Fresh Produce Discussion Blog

Created by The Packer's National Editor Tom Karst

Thursday, May 31, 2007

On the question of cost

Jimmie Turner of USDA AMS responded to a query I gave him earlier about whether the USDA May 30 rule, referenced in this post, would preclude buyers from charging suppliers for trust notification.
Below is his response:


Below is AMS’ response to your query about the final rule on electronic trust protection, specifically: Does the rule address whether buyers can charge sellers to receive the PACA trust notice?:

“The rule does not attempt to regulate business relationships in new ways. Under the new rule, there are no restrictions on the buyers’ and sellers’ negotiating -- as they always have -- prices for product, freight, brokerage, late fees and all the other details of their contracts, including the methods and cost of trust notification.”



TK: While the agency "punted" on this issue, the USDA eventually needs to stipulate that buyers are prohibited from charging suppliers for any reason relating to the communication of PACA trust language.

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We have met the enemy and

Wal-Mart's number one challenge is its reputation, says a brutally frank document prepared by Wal-Mart's former ad agency. Wakeup Wal-Mart published the leaked document and had this press release about the report.

WASHINGTON, May 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- WakeUpWalMart.com,America's campaign to change Wal-Mart, released a stunning new internal document prepared for Wal-Mart by its old advertising agency, GSD&M. The document, entitled "Wal-Mart Positioning Report," states, in often brutal detail, the serious public image challenges Wal-Mart faces. According to GSD&M, and described in a section entitled "Know thy Enemy," Wal-Mart's reputation problem is the #1 challenge facing the company. The 55-page GSD&M report, which was based on a series of focus groups and interviews, states, "Wal-Mart is a highly politicized brand," and its public image is directly threatened by the "corporate brand that is portrayed in the media as a bad corporate citizen who doesn't treat employees well and isn't acting as a good citizen of the planet. That brand is increasingly becoming a force that is casting doubts on the consumer brand that people know and love. If it continues unchecked, we may see avery different categorization of Wal-Mart than we saw in the preceding exercise." Among other highly significant conclusions in the "Know Thy Enemy"section, where GSD&M identifies Wal-Mart's reputation as its #1 business challenge, are (a) Wal-Mart's consumer ratings as a "company I trust andrespect" have steadily declined over the last two years, and (b) Shopping at Wal-Mart used to mean saving money and being patriotic, being a member of the community, being a part of the "American Dream." Today, it just means saving money. All value - no values.


TK: Well, the former ad agency didn't pull any punches - I wonder if that is why they are the former ad agency. With more and more media buzz about how shabbily Wal-Mart treats employees and how they pull vast amounts of goods from China, the idea of Wal-Mart representing American "values" has taken a hit over the past 15 years. We can plainly see that Wal-Mart is trying to become a better corporate citizen, particularly in relation to environmental concerns. Can it again represent "value" and "values" to the middle and upper middle class?

The first `link to the document goes to the Fresh Produce Discussion Group. The paper can also be found at www.wakeupwalmart.com.



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Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Seeking understanding in South Texas

Pamela Riemenschneider of The Packer passes along this link to a report from south Texas about immigration and a south Texas onion grower. Reading the follow-on comments to this piece illustrate the unbridled passion and the heartfelt if sometimes uneducated viewpoints some hold on this issue.

The straightforward video segment was greeted with posters who doubted that Americans wouldn't do the work( I'm from West Virginia and we need jobs) and those who criticized the grower for planting onions and not working in the fields.

Here is one example:

John writes:

Okay, okay ... poor farmer! Don't say that with your mouth full. The reporter should have asked two very pointed questions.
1. Why wasn't the "farmer" in the pressed and starched white shirt not picking onions?

2. How much "farm subsidy" from the federal government did he receive last year?


TK: The hostility toward U.S. growers who need agricultural labor is remarkable. Consumers should try to understand that the bountiful harvest of U.S. growers is really a bountiful harvest for them.

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Immigration crossfire

I was listening to AM talk radio last night and a conservative radio talk show host was complaining that President Bush had criticized conservatives who call the immigration legislation amnesty. Coverage of the president's speech in Georgia, from The Baltimore Sun:

"I know there are some people out there hollering and saying, 'Kick them out.' That is simply unrealistic. It won't work," Bush said. "If you want to scare the American people, what you say is, the bill is an amnesty bill. It's not an amnesty bill. That's empty political rhetoric, trying to frighten our fellow citizens."


Here is the link to the Senate's immigration bill.

Here is a nice Q and A by the AP on the comprehensive immigration package. Here are three questions about the temporary worker programs in the bill.

Q: Does the Senate plan have a new temporary worker program? A: Yes. Foreigners who want to work in the U.S. would be able to apply for temporary worker visas. About 200,000 two-year "Y" visas would be available annually. The number of visas would rise or fall based on job availability. The visa could be renewed up to two more times, but the worker would have to home for a year between renewals.

Q: Can temporary workers in the new program earn legal permanent residency? A: No. After a maximum of six years of work, with one-year breaks every two years, temporary workers would have to return home permanently. They could apply to become legal residents while in their home country. But they would have to be considered for a visa under a new system that awarded points based on education, job skills, market needs, English proficiency and family ties.


Q: What about agriculture workers? A: The bill would create a five-year pilot program under which as many as 1.5 million illegal farm workers could acquire legal status through new "Z-A" visas. To qualify, they have to have worked at least 150 days in U.S. agriculture within the two years ending Dec. 31, 2006. They then would have at least 150 more days over three years or 100 days over five years to be eligible for legal permanent residency.

