Holiday Traditions

Christmas tends to develop traditions. Things you do each year that remind you of where you came from, your values, your family. Peddler's Son Produce employees started a tradition 2 years ago to have a toy drive for ChildHelp USA. Many of our employees grew up near our warehouse and wanted to do something that remembered children as well as something that was based in our neighborhood. ChildHelp USA fit the bill.

ChildHelp is dedicated to helping victims of child abuse and neglect. Their focus is on the prevention, intervention and treatment. The toys collected are used for children as they are welcomed into the facility.

Yesterday we had our holiday celebration at the warehouse. Employees brought in their toys and homemade goodies for our potluck. It's always a great event as we are also encouraged to bring our family. One of the things that I noticed was how everyone talks about the toys they brought and why they chose the ones that they did. It seemed to bring back memories of childhood for all. Of course, seeing the employees' children was also special.

So, yes. Holidays bring traditions and here's to some great ones started here at Peddler's Son Produce!

We wish all our employees and customers happy holidays!

Ah nuts!

As part of our on-going efforts to support our sustainability program, we wanted to grow and expand our relationships with local vendors. Today we are happy to welcome Lehi Valley to our product offering. Peddler's Son will now offer a selection of dried fruits and nuts from Lehi Valley. Like Peddler's Son, they're a family owned business here in the Valley - for Lehi it's been over 30 years. We love that they do small batch roasts for all of the nuts and offer salt-free products.

Enough of the talk, here's the lineup.....

Shredded coconuts - Great for baking.
Dried Medium Medjool Dates - The largest and sweetest variety of dates with a softer texture.
Raisins - Thompson Seedless Raisins are sun-sweetened dried grapes.

Blanched Sliced Almonds - Blanched to remove the skin and toasted for a more distinct nutty flavor.
Pinenuts - Add them to meat, fish, salads and vegetables.
Shelled Walnut Halves and Pieces - These are small batch roasted to ensure freshness and are salt-free!
Raw Blanched Peanuts - These are blanched to remove the skin and ready for your baking needs.
Raw Pecan Halves - Mammoth Pecan Halves are small-batch roasted for freshness, but unsalted.

So ignore Jim Davis' quote 'Avoid fruits and nuts. You are what you eat.' and give the new products a try. We'd love to know what you think.

Thanks for the memories Teddy!

Peddler's Son Produce is a family company. Many of our employees have worked here for years and are more than just friends, but family. On Monday, we lost one of our family members, Teddy Sardina. He was one of our first sales people, but most of all a mentor to all.

His dedication and spunky personality will be missed by all of us.

Thank you, Teddy, for showing us the true meaning of life and how to embrace it's end with joy and grace!

What's up with.......

The holiday season is all about the food, so let's catch up with....

Cauliflower and Broccoli - We will still see an extremely strong demand for Cauliflower and Broccoli due to the transition. The price of Cauliflower was absolutely nuts last week and supplies are in a 'demand exceeds' situation, which doesn't happen too often but has happened this week. We will watch and see what develops.

Lettuce - The lettuce situation is still having issues but prices have started to retreat. We're told that by the end of next week, supplies will be stablewhich will also help the situation.

Row Crops - Most of the other row crops are in the same boat as lettuce, cauliflower and broccoli so we should see some relief by the end of this week.

Berries - Berries are still a problem. Supplies are slightly better, but not great. Some shippers are getting slightly more supply, but Driscoll is still cutting orders by 2/3 so it's a problem for them big time.

Citrus - On the Citrus side of things, we are transitioned over to all Navels. The first ones you will see are 88 sizes, and the rest of the sizes will follow over the next two weeks. Lemon prices are still higher on larger sizes and supplies are getting better. Limes are higher. Ruby Red Grapefruit is in and outstanding quality. Buddha Hands, Clementine's, Satsuma Mandarins, Finger limes, and Sweet Limes are all coming within the next week.


Melons - Cantaloupe supplies are extremely limited with only fair quality. Honeydew is peaking to a 5ct.


