Fresh Produce Discussion Blog

Created by The Packer's National Editor Tom Karst

Sunday, December 31, 2006

White hot onions

The Packer's Andy Nelson provides the outlook for the white hot white onion market in this report. The USDA reveals prices in late January of $29-33 for 50-pound sacks of jumbo whites, about four times the price at the same time last year. Marketers predict strong white onion prices for the next couple of months. Here is a spreadsheet showing the rapid rise in Idaho-eastern Oregon white onions in recent weeks.

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Saturday, December 30, 2006

Big box, lower cost

A U.S. Department of Agriculture study looks at the impact of nontraditional retailers like Wal-Mart, Costco and Target on the way the Consumer Price Index is calculated. The USDA says the share of sales going to traditional retailers fell from 82% in 1998 to 69% in 2003. The study noted that dairy prices at the big box stores were 5% to 25% lower than at conventional supermarkets. Because the CPI has not kept up with the changing ratio of sales in big box stores, the gains in the CPI may be overstated. In other big box news, Wal-Mart reported positive sales growth in December.

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Picking at food with vigor

A New York Times article previews what is now widely expected to be active Congressional inquiry into food safety regulation in the coming year. The reporter states, "A population panicked by two major food poisoning incidents this year will push for more frequent food safety inspections, healthier food at restaurants and schools, and greater accountability from growers and processors."
Whether or not the population is panicked is perhaps open to debate, but clearly many are distressed. And Congress is dusting off legislation that would "get a tighter grasp on farmers and food processors," the article notes. It will be a happy new year if the industry can translate this activist Congress into an ally for funding not only for food safety regulation but also expansion of fresh produce demand through the farm bill.
In what could be promising news, a vaccine against E. coli in cattle has been granted preliminary approval in Canada. This wouldn't be a panacea; the article points out the pathogen can still be carried in wild animals and enter the environment through contaminated ground water.

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Friday, December 29, 2006

Living large

Our family is visiting my folks in rural Nebraska this week, and there is danger of a winter storm that might strand us here. Thanks to high speed Internet access, I may not care. With strawberry rhubarb pie and the Swedish dessert osta kaka covered in lingonberries, I'm living large. I will try to rummage up a few servings of fresh produce in mom's holiday spread.

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Putting off until tomorrow

An interim final rule was published in the Dec. 28 Federal Register that temporarily delays a continuance referendum for peach and nectarine marketing orders. The peach and nectarine committees of the marketing orders believed that the delay was needed to give time for the industry to judge whether recent amendments to the orders are effective. Other rules in the Dec. 28 FR dealt with cantaloupe grades and cranberry marketing order changes.

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Mango of opportunity

Mangoes from Pakistan may soon enter the U.S. market. This strikes me as a reach, but I confess I know nothing of the attributes of the Pakistani mango v. Mexican mango or Brazil mango. According to this story, one issue that must be overcome is the long boat ride to the U.S., and the fact that air shipments are not economically viable. The fruit would be irradiated by
Pakistan Radiation Services in a facility expected to be ready by next March.

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Wal-Mart flat?

This article talks about the challenges that Wal-Mart has had this year in growing its same store sales and the impact on its stock price. Included is some interesting perspective on the maturation of Wal-Mart's grocery business. It seems some of Wal-Mart's supermarket rivals in some markets have registered stronger same-store retail sales gains than Wal-Mart has achieved. Still, Wal-Mart's efficiency is its saving grace. The article noted Wal-Mart's average store generates far more in sales per square foot than the average Target store.
While Wal-Mart has its critics, one Southern California columnist put up a good defense of the chain here.

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When good food goes bad

Another year-end retrospective from a Canadian journalist, this time with a headline "Don't Eat Your Veggies. " This article quotes the now familiar Doug Powell, food safety professor at Kansas State University cited frequently in food borne illness stories. Powell would be a great Q and A for The Packer. Powell makes a couple of points worth pondering. One, Powell said the most chilling words he heard all year was when an FDA official declared the California spinach supply was as safe after the outbreak as it was before. (In other FDA news, the agency gave its okay to cloned meat and milk.)
A Powell quote near the end of the story was reported as follows: "The first company to recognize the opportunity and assure consumers they aren't eating poop on spinach, lettuce and tomatoes and any other fresh produce, will make millions and capture markets across the country,"
I don't think marketing that message is a sustainable business model. I am curious to hear more from Professor Powell, and I'm sure we will.

