Spring has arrived and spring vegetables have been showing up in your local produce aisles and markets for a few weeks. now. But this week is the sweetest week of the spring vegetable season. That is because this is the week that the sweetest onions in the world will be first shipped for the 2025 season. Yes, it’s time for a fresh crop of Vidalia Onions.

Today we are going to celebrate Vidalia Onions and we have a very special guest joining us to tell us all about them. John Shuman and his family-owned Shuman Farms has been in the sweet onion industry for three generations. He joins us today to tell us all about Vidalia Onions and the history of Shuman Farms. And about sweet onions from other regions like Peru. And he will also tell us about how they are giving back to the communities they serve all over the country with some very impactful charity work.

On this week’s podcast, we have two very special guests who are redefining snack foods. But this is more than a story of a successful start-up and exciting new food product. This husband-and-wife team turned a deeply personal tragedy into a mission to help others eat healthier. In doing so, they created a company that is disrupting the snack food and fresh produce aisles to offer delicious products that are also good for you.

When Megan and Scott Reamer’s son, Jackson, was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder, they began researching anti-inflammatory diets to help ease Jackson’s struggle with the disease. That labor of love inspired them to create a new company to offer to consumers some of the delicious snacks they created for Jackson to enjoy. Thus Jackson’s Chips was born offering sweet potato and regular potato chips cooked in a way that made them much healthier.

But Megan and Scott wanted the company to be much more than a potato chip maker. They wanted it to help keep Jackson’s legacy alive and help others facing similar diseases. Tune in to hear this heart-rending but also heart-warming story of this brave young man.

This week we welcome back to the show a very special guest. He is a longtime friend and colleague who used to work with the four of us Produce Buzzers many years ago. Since that time he has been a rising star in the produce business and has worked for some of the biggest names in the produce industry. With over 36 years’ experience in the business, he’s a true veteran of the produce world who could enlighten us on just about any item that you buy in the produce department.

But his current gig is with Ocean Mist Farms, a grower, packer, and shipper of all types of vegetables, from a wide variety of lettuces, cabbages, and brassicas to cilantro, beets, and radishes. They are a big player in all those veggies but their signature product is artichokes. They are the largest supplier of this favorite in the produce aisle. But Mark has some new products to tell us about today that you must stick around to hear about. These new offerings are exceedingly delicious and guaranteed to make your meal planning so much easier. They recreate that indulgent experience you have had with veggies in your favorite restaurant. So you won’t want to miss hearing about them.

Our guest this week is a fellow podcaster who also promotes the eating of more fresh fruits and veggies, so we are especially delighted to welcome her to the show. Amanda Keefer handles brand partnerships and marketing communications for the Healthy Family Project in addition to producing and hosting their podcast.

The Healthy Family Project is making a huge impact in getting people to eat healthier. They are dedicated to creating a healthier generation through easy, fun, and inspiring content. All their content is crafted with families in mind, showing them delicious, fun, and easy to make recipes. Their Website highlights nutritional information and provides tips to get the most out of their meal planning. Their website and social media are filled with informative and entertaining videos, blog posts, and of course great podcast episodes.

The Healthy Family Project is not just about providing entertaining content. Since they began a little over a decade ago, they have helped to raise more than $8 million dollars for charities devoted to feeding needy families, including Feeding America among others. And through their “Produce for Kids” promotions they are training the next generation to be lovers of fresh fruits and veggies. Tune in to get some expert tips to make your meal table healthier.

On this week’s episode, we are telling our listeners to Beet It!

But that’s not spelled b-e-A-t but instead b-e-E-t. Yes, today we are rootin’ for our favorite root! That’s right! We’re digging deep into the world of beets. The veggie that stains your fingers, confuses your taste buds, and somehow ended up in both salads and desserts. From the history of beets to beet recipes, beet myths to beets' symbolism in culture—if it’s about beets, we’re talking about it.

Beets may not be the flashiest vegetable in the produce aisle, but they’re certainly one of the most nutritious, flavorful, and versatile. Whether roasted, pickled, juiced, or blended into a smoothie, this deep-red root packs a powerful punch of flavor and health benefits.

The Produce Buzzers will share their favorite beet recipes to delight you with delicious dishes and to boost your health. So whether you’re a beet freak or just beet-curious, grab a snack, sit back, and let’s turnip the fun!

Love is in the air, and… on your plate! Welcome to this week’s special Valentine’s Day episode of The Produce Buzzers Podcast, where we’re diving into the most romantic fruits and vegetables to set the mood for love. From the aptly named passion fruit to mythical artichokes to heart-healthy beets and the silky sweetness of strawberries, we’ll explore the aphrodisiac powers, symbolism, and delicious ways to incorporate these love-boosting foods into your Valentine’s Day celebrations. And we will give you the seductive history of the festival which originated in Ancient Rome and the story of Romulus & Remus, the twins who founded the city.

Whether you’re planning a romantic dinner, a cozy night in, or just looking to add a little extra love to your meals, we’ve got you covered. So, grab a glass of wine, set the ambiance, and let’s talk about the most seductive foods nature has to offer!

Super Bowl LIX is here! The week of Super Bowl is the biggest week for sales of avocados in the U.S. There are a lot of choices for snacks and meals for America’s biggest annual TV event, but fans know that avocados and guacamole have to be on the table. And that’s good for them because avocados are one of the healthiest foods you can eat, unlike perhaps a lot of the other dishes on the party menu.

We’ve featured avocados on the podcast several times and shared our recipes and tips for how to select, store, and prepare them. But this week we have one of the world’s foremost experts on the program to take that info up several notches and tell you all about them, give you great advice on how to select, store, and prepare them, and point you to some exciting promotions coming in the next week that you can take advantage of.

Stephanie Bazan leads the shopper and trade marketing for Avocados From Mexico. Under her leadership and strategic vision, the demand and popularity for Mexican avocados has reached record levels.

Mexico is by far the leading producer of avocados in the world. They grow almost 2 ½ times as many as the second and third largest producers, Columbia and Peru. They grow over 15 times more avocados than the U.S. And, most importantly, the quality of Mexican avocados is superior too.

Today we have a very special guest who understands that the people who grow our fruits and vegetables are special people. In fact, they are stars. Our guest has been highlighting these stars for over thirteen years on her beautiful Website FarmStarLiving.com. On that Website you will find stories of these heroes and the challenges they face to bring us the bounty of fruits and veggies you see in your produce department at your local grocery store.

Mary Blackmon, is the creator of Farm Star Living and a digital media entrepreneur. She started Farm Star Living with the idea of a ‘farm to table’ lifestyle that both spotlighted the farmer and farms to the consumer public by making this often misunderstood world of farming more personable, relatable, accessible and even entertaining!

The site is rich with these stories but also rich with delicious recipes and very helpful tips on how to select, store, and prepare them. You will also find a lot of information about how these veggies help you stay healthy and other tips about how to live a healthier life. There is a whole section devoted to which foods can help alleviate particular ailments and conditions. It’s a site that will reward you in many ways if you visit it often.