As always, please call us or your sales executive with any questions.

Safety Tips for Just About Everything for the Holidays

You can never be too safe, right? Around this time of year, we hear about the Butterball Turkey Hotline and what you need to do to keep your turkey safe. Well, there's a lot more on the plate than just turkey so I thought it would be helpful to include some tips for the rest of the dinner plate:

Turkey - It has to come from Butterball since they made the hot line famous.

Produce - Hey, we're a produce company right? Learn how to keep your fruit and veggies free of any contamination.

Eggs - Read it directly from the Egg Safety Center.

Cheese and Dairy Safety Tips Great info on how long items may be refrigerated.

So go out and enjoy a happy and safe holiday!

Online Ordering Turns 2!

Peddler's Son Produce started online ordering for customers 2 years ago. The Gallery Golf Restaurant was the first customer to place their order online. So, I thought I'd talk with Chef Brian and find out more about the Gallery. Here is what he had to say.

Where are you from Chef Brian?

I was raised in New York, but I moved here 20 years ago.


How did you become interested in cooking?

I started as a dishwasher for Conti's Restaurant, here in Tucson, and worked my way up. It was run by a small, crazy Italian family, but they taught me what a good work ethic means.


How did you come to The Gallery?

The Gallery specialized in high-end French cuisine at the time and I was eager to learn more about it. I took a cut in salary and title to come here and find out more about this style of cooking. It didn't last long however, as six months later the members asked to change the menu to more of a meat and potato selection.

What are you most proud of at The Gallery?

The thing that I am most proud of here at The Gallery is the level of teamwork that exists here at the property. There is no line between the front of the house and back of the house. Everyone contributes and is respectful of each other and their work. Personally, I enjoy the fact that I learn from my staff as I teach them what is expected day in and day out.

While we work with the specific tastes the members enjoy, they also let us 'push the envelope' to try some new things and provide new experiences. That makes The Gallery a fun place and allows everyone to take pride in what they do.

Why Peddler's Son Produce?

We were splitting our orders with another company and wanted to see how Peddler's Son would perform. They consistently had better product and worked hard at creating a relationship with us. For example, during the Accenture Match Play tournament, they worked with us to deliver our order at 5am instead of 6 because they'd never be able to make it through the property once the day started. That meant a lot to us, that they were pro-active in making sure we were taken care of.

Why online ordering?

Well, we're in the 2000s and I don't want to be left in the dust! Online ordering is quick, easy and convenient. I can check prices and even do my order while I'm on the phone placing my order with the broadliner!

Chef Brian, thank you so much for your support! We appreciate you taking the time to talk with us and most of all, taking the first step to be our inaugural online customer!

What is the 'best fruit' now?

We are often asked what is the best time to buy fruit or what fruits are in season and taste particularly well. I've found a site that has great information and a listing of 'Fruit Odds' that is automatically updated for each month. Great info to take with you to the grocery store or for planning menus.

How well do you know fruit? Take their Fruit IQ test? I'll need to pass it on to the team and see how they do. We love competition!

What are your thoughts on the best fruit to eat in November?

Sandwich Day

Today is Sandwich Day. In celebration, we took a poll of our Peddler's Son Produce team to find out what sandwich creation ranks number one with them.

Here are the results:

Matt - Italian Grinder
Ted - Prosciutto with Genoa Salami
Aliza - Italian Grinder
Dwight - Italian Beef with Sweet and Hot Peppers
Sal - Any sandwich someone else buys for me!
Susie - Ham and Swiss with Stoli & Tonic
Carolyn - Turkey & Provolone
Joe - Honey Roasted Turkey & Havarti
Jill - Truck Garden Chicken from AZ88 - Unfortunately, it's not on the menu.

You'd think we'd have someone representing a vegetable sandwich since we all work at a produce company. :)

What's your fav?

Pumpkins!

Have you gotten your pumpkin yet for Halloween? I'll be bringing mine home today.

