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Richard Parkes, head of procurement and Somerfield account manager at importer Redbridge Worldfresh, has passed away following a car accident in October. He was 33 years old.

Mack Multiples has announced that Stuart Forder, commercial director for stonefruit, has left to become trading executive for fresh produce at UK retailer Marks & Spencer. Janina Dowding will take over management of Mack’s stonefruit department.

Meanwhile, Paul Butlin, general manager of the Mack Wholesale Division, has been appointed to the board of parent company Fresca. Non-executive director Stephen Robertson has stepped down from his position to focus on his role at the British Retail Consortium.
Louise Angel, 29, has become the first woman to take command of a vessel for South African shipping group Safmarine. She is now commanding the 2,474-TEU Safmarine Ngami.

Thorsten Spill, former general manager of Dole Fresh Fruit Europe, has been handed the role of managing director at Hamburg-based potato marketers-exporters Saka Pflanzenzucht and Solana Agrarprodukte. Mr Spill is set to take up his new position on 1 December 2008.

The Southern Hemisphere Association of Fresh Fruit Exporters (SHAFFE) has appointed Marta Bentancur as its president, with Adolfo Storm assuming the role of vice-president.

The US Department of Justice has ruled that Keith Packer, a former commercial general manager for cargo operations at British Airways, will serve eight months in prison after being accused of fixing the cost of freight services to and from the US. Mr Packer will face jail time and a €14,200 fine, avoiding the maximum punishment possible of 10 years in jail and a US$1m (€710,000) fine because of his plea bargain.

Rijk Zwaan’s Anton van Doornmalen will step down from the vegetable seed firm’s board of directors on 1 July 2009, to be succeeded by Marco van Leeuwen.

UK-based fresh prepared vegetable specialist Parripak Foods has announced that James Parrish, one of the company’s founders, has left the company.

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