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Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Illegals among us

This op-ed piece in the New York Times gives us pause to reflect that even George Washington was an illegal at one point. Evidently Washington claimed lands beyond the scope of British jurisdiction before the Revolutionary War. Such illegal settling was not uncommon later, the author pointed out. " The upper Ohio was rife with illegal immigrants, ancestors of people who, in country clubs today, are implying a Mayflower ancestry," the author said. His point, I presume. We all owe a debt of gratitude to our ancestors and their "daring disregard for immigration laws."
All of which still doesn't change the fact we need to get control of our border and provide legal workers for American growers.

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Fast and furious diet tips

This is the time of year that articles aplenty will appear about how to really get serious about dieting in the new year. I offer an example. This article tries to scare us straight, as the expert quoted uses the gimmick of equating food with physical activity. Nutrition expert Charles Stuart Platkin, author of "The Diet Detective's Count Down," list scores of foods and how much running, walking or yoga it would take to burn them off.
"That glazed Krispy Kreme is less tempting when you know you have to add almost an hour of walking to counteract it," the reporter suggests. Platkin advocates keeping a food journal, noting Americans "wildly underestimate" how much food we eat. Gee, maybe we are eating 5 a Day, after all. Except we don't cheat with celery sticks.

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Going small

The Colorado Potato Administrative Committee recommended changes in the minimum grade standards and the USDA published an interim final rule on the changes today. For smaller sizes, the rule changes the minimum grade requirements from U.S. No. 1 grade to U.S. Commercial grade for all varieties under the marketing order, other than round red potatoes. The rule also changes the implementation date for the minimum maturity requirement from Aug. 25 to Aug. 1 of each year. A good discussion of the reasons for the rule change is found in the Federal Register notice. The short version is that consumer demand for smaller potatoes is growing and marketers believe they could better meet buyer needs if Commercial grade No. 2 potatoes were permitted. Small potato volume could increase by about 23% with the rule, the USDA said. I think this is a great example of being bold enough to respond to the market, even when hamstrung by a marketing order structure..

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Tuesday, December 26, 2006

All farm bill all the time

Look for much more coverage of the 2007 farm bill in the weeks ahead, beginning with the American Farm Bureau Federation convention in January. With program crop growers determined to hang on to their safety net of subsidies, Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns is still talking reform. A story that covers existing farm program realities is found here. For the produce industry, look for reintroduction of the Equitable Agriculture Today for a Healthy America Act in the House early on. Industry lobbyists also are talking to possible Senate sponsors.

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Not your father's market news

The USDA has eliminated or will eliminate some of its market news reports in the near future. Satisfyingly for the agency, I'm sure, there is some push back from the industry. It would be disappointing to go through cutbacks and not hear a wimper. Most the reports are composite reports that require manipulation by market news reporters. With budget constraints limiting expensive staff hours spent on market news reports, the USDA is directing users to the slick fruit and vegetable portal. More on this in the Jan. 1 issue of The Packer.

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WIC food package deadline slippage

While produce industry advocates like Lorelei DiSogra of United Fresh Produce Association were hoping for a spring/summer timetable for the interim final USDA rule on revisions to WIC food packages to include fruits and vegetables, the USDA has already pushed that expectation back. In fact, the USDA said in its regulatory agenda published in the Federal Register that their internal deadline is September of next year. (It's a massive document, so you might want to keyword search for RIN: 0584-AD77) DiSogra said that Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns indicated to her and other nutrition advocates in a pre-Christmas meeting that more than 56,000 comments were received about the rule to add fruit and vegetable vouchers to the WIC food packages. Some nutrition advocates were surprised to hear Johanns tell them that more people have been in his office opposed to the proposed rule than supporting it. While it seems unlikely that an Agriculture Secretary from Nebraska could be the best hope for changing the WIC food packages in 30 years, that may well be the case. Let's hope he steps up to the table and does the right thing for America's needy women and children by next fall.