The fall is my favorite time of year, as I've noted in the past. I have also grown to love squash, but most of all, pumpkin seeds!

I was searching for some fun information on pumpkins and found some interesting facts.

Did you know.....

*Pumpkins are technically fruit. Yes, a fruit. Like a tomato.

*Pumpkin flowers are edible.

*Pumpkins were once recommended for removing freckles and curing snake bites.

*Eighty percent of the pumpkin supply in the United States is available in October. (Of course, we have plenty!)

*Pumkins have been made into soups, stews, bread, pickles, pies, puddings, ice cream and even beer or ale! (Pretty good beer, from Four Peaks!)

*Pumpkins are 90% water, 6% electricity, 4% evaporation and 2% butterscotch ripple. :)

*On Halloween night, the great pumpkin rises from the pumpkin patch and that one kid with the thinning hair never sees him because he falls asleep like a baby.......Loser.

*David Letterman has a Top 10 Halloween list with pumpkins!


So, have you gotten your pumpkins for the most wonderful time of year?

Rain, Rain STAY A While!

It's not often we get a rainy day in Phoenix, but when we do we love it! The rain was coming down so hard today we had to take a break and see what we were missing.

Of course, business continues rain or shine and we got an action shot of Russell, one of our dedicated employees getting a load of produce into the warehouse. Thanks for taking one for the team and letting us get a rainy action shot!

Congratulations Saffron Kitchen

Congratulations to Andrea Kretzmann of Saffron Kitchen! Check the great article on Saffron Kitchen.

Alfalfa Sprout Recall

California and New York authorities are warning consumers against eating certain sprouts products, citing concerns they might be contaminated with salmonella and listeria. Sacramento, Calif.-based Banner Mountain-branded alfalfa sprouts and Essex Farm Inc, which does business as Best Farm in New York.

Peddler’s Son Produce is NOT involved in this recall.

The FDA has distributed a press release with the following information.
The products subject to this market withdrawal include:

• Four (4) 1-pound bags of alfalfa sprouts, packaged in unlabeled 1-pound plastic bags in a box labeled as Living Foods, Inc. ALFALFA SPROUTS, with a SELL BY DATE of 10/2/2010.
• Five (5) Pound Bulk Container (bag in a box) of alfalfa sprouts labeled as, Living Foods, Inc. ALFALFA SPROUTS, with a SELL BY DATE of 10/2/2010.
• 4-ounce cup alfalfa sprouts labeled as Living Foods, Inc. ALFALFA SPROUTS, with a SELL BY DATE of 10/2/2010. UPC Code: 0 26684 10006 5.
• 4-ounce bag alfalfa sprouts labeled as Living Foods, Inc. ALFALFA SPROUTS, with a SELL BY DATE of 10/2/2010. UPC Code 0 26684 10004 1.
No illnesses have been reported to date.

More information may be found here.

Please feel free to call us with any questions.
Peddler’s Son Produce
602 253 3577

National Family Day - A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children

Today marks the tenth annual observance of "Family Day - A Day to Eat Dinner with your Children." Hopefully, that means that families across the country will be gathering for dinner this evening and it will pay off.

One of my favorite memories growing up was dinner time. It was a chance to catch up from the day and have some fun. Classic conversations included what 'boyfriends' my sisters had to grades, teachers and weekend plans.

There are studies that show the more often kids eat dinner with their families the less likely they are to smoke, drink or use drugs. Did it help us? I think so. But the biggest thing that I take from family dinners and other family time, is a close relationship with my siblings. They are the best friends I have.

What about you? How important is eating together as a family for you?

Mushroom Shortage

Quincy Mushrooms, one of the biggest and best known mushroom farms in the USA is about to shut its doors. This is the second significantly sized farm in the U.S. that has closed in the past few years.

Also Creekside, the Moonlight Brand mushroom, is closing as well. It has been said that between these two growers they produced over 70 million pounds of mushrooms annually.

