FreshPoint

Doug has a Military Homecoming “Special Delivery” for Bill

Bill has been a member of our FreshPoint Central Florida Family for 21 years, and is a dedicated member of our transportation team. His son, Doug, hadn’t seen his dad in five years, and he asked for our help surprising him with a military homecoming. The management team arranged for a “special delivery” for Bill...

Read more

Video: English peas–quick facts, and the best ways to use them this spring

Chef Dan talks to us about English peas, one of the true harbingers of spring. Did you know: most peas are not eaten fresh Only 5% of the domestic crop is consumed fresh. Since most peas are not eaten fresh, the vast majority of English peas are consumed canned, followed by frozen. Peas were first...

Read more

Video: Rhubarb–besides pie, what can you do with it?

Chef Dan talks to us about the springtime veggie: rhubarb. Or is rhubarb a fruit?    I wanted to talk to you briefly about one of my very favorite produce items, rhubarb. It is actually a vegetable, although it’s more often used as a fruit in strawberry-rhubarb pie–but besides pie, what can you do with...

Read more

Chef Story: Chef Leroy Walker of Bistro 234

We talk to chefs for their orders, or see them in the mornings as they’re opening the kitchen, but we rarely get to hear their personal stories.  Chef Leroy Walker is the Executive Chef of Bistro 234 in Turlock, CA, and he shared his story with us. Chef Leroy, tell us, when did you decide...

Read more

Everyone needs friends, including rhubarb

Good on its own, but better with friends. This could pretty much be the anthem of rhubarb, and life. There seems to be a dearth of recipes calling for simply prepared rhubarb, highlighting the spring seasonal freshness of this vegetable. Or is it a fruit? Technically speaking it is a vegetable, but here in the...

Read more

Morel Mushrooms: How do you clean them, and what’s the best way to eat them?

The spring season is often thought of as a time for re-birth and shedding the cold and dark of the long winter season. Marked by the vernal equinox on March 20th or 21st, many people begin looking for what I consider to be the Spring Trilogy: Morel Mushrooms, Fiddlehead Ferns and Ramps. Let’s start by looking...

Read more

People, Passion, Produce, and Peas

Whoever said, “Like two peas in a pod” to describe people as being so similar as to be indistinguishable, or nearly so, really sold the English pea short. A good pea pod worth its weight in chlorophyll will have five to eight peas in it. Seven if you’re lucky! With their bright green color and...

Read more

Florida blueberries and more anthocyanin

Blueberries have not always been a traditional Florida crop. It was the University of Florida who developed the cultivars, building research on some early experimental work done in the 1990s.  Generally speaking, there is a blurry line of demarcation in the center of the state somewhere between Lake City and Ocala.  North of this line,...

Read more

Video: Blueberries–super quick facts about this superfruit

Chef Dan tells us some super quick facts about blueberries: the superfruit.   Let’s talk a little bit about blueberries. The blueberry crop starts in Florida, works its way up the eastern seaboard into Georgia, the Carolinas, New Jersey, and finally finishing in Michigan. Southern blueberry production isn’t without its challenges, though. Low yields, typically...

Read more

What is the annual produce field transition?

Around November and April, the major growing areas in Yuma and Salinas alternate, and it’s a big deal in the produce industry. Entire harvesting and processing operations pick up and move–from the equipment to the hard working harvesters. It’s a monumental operational and logistical feat, but don’t worry, our growers have got it down to...

Read more

FreshPoint Atlanta Shows Off Its Brand New Digs at Large Open House

FAIRBURN, Ga. – This week, FreshPoint Atlanta hosted an open house at its new facility, which consisted of tours, meet and greets with the staff and local vendor partners, a catered lunch and raffle. Local and state officials, customers, prospects, and supplier and vendor partners were invited to the event to get an insider look and...

Read more

FreshPoint Atlanta To Host Open House at New Facility

ATLANTA, Feb. 27, 2018 Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY) announced it will host an open house for state and local officials, associates and other members of the community at its new FreshPoint Atlanta facility on March 6, at 10:00 a.m. ET. FreshPoint, Sysco’s specialty produce company, is North America’s leading produce distributor. The 100,000-square-foot state-of-the-art warehouse, located...

Read more

Video: How do they grow white asparagus?

Chef Dan talks to us today about asparagus   Hi, I’m Chef Dan with FreshPoint Central Florida and I wanted to talk to you about my favorite spring vegetable. It is is one of the world’s oldest and most ancient crops. The first recorded harvest was in 3,000 BC in ancient Egypt. The ancient Romans prized...

Read more

So, what makes stinging nettles sting?

Stinging Nettles are as ancient as they are misunderstood. Loathed by many as an irritating and often invasive plant, others look for the annual nettle crop as a harbinger of spring.  Used by the ancients as a medicine, a food source and a fiber source, the nettle continues to be prized in many cultures today. ...

Read more

How Do They Grow White Asparagus?

Asparagus is a true harbinger of spring, though these days, it is available year-round. Related to the onion, this member of the lily family has been grown for thousands of years, in fact, we have historical records of it being grown and eaten in Ancient Egypt as far back as 3000 BC.  It was so...

Read more

FreshPoint Oklahoma Opens Its Doors to Oklahoma State Department of Agriculture

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The FreshPoint Oklahoma team recently hosted Jim Reese, the Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture, and several Oklahoma State Department of Agriculture Department members to establish an open dialogue and explore the possibility of establishing a working relationship with the producers of local products. Representation from other departments included: Communications, Market Development, Agritourism, Farmers...

Read more

Video: Mushrooms, a simple ingredient–but packed with umami flavor

Chef Dan talks to us today about mushrooms.   Hi, I’m Chef Dan with FreshPoint Central Florida. I wanted to talk to you today about mushrooms. I’ve brought along two of my favorites. I’ve brought along the original button mushroom, the cremini. This is the original commercially-cultivated mushroom. It later mutated into what we know...

Read more

Take Your Children to Work Day, FreshPoint South Florida style

This year, Florida moved the national Take Your Children to Work Day event from April to February 2nd, and boy did the children of FreshPoint South Florida have fun! The day started out with snacks (who doesn’t like to start the day with snacks?) and a meeting with the president, Clay Wachter. The day continued...

Read more

Video: Blood oranges and Cara Cara oranges

Dan and Francy talk to us today about Blood oranges and Cara Cara oranges.   I’ve brought along two varieties of oranges that I really love today. Blood oranges and Cara Cara oranges. The first one is the pink flesh Cara Cara orange. First discovered in Venezuela on a farm, in 1976. This was the accidental...

Read more

Avocados: from relatively unknown superfruit to menu super star

Avocados are the.hot.item. There is even a restaurant called Avocaderia, dedicated to all things avocado. So, it’s no surprise that for Game Day, avocados are flying off the shelves. We’re talking, a record-breaking $50 million in sales for 2017. Along with wings, no Game Day party is complete without a huge bowl of guac. But...

Read more