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The 2.5% solution

Skip the palm reader. Here's your future, and it's partly cloudy. The USDA Economic Research Service predicts that the the production value of U.S. horticulture crops - fruit, tree nuts, vegetables, melons, mushrooms, greenhouse and nursery - is forecast to grow at an average 2.5% pace from 2007 to 2016. At the same time, horticultural imports will grow at a 3.8% clip, the agency said
From a value of $50 billion in 2006, the USDA predicts the value of those U.S. horticultural crops will rise to more than $63 billion by 2016. The price forecast includes a 0.9% gain in yearly production volume and an average 1.7% inflation rate. The USDA isn't counting on big gains in per capita consumption, as the production gains coincide with expected increases in the U.S. population. By 2016, U.S. fruits and nuts will account for $22 billion, vegetables and melons $20 billion and $21 billion for greenhouse and nursery crops. The ERS says that fruit and tree nuts will grow the fastest in value, while citrus fruit and processed and fresh market vegetables will face strong import competition. The USDA reports that fresh market vegetable import value has grown at a whopping 10% annually for the past decade.
The value of U.S. horticultural crops exported will increase from 33% in 2006 to about 38% in 2016, driven largely by fruits and nuts. In 2006, the export value of fruits and nuts was a surprising 46% of total production value, up from 40% in 2005
For me, the real eye openers are the import projections. The USDA said that about 49% of the value of fruits and nuts consumed in the U.S. will be imported during 2007 to 2016. For vegetables, the import share of domestic consumption is forecast to rise from 35% in 2006 to 41% in 2016.
This projection from the USDA shows with sobering clarity that U.S. producers need more support from the federal government to meet the long term food needs of U.S. consumers.

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Eating out is in

The National Restaurant Association has forecast that 2007 will bring record sales of $537 billion, in what the group described as a "solid" 5% increase over 2006. Americans are spending 47.9% of their food budget in restaurants, and 935,000 restaurants employ 12.8 million people. Some hot menu trends in the NRA report include bite-sized desserts, locally grown and organic produce, flatbread and bottled water. Other hot items include pomegranates, figs, grass-fed and and free range meat, fresh herbs and exotic mushrooms. The NRA reports that of those restaurants serving organic items, 52% of fine dining, 42% of casual dining and 27% of family dining operators expect higher sales in 2007. Locally sourced produce is also expected to grow in sales by 51% of fine dining, 38% of casual dining and 31% of family dining restaurant operators. Another interesting tidbit: 36% of adults say they eating on the go less than two years ago, and 48% eat in their cars less frequently.
The NRA report said the Mountain region will lead restaurant sales growth at 6.7% followed by the South Atlantic with 6.2% growth. Nevada will lead all states in sales growth with 8.1% forecasted growth, followed by Arizona at 7.6% ad Florida at 7.1%. Baby boomers are eating better, so the NRA mentioned that quick service restaurants will continue to diversify their menus with "good for you food."
That's one of several positives in the 2007 forecast for fruit and vegetable marketers.

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Monday, December 25, 2006

Saber rattling

A story in today's LA Times takes another run at the topic of food safety research. The reporter penned this effective line on the lack of research on science based standards. "Without such specifics, FDA talk of regulations to protect consumers from more outbreaks.... may be little more than bureaucratic saber-rattling."
Of course, a spokesman for the Center for Science in the Public Interest doesn't want to see a one or two year delay in implementing new standards that might protect the public. The industry must balance the danger of false assumptions about food safety regulations with the urgency to act in the consumers' interest.

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Chiquita's latest

This story talks about Chiquita's third quarter performance, which was highlighted by 8% growth in sales helped by higher banana prices in North America. However, the fresh spinach crisis weighed on the company's Fresh Express unit, despite the fact that none of the company's products was implicated. Overall, Chiquita's net sales rose to 8% to $1 billion but poor banana prices in the European market helped contribute to a net loss of $96 million for the quarter despite the company's ongoing cost saving initiatives. The lengthy analysis piece offers some insight on the Fresh Express dollar share for value added salads, which was put at 46% during the 13 week period ending Sept. 24. Chiquita also is growing with value added fruit, with the firm's Apple Bites reportedly showing a 49% value share. Chiquita is expanding distribution of Apple Bites and Chiquita Fruit Bowls, the article said. The firm is reported to be the third largest brand of fresh cut fruit, with a 12% national value share. The market likes the fact Chiquita is more diversified than it used to be, though with fresh produce nothing is ever easy.