This is creating the old supply and demand issue. Not only are mushrooms increasing by $1.50 a case but the supply is going to be very tight through the first of the year. they are expecting another increase closer to the holidays.

This affects white mushrooms only, your buttons, medium, large and extra large. Crimini, oyster and other mushrooms are NOT affected.

We'll keep you informed as news comes in.

Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi also known as turnip cabbage, is a form of cabbage, a member of the mustard family. It is not a root vegetable, but rather a fleshy bulbous stem just above the ground. Kohlrabi is of European origin, and popular in Germany, Russia, Hungary and also in China.

Eggs -actly what you need to know about eggs!

Many of you are familiar with the egg recall and we have received calls and questions regarding this topic. So we've pulled together some information on the topic in hopes that this helps answer any lingering questions.

The Arizona Farm Bureau posted an article on the egg recall. A portion of the article reads “eggs affected by the expanded recall were distributed to food wholesalers, distribution centers and food service companies in Georgia, California, Colorado, Minnesota, Arkansas, Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Oklahoma, Oregon, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.” "The eggs were distributed by Wright County Egg of Galt, Iowa"

Peddler's Son Produce has purchased eggs from Hickman's Family Farms for many years. Hickman's is a locally-based farm in Buckeye, AZ. To learn more about Hickman's and the recall check out their website.

I've found their site very helpful and fun. They also have referenced an 'eggcellent' (couldn't help myself) egg FAQ.

As always, if you have any additional questions please call your sales executive or our office at 602 253 3577.

Driscoll names Chef of the Year

Ravioli made with a pastry crust, filled with blackberries and drizzled with chocolate earned John Carver, corporate executive chef of Eddie V’s Restaurant Inc., Scottsdale, Ariz., recognition from Driscoll Strawberry Associates.

It's the second most wonderful time of the year!

OK,college football is the most wonderful time of the year, but it is closely followed by the wine grape and juice time of the year.

Each fall, we celebrate an Italian tradition of making homemade wine. This will be my third grape season and I look forward to it ever year. For over 10 years, we have sold wine grapes and juice for people to make their own wine. It's fun to watch these customers, many that only speak Italian, pick up their grapes or juice and meet fellow winemakers to discuss last year's vintage. I'm a big fan of wine, so I love to hear what people are making and why.

My brother-in-law is a homebrewer so I've learned a lot about making beer. Of course, I've passed the information on to him to send to his homebrewing friends and will be curious to see if any give wine a try this year.

The grapes and juice usually arrive the beginning of September and we're planning on a September 19th pick up day. Photos and stories will follow soon after.

Do you have any family traditions that you follow? Do you make your own wine? What about 'gravy' or spaghetti sauce?

If you're interested in learning more about the grapes and juice, please send your email address to wine@peddlersson.com.

Hello 2010!

We here at Peddler's Son work on a fiscal calendar. So, that means June 30th marked the end of 2009. There was much to be thankful for over the past year, so we decided to get together at The Duce and I have some pictures to prove it.



The night crew has done a lot to improve efficiencies and quality control. They got a huge round of applause from Ted and the team.




One special award went for our initial inductee to our 'Peddler's Son Produce Hall of Fame'. Teddy Sardina was the recipient of this award. We thanked him for his many years of dedicated service and most of all, his love and friendship.



This also provided the team a chance to say thanks to Joe and Ted for the great work environment and family atmosphere that we have here. A plaque signed by all of the Peddler's Son Produce team was given to Ted and Joe thanking them for all that they do for us.


We'd also like to take this time to thank our customers. Of course, we wouldn't be here without you!

Band of Bros Florence Farm Report

Check out the great deals on the Band of Bros produce available from our local farm, Florence Farms.




Heirlooms Tomatoes

Baby squash yellow 10llbs

Baby zucchini 10lbs

Baby patti pans green 10lbs

Large summer squash 20LBS LOTS OF IT!!!


Call your sales executive or 602 253 3577 for more information!

