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P ro d u c e S h o w D a i l y S a t u rd a y, O c to b e r 1 8 , 2 0 1 4 5 4 ATLAS PACIFIC ENGINEERING COMPANY – APPLE SLICING SYSTEM PIONEERS By Alan Stender, Western Regional Manager, Atlas Pacific Engineering Company Atlas Pacific Engineering Company, the world leader in deciduous fruit process- ing equipment, has been slicing apples for the fresh cut industry since 1996 with the pioneers of the industry, Farmington Fresh in Stockton, Calif. Today, Atlas Pacific has over 125 machines world- wide slicing apples, and is the foremost expert in this field. Atlas Pacific has almost 1,000 apple orienting and peeling machines worldwide for the dehydrated, canned and frozen IQF markets, and con- tinues to improve and upgrade the design and manufacture of apple machines. Atlas Pacific's system automatically feeds, orients, cores and wedge slices apples at speeds up to 115 apples per minute. The machine's ability to option- ally remove the seed cell pocket "carpel" material and improve coring yields is unmatched in the industry. The automat- ed machines replace simple hand-fed machines, which require ever more expensive labor costs. The machine can also automatically reject mis-oriented apples and recycle them to try to orient them again, even if they have a "drop" shoulder. Atlas Pacific offers an oper- ational lease with 100 percent of the parts supplied annually, a consignment of extra parts on a cus- tomer's site, with trained service techni- cians available around the globe and all over the U.S. to its customers. These tech- nicians provide training and service, including preventative maintenance to run the machines 24/7. Atlas Pacific has cus- tomers that run each machine over 4,000 hours per year. Many of them, such as Farmington Fresh, have been customers since day one of operation. Other long term apple customers of Atlas Pacific Engineering are Tree Top, Knouse Foods, Peterson Farms, Jewel Apple (Roche Fruit), Crunch Pak, Del Monte (60+ years), Seneca, Fresh Express, SunRich, Ready Pac, Fresh Innovations California, National Fruit Product and California Apple Products, just to name a few. For more information, or to discuss other fruits such as pineapples, melons, man- gos, kiwi, pears, peaches or apricots, call 719-948-3040, email sales@atlaspacific .com, visit www.atlaspacific.com or stop by the Fresh Summit PMA booth #529. BELLA SUN LUCI: THE ORIGINAL SUN DRIED TOMATO For more than 20 years, Mooney Farms has been producing Bella Sun Luci, the "premium brand" of sun dried tomato products. Family owned and operated, it is located in Chico, Calif. Mooney Farms has invested in its company's technology and packaging capabilities so all of its orders are "packed fresh." This allows for the longest shelf life in the industry. It does not rely on a co-packer, and every bag and jar of sun dried tomatoes are produced at Mooney Farms under the strictest guidelines. Its state of the art, kosher and Silliker audited facility supplies sun dried tomatoes to more than 20 countries. With retail, foodservice, private label and industrial divisions, Mooney Farms is the largest packer and shipper of sun dried tomatoes in the United States. Stores have come to realize that customers in the produce department are shopping for the healthiest items. Sun dried tomatoes are a perfect fit because they contain lycopene, a phy- tochemical and proven antioxidant that fights free radicals in the body. Mooney Farms is glad that produce departments across America have embraced sun dried tomatoes and wel- comed them into the area of the store that they belong. Consumers today are looking for flavorful but healthy choices when serving their family dinner. When they visit the produce department and are putting together a dish like pasta pri- mavera with broccoli, carrots, zucchini and onion, tossing in Bella Sun Luci sun dried tomatoes in olive oil and Italian herbs completes the dish, mak- ing it more flavorful and healthy. As an added bonus, it only packs these items in 100 percent pure olive oil so it's heart healthy and infused with seasoning. Another great "produce partner" is ready-made salad kits and bagged fresh spinach. Toss any of the Bella Sun Luci 3.5 ounce dry bagged vari- eties into a salad for added flavor and nutrition, espe- cially in winter months when fresh tomatoes lose their fla- vor. You can also use the heart healthy olive oil in the jar as a dressing alter- native. Simply drizzle a little onto your salad right out of the jar. Two products in one! Mooney Farms helps produce managers create a "sun dried tomato destination" for their shoppers by offering a variety of ways to display its products. Its two floor racks also has a full color header card on top that denotes its product is from "California" Sun Dried–Extra Moist and Ready to Eat. Mooney Farms offers a full color single six-pack tray. This is a conven- ient size perfect for fitting virtually anywhere in your store. This item can be filled with any of its seven dry vari- eties. Its two new metal floor displays offer a small footprint, full color graphic headers and holds either one case of all dry varieties or these items and one case of all of its oil packed products. You can also mix the bagged flavors custom to your store's needs. For more information, call 530-899- 2661, email mooneyfarm@aol.com, visit www.bellasunluci.com or stop by booth #3902. USA ONIONS PROUD TO CONTINUE ALLIANCE WITH WEBER-STEPHEN PRODUCTS LLC The three year alliance between USA Onions/Idaho-Eastern Oregon Onion Committee and Weber-Stephen Products LLC, makers of the famous Weber Grills, is still going strong. This year at the PMA Fresh Summit Expo, USA Onions welcomes Weber 's Celebrity Grill Master Kevin Kolman for the two-day event. Kevin will be on hand in the booth to greet show atten- dees, offer up expert grilling tips, share the Weber story and educate attendees on the benefits of grilling USA Onions grown in Idaho and Eastern Oregon. USA Onions/Idaho-E. Oregon Onion Committee officially launched launch a grilling platform in 2012. The grilling platform has been part of activities associated with the Onion Committee's marketing and promotion efforts ever since. The USA Onions grilling platform has included a football tailgating or "home-gating" marketing message. Since the Idaho-Oregon Onion season runs from August through May, a fall football grilling based theme was a natural choice for the alliance promo- tions. Whether consumers are grilling at the game or at home with the game on TV, they will be encouraged to make USA Onions part of their experi- ence. "This alliance has developed into long term promotion strate- gy that includes grilling with USA Onions," commented Sherise Jones, Marketing Director for the Idaho- E. Oregon Onion Committee. "Grilling enhances the flavor profile of our onions. While our raw onions are somewhat more pungent, they actually contain more sugar than sweet onions. Grilling brings out their wonderful sweetness and mellow onion flavor." Weber 's Grill Master Kevin Kolman knows all too well about the grilling benefits of USA Onions. Kevin traveled to the region last year to get a first-hand look at the grown and pack- ing techniques of region which has allowed him to become familiar with the product and how to use it. Kevin Kolman is Weber's go-to guy for all grilling tech- niques, products, and ques- tions. As Weber's Grill Master, Kevin inspires aver- age grillers to become back- yard heroes through his how- to videos and blogs. Kevin has a Bachelor of Science degree from Eastern Illinois University and a Master of Science degree in col- lege student affairs. Kevin is a highly skilled Grill Master and brand enthusi- ast, due to his extensive hands-on test- ing and scrutiny of Weber products, accessories and cooking. Helping peo- ple discover new ways to grill on their Weber energizes Kevin and fuels his passion for all things Weber. Meet Kevin at USA Onions' booth #1032. He will be in the booth both Saturday and Sunday of the Expo. For more information, call 208-722-5111 or visit www.usaonions.com.