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Field study results

A November article in a research journal (PubMed) associated with the National Institutes of Health reports the results of a field study of the microbiological quality of domestic and imported fresh produce. Perhaps the most salient point; the study does not support the assumption that U.S. produce is of "higher microbial quality" than Mexican produce.

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Sunday, December 24, 2006

My Greatest Achievement

In a recent interview, I asked one industry leader what he thought his greatest achievement was. This is a man who directs 600 people in his company and has served on the boards of several industry associations.
"Marrying my wife," he said simply. He went on to describe how much she meant to him as a friend, sounding board and confidant. Another man told me that he and his wife's greatest accomplishment and joy was adopting a baby and bringing it into their family. As I smell the cinnamon rolls my wife is baking this Sunday morning for our two college sons and high school girl, I too am thankful for the blessing of family above all. Our struggles and sweat wouldn't mean as much without someone to share it with. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and your family.

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A story retold

The Contra Costa Times does a good job with this feature that goes from farm to fork with the story of a Wisconsin woman who was one of the first ones sickened by the E. coli outbreak. Stories like those of Lisa Brott - the formerly spinach-loving 50-year old Milwaukee woman who endured hospitalization and racked up $150,000 in bills during the course of her illness - pack a wallop and will be perhaps the most effective agents of change during the debate about food safety over the next few months.
Meanwhile, The State, a South Carolina newspaper, argues here for a single food safety agency in an editorial.

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Saturday, December 23, 2006

What would Jesus do?

A new ad campaign by wakeupwal-mart.com asks the question, "Would Jesus shop at Wal-Mart?" Arguing that Wal-Mart's salaries don't reflect Christian values, the group is pressuring Wal-Mart to provide higher wages for workers, as reported here. It's a silly question; Jesus was his own source for loaves and fishes. Plus, if Jesus didn't shop at Wal-Mart, where would he shop? Is there a supermarket chain perfect enough for the Messiah?

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From the frying pan to the fire

Is irradiation a way to solve the food safety crisis? It may be tempting to look for the "silver bullet," but as one expert quoted in this story points out consumers don't want to eat irradiated filth. There is considerable skepticism about consumer acceptance, but if the technology can kill pathogens on fresh vegetables, it is bound to draw bigger interest in the years ahead. However, another take on the subject points out that if irradiation were to become standard operating procedure, it would tend to push out smaller growers.

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Friday, December 22, 2006

First hearing

The California Department of Food and Agriculture will hold a hearing on the proposed leafy greens marketing agreement on Jan. 12 in Monterey, state officials said in this news release. Getting growers to buy into to the agreement will be critical but it appears Western Growers has done the legwork to create momentum for the plan. But growers may rightfully ask- what about the processors and the rest of the supply chain?

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A holiday reminder

This story tells us five foods that control appetite, and two of the five are fresh produce. Number one is water, number two is leafy greens, number three is instant banana pudding, number four is pickles and number five is apples. One great quote: "I dare you to eat 1,000 calories of apples - it's impossible." Pecan pie, on the other hand....

Another reminder for the holidays - because of canker, no Florida citrus can be shipped to other citrus states this year, even as part of a gift package.

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Produce on a budget

Low income consumers eat plenty of green beans, potatoes, lettuce, corn and orange juice but not nearly as much pears, squash and grapefruit. A story on a University of Alabama study about obstacles to produce consumption draws the fairly obvious conclusion that children in low income households eat differently than kids in more affluent homes. The takeaway appears to be that building consumption of fresh produce among low income children may mean providing those households with greater access to more expensive fruit varieties.

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Thursday, December 21, 2006

Broken record

A new report from the Environmental Working Group discloses farm payments topped $21 billion in 2005 - the most since 2001 - despite the fact that 66% of farmers didn't receive any payments. Over 90% of farm payments are reserved for growers of wheat, corn, rice, cotton and soybeans. The EWG said $16 billion of federal farm payments were commodity subsidies in 2005, with $1.9 billion for conservation and $3 billion for disaster aid. This is yet more evidence that Congress needs to make the next farm bill more equitable to fruit and vegetable growers, who receive next to nothing now and yet face the biggest challenges of any agricultural producers. Same song, repeat verse.