Tour de Farm

Ok, maybe not as great as the Tour de France and not as far or take as many days, but our 3 hour tour of Florence Farms with our customers was almost as fun. Band of Bros, our partnership with Florence Farms, is a local farm using organic methods of farming. We've started with a small harvest of baby specialty items like baby green and yellow patty pan squash, baby zucchini and baby tri-colored carrots.


The greenhouse on the farm is a testing area used to extend the spring/summer season and learn more about growing some of these specialty items. Some of the items grown in the greenhouse are Mexican Midget, black zebra tomatoes along with chocolate peppers and lots of specialty herbs.
Of course the best part of any tour is the samples! The photo to the left shows all of the produce and herbs we were able to taste along our tour.

The fall harvest will include more variety of products and more volume. We'll provide updates of the growing season along with photos. Once the product is available, we'll provide a weekly farm report on what's available and what will be available. We're very excited about our partnership with the farm and look forward to bringing our customers fresh, local produce.

What would you like to see grown on the farm?

Here is a list of product that we have in house GROWN LOCALLY.

CHECK OUT THE HEIRLOOM PRICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!


FLORENCE FARMS

#2111 BABY YELLOW SQUASH $20.00
#2112 BABY GREEN PATTI PANS $20.00
#1126 MIX MEDLEY TOMATOES $32.50

RHIBA FARMS

#1109 HEIRLOOM TOMATOES NICE AND FIRM WE HAVE 70CS $20.00
#2310 SUNFLOWER SPROUTS $18.00
#2024 PEA SHOOTS $18.00

It’s not just what we sell; it’s also about the partners we choose. Organic and local produce are opportunities for us to provide products that not only help us reduce our eco-footprint, but also developing relationships with food producers and suppliers who have implemented organic and sustainable growing practices.

Stanley Cup

Hawks Win, Hawks Win, Stanley Cup Champions!!!!!

Fresh & Local

"Heirloom tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes. What'd life be without heirloom tomatoes!"

OK, not exactly what John Denver sang in his song about homegrown tomatoes, but these are as close to home as we can get them. Grown right here in Chandler, AZ, we have some delicious heirloom tomatoes from Rhiba Farms.

We're also excited about another local farm in Florence, AZ. Currently, we've got some green and yellow baby patty pan squash, baby tri-color carrots and baby zucchini. Tomorrow we're touring the farm to see how things look in the field as well as a tour of the greenhouses. I'll be posting pictures so check back and see what's growing.

Peacock watermelons will be coming soon. I'm looking forward to getting these in because I've heard they're the sweetest, juiciest tasting watermelons you'll ever have. How perfect for your Forth of July weekend!


We've even got some great prices for these and a limited supply so call us soon!

Florence Farms Update

Visited Florence Farm today, WOW the products are coming along and should be ready in a couple weeks. We have some squash blossoms now!!

Locally grown specialty produce from Peddler's Son and Florence Farms

Local, specialty and fresh. Those are some of the words we've been hearing a lot about lately from our customers. Peddler's Son Produce is happy to announce our partnership with Florence Farms. Peddler’s Son will be the exclusive distributor of specialty produce grown right here, in Arizona.

This partnership is branded under the label of Band of Bros. According to Ted Palmisano, 'We feel that this partnership is like an extension the Peddler's Son family. Band of Bros. was a way for us to include all of the folks involved.'

The initial crop will start small with a few items available in a couple of weeks. This will include:

Basil
Icicle Radishes
Baby Green and Yellow Patty Pan Squash
Baby Zucchini
Baby Scallopini
Baby French Carrots
French Breakfast Carrots
Baby Carrots of all colors.  

Future items will be ready for the fall harvest. For more information regarding our partnership, call your sales executive or 602 253 3577.

