New Legislation

If you have been following the legislation in Congress lately, you would have heard about the House bill that passed earlier in the month that gives the Government more power to regulate the produce business. Don’t be surprised to find out its going to cost you more for your produce.
Egg prices have already been affected as producers are hit by new costs as a result of food safety measures.
The FDA estimates that the new egg regulations will cost producers $81m annually. At around one cent per dozen, this is equivalent to a more than two percent increase in production costs.
Is the American consumer ready able and willing to have the cost of regulations passed onto them? Will this put a strain on the smaller shipper growers and force them out and create monopolies? Don’t get me wrong safety is good. I am interested in your feedback.

What is 21?

The poker game? The sum of the first six integers? (1+2+3+4+5=21) The retired number of Roberto Clemente from the Pittsburgh Pirates? The minimum legal age at which one can purchase and drink alcoholic beverages and gamble? Or the anniversary of Peddler's Son Produce?

Actually, all of the above! 21 years ago this month Ted Palmisano started Peddler's Son Produce. Ted began his business in the back of the pick-up truck. A few years later, Ted's brother, Joe joined him and now they serve over 300 restaurants, grocery stores and food related businesses. While they continue to grow into one of the most reputable produce houses in the valley, Ted and Joe are never too busy for you. You are always welcome at Peddler's Son Produce and they would love to give you a tour! Stop by and say hello!

Peddler's Partners For Profit

I would like to thank everyone for attending our Tweet-up today. It is our hope that you found the session to be informative and valuable. As with any new project, it is the foundation that gives you a strong starting point to build from and as the group increases we will have a constructive forum for conversation and networking.

My goal is to spark creativity and a buzz amongst all of us and to further expand the horizons of our industry and break down barriers in an effort to help us grow as a community.

Our next meeting will be held at Sassi located at 10455 Pinnacle Peak Parkway, Scottsdale AZ 85255, 480-563-1518 on September 15th at 2:00pm. Please feel free to invite anyone you feel could benefit from our group and interact as a valuable participant.

Again, thank you for your support and partnership.

Green, it's not just for St Patrick's Day

As the citrus buyer at Peddler's Son, I'm often asked why fully ripe Valencia oranges sometimes appear green.

Sunkist Valencia oranges go through a natural process of 're-greening' as they ripen on the tree. This is due to chlorophyll returning to the peel. These oranges may actually be sweeter because they are extra-ripe.

Oranges will keep for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator, but keep almost as well at room temperature with no wrapping. They yield more juice when at room temperature.

One more tip, if you put oranges in a hot oven before peeling them, no white fibers will be left on them.

So, go green! Enjoy the sweetest Valencia oranges now!

Bing!

Whether you like the golden-skinned sweet Rainier cherries or the dark Bing cherries, we have a big supply with great pricing. I've always been partial to the Rainier cherries. Mark, our buyer, tells me California cherries are the first fruit of the season so take advantage of this as their season is short. Cherries may also be frozen. Remember to remove the stems, wash and dry before placing in a freezer bag. They may be kept up to 3 months.

Now, all I need are some recipes for the Bing cherries. Anyone?!

How are we doing?

It's almost June?!! It seems like I just took down my Christmas lights and now I'm getting ready for my summer vacation. Well, we'd like to slow things down a bit and take some time to enjoy the things that are important to us, like you. Customers are what makes things tick around here and we want to make sure that we're listening. Would you take a couple of minutes and let us know how we're doing? I promise it will only take a minute or two and some lucky person will even win a couple of stylish, everyone-is-wearing, summer-staple Peddler's Son Produce shirts!

So, 'Lettuce Talk' and tell us how we're doing!

The People Behind the Produce

Matt Henning!

Background: Born and raised in Baltimore, Matt chose to go to school at the University of North Carolina (UNC). He later graduated on the deans list with a degree in Culinary and Hotel Management at the International Culinary College in Dublin, Ireland. Matt studied under Master Chef Peter Timmons, who lead the Irish Culinary Olympic Team. As you can see, Matt is a big fan of cooking. One of his favorite things to do is to cook meals for lots of friends and family for the holidays.

Movie: The Quite Man - John Wayne Movie


Music: I prefer jazz, but I also enjoy night club dance music.


TV Show: Currently, I like to watch "Lie to Me".

Food: Anything Italian!


Quote: "I can always lose weight, but I will always have my good looks, charm and personality."


1st Job: I flipped hamburgers at McDonald's when I was 14.


People/Person I'd most like to have dinner with: My wife. I don't see her very often.

What I like to do in my leisure time: I like spending time with my wife, Joanne, and finding local restaurants.

Something you may not know about me: I was the Beverage Director for a night club in Baltimore and was interested in DJing. A friend of mine introduced me to John 'Jellybean' Benitez. He was a popular DJ at several night clubs in NYC. He was also the boyfriend/producer for Madonna on some of her early albums. He taught me how to DJ professionally.


So, Matt likes to cook for large groups of people and DJ. Sounds like a one man party to me! Oh, and we'd like to now refer to him as Matt 'Magic Hands' Henning since every good DJ needs a nickname. :)