Michael Vesley of Jewel-Osco named the 2017 Mango Retailer of the Year The National Mango Board (NMB) named Michael Vesely of Jewel-Osco as the 2017 Mango Retailer of the Year. The award was announced during the NMB’s Annual Mango Industry Reception on October 20, 2017 during PMA’s Fresh Summit Convention & Expo in Orlando, FL. Present [...]

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Port of Nogales, Commercial Facility will begin winter hours of operation on Monday, October 30, 2017. Both the primary northbound truck gate and Inbound/Export booth for the 2017/2018 winter season will be open Monday through Friday from 8:00AM to 7:00PM and Saturdays from 8:00AM to 5:00PM. CBP gate hours for [...]

FPAA staff Allison Moore and Erika Dominguez attended the Borderlands Trade and Transportation Technologies Conference on Thursday, October 20th. The conference encouraged communication and connection between key industry, community, and government leaders to learn about new emerging technology in trade and transportation. The conference was composed of various guest speakers, including Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild and [...]

McSally Bill to Increase Security and Decrease Wait Times at Ports of Entry Heads to Senate Congresswoman’s Ninth Bill to Pass the House will Modernize CBP’s Global Supply Chain Security Program WASHINGTON, DC—The House of Representatives today passed U.S. Representative Martha McSally’s legislation to protect global supply chains against terrorist activity. Her bill reauthorizes and modernizes [...]

Arizona Senator Jeff Flake announced in remarks on the Senate Floor that he will not be seeking reelection in 2018.  Senator Flake has been a strong advocate for the Nogales produce industry.  The Senator and his staff have worked closely with the FPAA on many important issues for Arizona and the produce industry. Most recently, Senator [...]

  During the PMA Fresh Summit the members of the North America Produce Food Safety Working Group met for their biyearly meeting. The food safety agencies of Mexico, the U.S. and Canada briefed the attendees on their food safety regulations. During the meeting it was discussed the work that Mexico and Canada are doing to reach [...]

Members who are enrolled in trusted traveler programs, such as SENTRI, Global Entry, or others, should be aware that CBP has migrated management of those programs to a new website.  You will need to create an account in the new system in order to continue to manage your trusted traveler memberships.  The information is included below. [...]

As part of FPAA’s outreach, during PMA’s Fresh Summit Convention, Mexico Calidad Suprema organized a meeting for FPAA Foreign Affairs Director Georgina Felix  with a group of growers from Mexico to explain the food safety requirements that importers of fresh produce need from their growers in order to comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act. At [...]

Allison Moore and Scott Vandervoet participated in a meeting with the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) to discuss updates from the public meeting on alternatives to upgrading Ruby Road, the East and West Frontage Roads, and Rio Rico Drive.  Participants in the meeting talked about the public feedback, analyzed the options again, and discussed next steps. [...]

Below is a bulletin from the USDA Animals and Plant Health Inspection Services The government of Mexico has asked USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to authorize the importation of mombin for consumption into the continental United States.  APHIS has drafted a pest risk assessment that lists potential pests likely to remain on the [...]