Melons

Cantaloupe: Product is extremely limited and will remain that way over the next two weeks. The Central American fruit is finishing up
quickly after rain from last week. This looks to be the last week for any availability. Mexican product is now crossing into Nogales, sizing is running small but quality is good. The desert melons will not start until May 17 at the earliest.
Honeydew: Very limited supplies of offshore product as shippers finish up in Honduras and Guatemala for the season. The west coast is all but done with Central American product. Nogales is receiving more supplies of Mexican fruit with good quality and sugars. The desert product is set to start with Cantaloupe the 3rd week of May.
Watermelon: Better supplies on seedless product with seeded watermelon in light supply. Prices are still at the bottom. The mini seedless are in better supply and quality is good, the market is flat.

Hot Dogs

Check out the video. Peddler's Son Produce is the proud supplier of Cloverdale products in Arizona. Ask for a sample of these fantastic products, including the Hot Dog.

Sustainability

There are 10 definitions in dictionary.com for sustainability and probably a different definition for each individual on what it means to them. We have been hearing a lot about sustainability practices from partners and others in the community and have been working on what it means to us.

Peddler's Son Produce has made a commitment to continuously improve the community we serve through sustainable practices. Our '3 P's - People, Partner/Products and Planet' outlines this commitment. We will promote a safe and healthy atmosphere where we value and recognize our employees, source vendors that provide our customer with products that are inherently more sustainable and reduce our own ecological footprint.

One of the programs we started this year was a cardboard recycling program. Produce comes in cardboard boxes and we sell a lot of produce! So, it made sense for us to purchase a cardboard baler. Already this year, it has saved us a significant amount of costs by reducing the number of times we need to have the dumpster emptied. We have recycled over 13 bales of cardboard year-to-date. That works out to approximately a bale per 7 10 days or over 13,000 pounds of cardboard that will be reused instead of taking up space in a landfill!

It's amazing what small changes can add up to and we're excited to learn more about ways we can do to help make our community around us a better place to live.

Do you have a sustainability program? What suggestions do you have?

Phoenix Children's Hospital & Peddler's Son Produce

Peddler's Son Produce was a proud In-Kind sponsor of the Phoenix Children's Hospital and Kohl's Healthy Kids and Families. The program encourages children 6-12 in over 50 schools valley-wide to walk or jog 25.2 miles during the school year. We donated over 1,000 apples to the participants.

Family and children have always been priorities in my life and I try to support programs that have the same goals. We have supported the Phoenix Children's Hospital for about 8 years and have enjoyed serving on their board.

Look for me on the golf course at the Phoenix Children's Hospital Brennan's 24th Annual Charity Golf Tournament on May 8th at the Gainey Ranch Golf Club at 6:45 and register here.

We're going green for more than just St Patrick's Day!

Green is not only the color of the day and for our lettuce, Peddler's Son is going green!

Our '3 P's - People, Partner/Products and Planet' is our commitment to continuously improve the community we serve through sustainable practices. We'll be focusing on these areas in the coming year and will highlight some of the programs here in the blog.

Our fearless leader, Ted, has been working with APS' Green Choice program 'Solutions for Business'. APS has approved Trade Allies that help businesses learn about the energy efficiency programs and incentives available to them. Last week Jim, from ATS Electric, Inc.- an APS Trade Ally, toured the warehouse and has come back with a plan for us to replace all of our fluorescent lighting with CFL. This will be the first phase of our energy reduction plan with programs for our coolers and motion detector lights in the near future.

We want to thank Jim for all of his help and friendly attitude and we're excited about moving forward with his suggestions to help reduce our energy use.

What plans or programs have you implemented? Do you have suggestions on partners or learnings along the way? We'd love to hear from you!

2% Phoenix Food Tax

Effective April 1st 2010 the city of Phoenix will be instituting a 2% sales tax on all food items sold.

However, all food items sold for resale will be exempt from the tax. This means all of our restaurant partners will be exempt from this tax with a completed form!! We will be distributing the Transaction Privilege Tax Exemption Certificate Form 5000 to our customers during the next week. Just fill in your name, address, tax number and sign. Please contact your Sales Executive if you have any questions or call us at 602 253 3577.

