How did the humble date palm become entangled in the great age of empire? Why did steamships, railways, and the opening of the Suez Canal transform an ancient oasis crop into a global commodity? And how did a handful of date palms - smuggled across deserts, nearly lost to a curious dog, and later replanted in California - come to shape the modern global date industry?

Join John and Patrick for the second part of their story on the history of dates, as imperial expansion, desert espionage, and ambitious American plant hunters carry this ancient fruit from the oases of North Africa and the Middle East to the highways of Southern California, and even back from seeds two thousand years old.

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In Sponsorship with Cornell University: Dyson Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

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In this episode, Patrick Kelly dives into the recent silence in USDA's National FOB Review reports, exploring what it means for fresh produce market transparency and how industry professionals can adapt.

From private data solutions to strategies for maintaining supply chain awareness, tune in to learn how buyers, sellers, and procurement managers can navigate this reporting gap with confidence.

Reference: https://esmis.nal.usda.gov/publication/national-fob-review

This week on Fresh from the Field Fridays, Dan the Produce Man dives into what this early spring heat wave here in California could be doing to the cherry crop, those blossoms still hanging on, and how it may impact early stone fruit still on the trees.

Then we head over to the produce table where he has purple snow peas, Padrón peppers, Ojai Pixie tangerines, jumbo heirloom artichokes, and red seedless Muscat grapes. Real springtime gems, good for your soul, good for your health, and flat-out enjoyable.

It’s all right here on Fresh from the Field Fridays, brought to you by the Produce Industry Network and AgLife Media. Check out aglifemedia.com today.

How did a humble desert fruit help build some of the world’s earliest civilizations? Why did ancient farmers in Mesopotamia become master matchmakers for palm trees? And how did the date palm come to symbolize life, victory, and divine blessing across the ancient world? 🌴

Join John and Patrick as they explore the astonishing origins of the date - from prehistoric hunter-gatherers and the orchards of ancient Mesopotamia, to Roman trade networks and the sacred traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In part one of this two-part series, they uncover how a single tree helped sustain empires, shape desert societies, and become one of the most important fruits in human history.

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In Sponsorship with J&K Fresh.

The customs broker who is your fruit and veggies’ personal bodyguard. Learn more here!

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Join the History of Fresh Produce Club for ad-free listening, bonus episodes, book discounts and access to an exclusive chatroom community.

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Join host Patrick Kelly live from the vibrant Florida Citrus Tailgating event in Fort Pierce! In this episode, Quentin Roe co-hosts with Patrick on-site at the event. They chat with industry leaders and longtime friends about the latest in Florida citrus, community connections, and innovations shaking up the produce world. Grab a glass of fresh-squeezed juice and celebrate the spirit of Florida citrus with us!

#farming #future #supplychain

This week on Fresh from the Field Fridays, Dan the Produce Man dives into St. Patrick’s Day cabbage—a classic that’s been showing up on produce stands and dinner tables for generations.

Then we take a trip over to the San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, where we talk with growers about Gem and Zutano avocados and what makes those varieties special.

We also get into spring onions and the famous calcot onions—those sweet Spanish grilling onions grown using a special mounding technique that chefs love to roast over an open flame.

It’s all right here on Fresh from the Field Fridays from the Produce Industry Network, powered by AgLife Media.

Check out AgLifeMedia.com today.

What does conflict in the Middle East have to do with the price of food on your table? More than you might think.

In this episode of The Global Fresh Series, we explore how geopolitical tensions in the Persian Gulf—particularly disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz—are sending ripple effects through the global agriculture supply chain. While headlines often focus on rising oil prices, another critical commodity is at stake: fertilizer, the essential nutrient that supports nearly half of the world’s food production.

With countries in the region supplying a significant portion of the world’s nitrogen fertilizers, any disruption in shipping lanes can tighten supply, drive up costs, and ultimately impact farmers, crop yields, and food prices around the globe. From the fields of the Northern Hemisphere preparing for spring planting to vulnerable regions facing rising food insecurity, the effects are far-reaching.

Join us as we unpack the hidden connections between energy, fertilizer, global trade, and fresh produce, and examine how today’s geopolitical challenges could influence tomorrow’s harvests.

#agriculture. #geopolitics #fertilizer. #freshproduce

What does a Roman emperor’s craving for cucumbers have to do with feeding eight billion people? How did a 15th-century Korean cookbook quietly invent heated agriculture centuries before Europe’s glass palaces? And how did Victorian spectacle, world wars, hydroponic ambition, and Dutch engineering transform the greenhouse from aristocratic indulgence into global infrastructure?

Join John and Patrick as they trace the extraordinary history of climate control in the service of fresh produce - from Tiberius’s selenite-covered cucumber beds, to the heated ondol systems of the Joseon Dynasty, the imperial glasshouses of Palace of Versailles and Royal Botanic Gardens, and the hydroponic battlefields of the Second World War.

Because this is not just a story about architecture. It is a story about anxiety, empire, science, and survival. About humanity’s refusal to let winter - or war, or geography - dictate what ends up on our plates.

From Roman villas to vertical farms... this is the history of the greenhouse, and the quiet revolution that changed how the world grows its food.

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In Sponsorship with Cornell University: Dyson Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

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Join the History of Fresh Produce Club for ad-free listening, bonus episodes, book discounts and access to an exclusive chatroom community.

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