simply don't provide healthy options. In the five boroughs of New York, Feed Forward is on a mission to make healt...

"Pears are so versatile because they have a mild flavor that plays well with a lot of ingredients"  Lisa Carrington (10:56 - 11:02)   Pears may be a type of fruit not thought of in your daily consumption, but it should be. With a sweet, but not overwhelming, flavor, pears are a healthy addition to any recipe whether it be cooked, baked, or even mixed into your favorite cocktail.   87% of commercia...

"NO one individual, one company or one sector of the supply chain could or should be expected to come up with sustainable solutions on their own. It's about working collaboratively and each taking responsibility to do their part." Nikki Cossio (25:14 - 25:23)   In the grand scheme of things, the focus of sustainability is to reduce our environmental footprint on the world. While we, as consumers,...

"[The branding] is a callout to help the consumer remember the apple when they go to the store and pick it up"  Vince Lopes (25:51 - 25:58)   While there are a hefty amount of different apple varieties available on the market right now, many are being taken out due to lack of consumer preference. This gives companies like T&G the opportunity to create new variations on an old favorite. At the fore...

"Our CEO, Shah Kazemi, felt like it was important to give back to the families that are behind the brand."  Lindsey Occhipinti (06:47 - 06:52)   Celebrating its 50th year in business, Monterey Mushrooms has taken the "family first" philosophy to new levels over the years. Still family-owned, Monterey has given back to its employees' families over the last 30 years, assisting their children in furt...

"Managed varieties are something that give consumers a fresher look at the categories they love"  Jennifer Parkhill (11:39 - 11:49)     All produce isn't created equal in the agriculture industry and with the introduction of managed varieties consumers are able to find precisely the taste and texture they're looking for. SweeTango has been a trailblazer in the apple category, providing a sweet var...

"Qi Gong helps us get into that flow state where we feel our best selves and bring our best selves into all the activities of our lives." Lee Holden (8:56-9:08)   Would you like to be able to release stress and gain energy in just a few minutes?   By practicing a form of ancient Chinese medicine called Qi Gong, you can do just that. It's is an easy feel-good practice that can be done in just a sho...

"We came up with this formula to combine produce distribution and nutrition education with a fun food experience"  Lisa Helfman (06:06 - 06:13)   At baseline, low-income families are eating so little produce, they're ignoring it at the grocery store because they're intimidated by it. Parents fear spending money on food that might spoil, because they are unaware of how to properly prepare it. Brigh...

"My passion is supporting busy people so that they can have an economical, healthy and fast way to feed their families"  Katie Hotze (20:43 - 20:54)   There is always the impeding question of "what's for dinner" at the end of every day. As we are busy balancing work and home life, the go-to meals are often recycled every week, leading to possibly bland and less healthier options. A new application...

"What you see on the packaging is what you get"  Dr. Lior Lewenszatin (09:03 - 09:05)   Fruits are one of the most accessible foods on the food pyramid, and yet a hefty amount of Americans don't get the amount they should daily. When cruising down the aisles at the grocery store, fruit snacks might be more appealing especially to kids. The hard truth is that a lot of fruit snacks we see are loaded...

"We realized what needs to happen is that we need to create a distribution network that ensures that food really makes it to the people in need."    Dan Zauderer (14:30 - 14:47)   It's an unfortunate truth that there are still families in this country that struggle to put food on their own tables. As we look to find ways to assist, sometimes it can be difficult to figure out what is the right thin...

"We want to show that you can have it all and eat really well in a way that you can feel good about it." Dan Riegler (03:50 - 03:57 )   Meat replacements in a plant-based society typically aren't necessarily what they are cut out to be. As we try to eat better, we still want to enjoy the flavors we have become accustomed to. Processed meat replacements are either clearly not the same texture, or f...

"This is a product that was created for me. It was something that I couldn't find on the market when I stopped eating meat." Jason Rosenbaum (04:18 - 04:24)   The term "plant-based" gets thrown out a lot, especially in recent years, as more people are going towards a vegetarian/vegan diet. But not all "plant-based" products are created equal. While some *are* plant-based, they can contain a lot of...

"Michigan blueberries and varieties are just miles ahead of where we were 65 years ago when our farm started." Andrew VanTil (13:06 - 13:19)   Did you know there are nearly 150 different varieties of blueberries? Given any trip to your grocery store or farmers market, you're more than likely going to be exposed to any of the 30 main varieties. As a smaller farm, Bowerman Blueberries has been famil...