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Ouch

"Yes, fresh veggies are good for you. These days, however, it seems they can also paralyze or kill you." That's from the author of this article from CBC in Canada. The piece plows familiar ground, talking about recent food safety outbreaks, citing expert Doug Powell, scientific director of the Food Safety Network at K-State. "You are only as good as your worst grower," Powell said. We are at the point that either buyers or the government need to create barriers to deal with that "worst grower."

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Free market v. Government mandate

The age old debate between the sufficiency of the free market and the necessity of government regulation is reset in this column about food safety passed on by The Packer's Susie Cable. The libertine position that the market will create its own safeguards seems to run counter to common sense, but economist Edward Lotterman points out that marketers are hiring their own third party inspectors irregardless of assumed government oversight. Theory aside, the government is going to be more involved in fresh produce safety, and soon.

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Organic noncompliance

The USDA said in a notice today that it will soon release records of noncompliance of producers and handlers certified to the National Organic Program. The notice is in response to a Freedom of Information Act request on April 12 of this year for access to the records of noncompliance, and the identity of each firm which as been suspended or revoked, plus the reason for the actions. However, the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service did not say precisely when the records would be released and indicated they were reviewing the records to determine what confidential business information will be withheld. Both the farmer receiving a crop subsidy and the organic grower certified by USDA must know that some of their privacy has been surrendered because of their relationship to Uncle Sam.

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Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Viva Las Vegas

It's the safest bet for United - pun intended. The United Fresh Produce Association said today that its board of directors elected to continue its partnership with the FMI Show, a relationship that began in 2004. After the 2007 event in Chicago, that will mean the United and FMI will have joint trade shows in Las Vegas in 2008 . After that, FMI and United will join with "strong cooperative efforts" for educational programs in 2009, according to United Fresh co-chair Maureen Marshall of Torrey Farms. While a much safer bet than doubling down on the blackjack table, United must create momentum not only for Chicago in 2007, but Las Vegas in 2008 and particularly the unknown quantity of educational programs in 2009.

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In his own words

New York Democrat Senator Charles Schumer is as serious as a heart attack about the food safety issue. Read about it on his Website press room. Talking to Robert Guenther of United today, he believes that Congress wants to act early in the next session on food safety. At the same time, he feels the industry will get a fair hearing about what it has done and what it is doing. With Schumer in favor of a new food safety agency and more regulation of fresh produce, the industry better be prepared for some leading questions from all the listening lawmakers.

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Poster boy farmers

The Packer's Susie Cable alerted me to a Business Week story about the hot competition to establish and promote ties to local organic farmers by Whole Foods and others. Whole Foods has some critics that say they lean too heavily on large growers and not the small local organic grower, and Whole Foods has a campaign now that highlights their local suppliers. The story notes the dynamics between the entrance of Wal-Mart into the organic market and the now slowing growth for Whole Foods. All of this reminds me of Wal Mart officials who surely knew their supermarket rivals never thought the discount supermarket would take a sudden interest in organic produce. Wal Mart zigged when everyone thought they would zag, and now consumers have to sort it all out.

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Worth the price of admission

When I was a cub reporter for The Packer, I remember the days of flipping through stacks of bound volumes of the newspaper to find a story with some background for another article. Today, we are spoiled by instant access to information. Of course, we now have electronic access to our back issues, in addition to other resources on the World Wide Web. For produce industry leaders who can't afford to be out of the loop, paying the premium for The Packer's Web site also provides access to past issues of The Packer. That, my friends, is worth the price of admission and then some.

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Johnson improving

Talking to Ron Gaskill of American Farm Bureau today, he said there is every expectation Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., will recover from brain surgery and serve in the Senate next term. If Johnson dies from complications from the surgery, South Dakota's Republican governor could appoint a Republican replacement and thus tip the balance of power to the Republicans with a 50-50 tie and Vice President Dick Cheney holding the tie breaking vote. Though he won't be on hand when Congress convenes the first week of January, Johnson's recovery is said to be ahead of schedule. A brief story on Johnson's status - and speculation whether he is conscious or sedated - adds a few details.