March is National Peanut Month

March is National Peanut Month, a time to celebrate one of America's favorite foods! Roasted in the shell for a ballpark snack, ground into peanut butter or tossed in a salad or stir-fry, peanuts find their way into everything from breakfast to dessert.

Coincidentally, March is National Nutrition Month - a great time to recognize the nutritional value of peanuts. One serving of peanuts is a good source of protein, Vitamin E, Niacin, Folate, Phosphorus and Magnesium. Peanuts are naturally cholesterol-free and low in saturated fat.

Show your Peanut IQ by sharing some of these fun facts with your friends this month:

-Peanuts are not actually nuts at all! They are legumes, like beans, peas and lentils.
-Americans eat 3 pounds of peanut butter per person every year. That's about 700 million pounds, or enough to coat the floor of the Grand Canyon!
-Peanuts may be a favorite food, but we've found many uses for their shells too! You might find peanut shells in kitty litter, wallboard, fireplace logs, paper, animal feed and sometimes as fuel for power plants!
-Two peanut farmers have been elected President of the United States: Thomas Jefferson and Jimmy Carter.
-One acre of peanuts will make 30,000 peanut butter sandwiches.

Mangoes supply expected tight until mid-March

Mango supplies are very low due to El Nino-related weather conditions, and they will likely stay low well into March, importers say.
Rains have seriously limited supplies from Peru, and the upcoming Mexican deals are a big question mark for the same reason.
The first Mexican shipments from the southern state of Chiapas crossed the border Feb. 18, and volumes will increase slowly, and won’t peak until mid-March.
Strong winds and late rains in mid-February in the state of Nayarit could push the beginning of the deal back in May. The rains could lead to volume and quality issues.

Rare, unusual or just hard to find?

That's a specialty produce item and we've got it!

Why would you use specialty produce items? Specialty items, like the rambutan in the photo, help 'kick things up a notch' and create excitement for customers to dine out instead of eating in. They also provide a way to differentiate your menu with a signature item.

Don't know where to start? Give your sales executive a call to learn more. Orders placed by 10:30 will be here for the next delivery day. A few items may require a 48 hour delivery.

Here are a few items to get you thinking:

• Orange baby bunch carrots with tops - Check out our sale price!
• Exotic tropical fruits
• Wild domestic mushrooms and wild imported mushrooms
• Fresh herbs
• Baby vegetables
• Specialty lettuces

Are you inspired?

Peddler's Son Tour 2010

We have built our business on a foundation of basic principles that include great service, great quality, honest prices and loyalty to our customers and employees. Our home is your home! We are proud of our facility and would be honored to show it off to you and your staff. We can show you everything from how your product is received, to how it is stored in our coolers that are temperature specific to the product that they store, down to how your order is picked and delivered. You will also meet the best team in the business that makes it all possible for us to provide you with the great product and customer service that we strive for. Just ask a representative and we can schedule a tour. Our goal at Peddler’s Son Produce, is to build lasting relationships.

We love Yelp!

Bravi Italian Kitchen hosted our January Tweetup. Gabi, from Yelp, joined us to learn more about Yelp for Business Owners. This is a wonderful tool that offers businesses the ability, through a business account, to keep customers updated with special offers and announcements, send private or public messages and track your business's page views. Yelp even created a video to walk you through all of tools and you can check it out here.

In my opinion, local and real-time search are the future. Yelp now gives us more tools to work in this environment and I can't wait to see how things progress.

What do you think about local search? Do you Yelp? Do you comment on other sites? What about other social media tools?

Ahh the new year, looking forward to.........

Valentine's Day! Yes, already. It's just around the corner and I bet you're wondering about the connection between this holiday and produce. Turns out, there are loads of fruits and vegetables that are connected with this holiday. The following article from www.fruitandveggieguru.com outlines several items that have been tied to romance and the holiday.

Why send flowers? Chocolate is soooo 2009, celebrate Valentine's Day 2010 with fruit and vegetables!

So, does anyone have any other fruit and vegetable suggestions?