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Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Swinging toward the Southern Hemisphere

The Packer's David Mitchell did a great job in covering the California surge in clementine production that is troubling Spanish clementine suppliers. The increase in California production has also been accompanied by continued increases in Southern Hemisphere clementine volume. While Spain's volumes have risen modestly - from 59,000 metric tons in 2001 to about 62,000 metric tons in 2005 - Southern Hemisphere supply has risen much faster. South Africa's shipments to the U.S. tripled from 4,000 metric tons in 2001 to 12,000 metric tons in 2005. Chile's clementine shipments to the U.S. last year were 8,000 metric tons, the first full year of market access. Spain's share of clementine imports has slipped from 78% of import supply in 2001 to 65% in 2005. The Southern Hemisphere's expansion of clementines shipped in the U.S. summer months, combined with rising Southern Hemisphere navel volume, likely will continue to hasten the contraction of valencia acreage in California.

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Wal-Mart Supplier Index

Maybe being a Wal-Mart supplier isn't so tough after all. A Reuters story notes that the International Securities Exchange launched an index to track companies earning a significant portion of revenue by supplying Wal-Mart. The "relationship-based" index is the only such one known to exist and includes 30 companies - General Mills and Energizer Holdings were the only two mentioned - with annual revenues from Wal-Mart ranging from 16% to 74% of their gross sales. For produce suppliers, Wal-Mart told The Packer in the past it doesn't want to account for more than 20% of sales for any one supplier, but I'm sure there are a number of produce companies above that threshold as they supply the world's largest retailer. One interesting aside; if calculated since 2002, the supplier index would be up 40%, while Wal-Mart's own stock has dipped 15%.

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Suburbs home to poverty too

A new Brookings Institution report said there are now more people living in poverty in the suburbs than in cities. Overall, government statistics show that the U.S. poverty rate leveled off last year at 12.6% after having increased every year since 2000.

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New York senator calls for produce tracking

The New York Senator not named Hillary Clinton has proposed that the Food and Drug Administration would operate an extensive tracing system for fresh produce. Under the proposal put forward by Democrat Charles Schumer, each carton of fresh fruits and vegetables would have a bar code with information on origin. What's more Schumer said Senate Democrats plan to reintroduce the Safe Food Act in 2007, a piece of legislation that would create a Food Safety Administration to oversee issues of food safety. Once these political dynamics begin in the next Congress, it will be a stout test of both the FDA and industry leadership to present a case that the current system - or the current system combined with new industry initiatives - is sufficient.

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We are what we eat

A story from across the pond talks up the benefits of eating a rainbow variety of fresh produce. While some aspects of the "detox diet" were found to be a myth - the study found that liver and brain function were no different in a healthy eating group and a junk-food ingesting group - the study did show a positive impact on blood pressure and cholesterol from a diet high in fresh produce.

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E. coli test

Dupont has received approval to sell an E. coli test kit to produce handlers in Canada, according to a recent story. According to the report, Canada Health approved the test, called BAX(R) for fruits, vegetables and dairy on Dec. 18. An earlier version of the test had been okayed in 2004 in Canada for raw beef, apple cider and orange juice. The test consists of a kit bulk powder or a soluble tablet and a device that can read the DNA fingerprint of the sample. The news report said the test can conduct 96 tests in four hours. Ch-ching, ch-ching for Dupont, I'm guessing.

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They meet again

The USDA's Fruit and Vegetable Industry Advisory Committee will meet again in January, and the agency's has just published notice of the date and location for the meeting. I've seen every meeting of the committee, and I believe all who serve on it do the industry a real service and take their jobs seriously. The USDA does a nice job of educating the committee on their programs, even if it does seem that they use the committee as political cover for user fee increases. One topic for the January meeting is fee increases for PACA, in addition to other planned discussions about immigration, the farm bill and food safety.

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Clamoring for a new standard

The USDA has just announced they are proceeding with the creation of grade standards for cultivated ginseng. Evidently they received a request from a cultivated ginseng handler for the new grade standard. The clamor and din was impossible to turn away any longer!

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Monday, December 18, 2006

The downside of fresh produce

That's the title of a blog I just came across,and it offers a candid assessment of consumer fears about fresh produce. Most assuredly, consumers don't want to have to worry about "poop" on produce, much less think about it. Read if you dare.

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Guava cure

Citrus greening is a devastating disease for Florida citrus growers because it sours the fruit and eventually kills the tree, but recent research suggests guava trees could stave the spread of both the insect vector and the disease itself. Use of guava trees among commercial citrus appears to have contributed to effective control of the disease in Viet Nam.

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More food fear and a reminder

"Consumers want to feel safe in consuming fresh fruits and vegetables and I think that confidence is slipping." That was one telling quote from a spokesperson from the Center for Science in the Public Interest quoted in this story about consumer perceptions about food safety. I think the point is valid, though I wonder if continued media coverage of the the E. coli story and fresh produce will reach a saturation point in the consumer's mind. When that point comes, nothing more may be done to injure consumer perceptions about produce safety. Let's hope that point doesn't come - having nowhere to go but up is not a place the industry wants to be. Another story compares the food safety of beef and produce, and produce is found wanting.
Thankfully, another story reminds us that the fruits and vegetables play a key role in preserving and bettering our health, citing research that shows foods high in Vitamin C reduce the risk of stomach cancer.

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Christmas spirit

Kudos to industry leaders in Florida who are part of helping the less fortunate among them. The Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association reports the Redlands Christian Migrant Association (RCMA) annual Christmas card fundraiser totaled $28,650 for 2006, up from $16,994 in 2005. Funds will be matched by the government $16 for every $1 raised. For more information on this worthy charity for migrant worker families, follow this link.

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Saturday, December 16, 2006

A seasoned pro

I read on the USDA's Web site that Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns has named Keith Williams as press secretary for the agency. As you would expect, Williams is a smooth and polished pro with the press, having previously served as media spokesman at the Senate Agriculture Committee under Saxby Chambliss. I've dealt with Keith any number of times and he always returns calls, which is a rarer attribute than you might think.

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Organics at crossroads

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has published new data sets on organic farming. The statistics show a million acre increase in organic farmland (all crops) between 2004 and 2005. Still, total organic certified farmland represents just 0.51% of all crop acreage, the USDA says. Meanwhile, the Organic Trade Association has used the occasion to call for more federal assistance in transition of cropland from conventional to organic, greater research funding for organic agriculture, reduced trade barriers for organic goods and enhanced funding for the USDA's National Organic Program. In five years, it will be intriguing to see if the surge in organic acreage now will be sustainable by then for both growers and retailers.

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As you like it

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has just published a final rule that establishes new protocols for some fruit and vegetable imports. Some of the commodities effected include South African grapes, Chilean tomatoes, Philippine mangoes and Italian kiwifruit. Most of the items have been previously been allowed, but the rule changes some of the requirements; for example, a "systems" approach rather than methyl bromide fumigation. Here's hoping other countries are working as hard at opening up their markets to U.S. produce as the USDA is grinding to ease import restrictions for exporters to the U.S.

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Friday, December 15, 2006

American Portrait

An article in The New York Times does a good job of pulling interesting factoids from the 2007 Census Bureau Statistical Abstract of the U.S. Here's a headliner: teenagers and adults now spend 64 days a year watching TV, 41 days listening to the radio and just more than a week using the Internet. How about us multitaskers?

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Shocking but true

Young people who prepare their own food at home instead of going out to eat have healthier diets than their peers who eat out more often, one U.S. study finds. I suppose it would take a dedicated junk food fiend with a flair for the kitchen to eat worse than a Whopper, french fries and a milk shake. The University of Minnesota study does make one helpful suggestion: young people need to be taught how to prepare economical and healthful meals. Even among those who prepared food at home, only about 3 in 10 met the threshold of five servings of fruits and vegetables a day.

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Canadissent

There is more protest from agriculture interests in Canada about the phase-in of new APHIS fees. Though the USDA put off the proposed fee imposition until March - the fee was originally slated for Nov. 24 - Canadian grain interests complain the rule doesn't consider alternatives and the impact of the fee on cross border trade. However, I think it is hard to make a case that Canada should be exempt from the user fee when every other country pays it.

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Thursday, December 14, 2006

Selling a solution

There is an article that touts the benefit of an organic transparent film wrap made of fruits and vegetables that is said to help protect against E. coli. Selling solutions is what makes the world goes round, but I've got to wonder about the mainstream potential of this one.

Meanwhile, one marketer I talked to in Minneapolis said that some third party inspectors need to exert greater scrutiny on their clients' food safety practices. What's more, he said most third party inspections are scheduled; he argues that unannounced third party audits would be more effective. In the end, it is the commitment of management to food safety standards that is most important. The issue of "auditing the auditors" also is a topic that may warrant revisiting as well.

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Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Can this go on forever?

Is this industry doomed to be skewered during each news cycle? Now news reports implicate lettuce in the E. coli Taco Bell outbreak. I was doing interviews in the Minneapolis area today, one radio talk show host asked listeners if they were going back to the Taco Bell and Taco John restaurants. Taco John restaurants have also been in the news with an E. coli outbreak. Meanwhile, Calif. Rep. Sam Farr has called for increased research funding for pathogens on produce.

As this food safety crisis extends, I fear most for the impact on fresh cut produce, particularly at food service outlets.

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Kansas plain talk

You know the industry is having a rough week when a professor from Kansas State University is saying the fresh produce industry needs to "step up its efforts" to reduce pathogens in the food supply. He doesn't come without credentials, however, despite coming from the breadbasket of the country, not the salad bowl. Douglas Powell is scientific director of the Food Safety Network at Kansas State and worked for ten years to help develop on farm food safety programs for Canadian fresh produce growers

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Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Raids!

A coordinated raid by immigration agents on meat packing plants is in the news. I will be anxious to see what Agriculture Secretary Johanns says about this federal enforcement. We don't need headline grabbing raids until President Bush signs comprehensive immigration reform. Then let the grandstanding begin.

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More headlines

The full court press on the issue of food safety continues. One article in the St. Louis Post Dispatch, speaks of various new industry approaches to resolving the food safety issue and the FDA's previous attempt to "nag" the industry into action.

Another story from the Canadian Broadcasting Company talks about the long journey from field to processing plant to restaurant for commodities like green onions and the potential perils along the way. The hot lights of the press beg the question about who is best to be the industry's "face" in media interviews. Jim Gorny may be the most likely candidate considering his credentials, but perhaps Tom Stenzel needs to elevate his role in crisis management.

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National promotion order needed

You would never know it by the actions of Taco Bell, but there is still no confirmation that green onions are the source of the E. coli outbreak that has sickened about more than 60 people in four states. In fact, a company spokesman told USA Today that green onions won't be reintroduced on their menu. This points to the cumulative effective of food borne illness outbreaks. More than ever, I think these recurring food safety problems linked to fresh produce - whether confirmed or not - point to the need for an ongoing national promotion order for fresh produce. The industry needs to take ownership of the messages given to consumers and provide them with confidence in production practices.

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Friday, December 8, 2006

On the road to Minneapolis

I will be renting a car to drive to Minneapolis for some work on upcoming leadership profiles for The Packer on Monday. A few other irons are in the fire as well. I'm waiting on word from the United Fresh Produce Association (United in all future references) on whether they will allow a member of the trade press to participate in a fresh produce grade inspection training program at the USDA training center in Fredericksburg, Va. United is offering the training classes in conjunction with the USDA again for 2007. Amy Philpott said my request gave United a lot of things to consider. For USDA, I wonder if one is my recent criticism of Fresh Products Branch oversight of ousted training center director Tom Gambill.

This trend toward denying even trade press access to meetings - notably FMI's Dec. 5 summit on food safety - is an unfortunate development. Consumers need more openness, not less, from produce marketers And if the industry's message isn't told to the trade press, it will be that much harder to connect with credibility to consumers.

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Monday, December 4, 2006

Hike coming

The USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service is coming out with a proposed rule that would hike terminal market inspection fees by 15% in 2007 and again in 2008. This is being presented as inevitable but it may be worth a closer look. Under the Freedom of Information Act, I have requested data from the USDA on the number of inspections the Fresh Products Branch has performed in the last five years. Developing...

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