TK: Delivering Republican votes in the House of Representatives is going to be a critical task for President Bush to achieve what so many people in this country want to see happen.

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What's on the Surface

Guest blogger Lance Jungmeyer here ...

If you are reading this post, you are probably doing it through some software or hardware that has ties to Bill Gates.

In the future, your computer may be on your desktop. Gates recently unveiled Surface, a new computing platform that could change everything. (Yeah, we've all heard that before.)

A user basically touches a screen, drags items by fingertip, increases the size of an item by spreading the fingers wider apart, etc. The computer will allow more than one user to manipulate it at once, which could be handy in group meetings.

"The radical new approach starts with the guts of the device itself. Under the impact-resistant plastic top skin on an otherwise nondescript table hide five infrared scanners, a projector, and a wireless modem. The scanners recognize objects and shapes placed on the top and respond to them accordingly."

Put a wi-fi camera on top of the Surface and it automatically downloads the pictures.

I wonder how a computer such as this could be integrated into the world of fresh produce.

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Retail Consolidation to Continue?

Guest blogger Lance Jungmeyer chiming in ...

Wall Street is all atwitter at the thought of another retail buyout.

This story from the Cincinnati Post shows that traders are expecting a buyout of The Kroger Co., perhaps from a private-equity firm.

The article states that "some traders Tuesday were signaling their expectations that Kroger shares are due a strong run-up in the coming few weeks, buying call options that allow them to pay $30 and $35 for the stock by late June."

Kroger shares, trading at about $30 on Tuesday, haven't been close to $35 since 1999 when they topped out at $34.91

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No license to kill

Guest blogger Lance Jungmeyer chiming in ...

More and more media reports are focusing on Chinese food exports and an environment there that permits, if not encourages, malfeasance.

Buried in this article from the Brisbane Times is this nugget:

"An administration survey found that almost one-third of China's 450,000 food production companies, mostly smaller companies employing less than 10 people, were unlicensed."

At least China is starting to take the food safety problem seriously. But the reaction seems more kneejerk than is necessary.

The article notes how Zheng Xiaoyu, head of the State Food and Drug Administration from 1998 until 2005 was charged with taking bribes and faces the death penalty for the nation's ongoing export-oriented food safety woes.

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PACA's new rule

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a final rule regarding trust protection for produce sellers when using electronic invoicing.

Here is the summary from the final rule:

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is amending the regulations under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) to ensure that the status of sellers of perishable agricultural commodities as trust creditors is protected when electronic data interchange (EDI) or other forms of electronic commerce are used to invoice buyers. Specifically, the amendments require that a buyer licensed under the PACA or its third party representative accept the PACA trust notice submitted to it by a seller on a paper, electronic invoice, or other billing statement. In addition, the buyer must allow sufficient data space for the required trust language regardless of the billing medium. Finally, any failure, act or omission inconsistent with this responsibility is unlawful and a violation of the PACA.


TK: There should be no hue and cry from retailers or other buyers about this rule. The USDA said that the proposed rule drew 41 comments during the period that ended Jan. 8, and all were supportive of the language in the proposed rule. The proposed rule was published without revisions as the final rule.

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Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Wal-Mart's procurement

The Packer's David Mitchell has some interesting coverage on Wal-Mart's procurement policies.
David writes:


Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has altered its procurement procedures during the past two years, but recent criticisms that the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer has violated terms of its supplier agreements are unwarranted, the company’s vice president and divisional merchandise manager for produce and floral said.“Wal-Mart honors (its) contracts and offers the suppliers the right to talk to Lee Scott, our CEO, or Rob Walton, our chairman, through the open-door process if we do not,” said Ron McCormick , vice president and divisional merchandise manager for produce and floral.Wal-Mart suppliers were reluctant to comment on changes in the retailer’s buying practices, but sources alleged off the record that the company is increasingly using what it calls “opportunity buys” to source product from other suppliers when the market is lower than the contract price.“The expectation in doing business with Wal-Mart is not what it was two years ago,” said a supplier who spoke on the condition of anonymity.


TK: In a presentation in 2004, Roberta Cook of UC Davis points out that shippers doing long term contracts with Wal-Mart procurement can keep their portfolio of quality growers happy only by compensating them fairly for lost opportunities on the spot market. In my view, when Wal-Mart looks to "opportunity buys" when the spot market is in its favor, it could hurt the long term health of WM's contracted suppliers.

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Consensus position

The Orlando Sentinel has written what I believe to the quintessential editorial on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The editorial has settled on a position that I believe most Americans share. Here is a summary:
FDA's oversight of food safety is inadequate, evidenced by recent foodborne illness outbreaks
The agency's funding - and perhaps its authority - is insufficient. It needs to do a better job of monitoring imports.
Congress should fix the funding problem at FDA, and FDA needs to do a better job of assessing risk.
If FDA can't get its act together, Congress should consider single food safety agency.

TK: That's about where we are. I would say Congress will give the FDA more money to solve its woes and a shorter leash.

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Grow your own movement gains appeal

This AP story by Clarke Canfield published in the Salt Lake City Tribune speaks of the growing appeal of backyard gardens among baby boomers with time on their hands.
From the story:

Between E. coli scares, global warming, the ''buy local'' movement, aging baby boomers with more time to spare and a desire to enjoy the freshest of fresh, a new wave of grow your own has begun.
Heather Flores started a ''Food Not Lawns'' campaign in Oregon several years ago, and last year authored a book by the same name. There now are about 10 ''Food Not Lawns'' chapters in the U.S. and Canada.


TK: One of the sources said that consumers are confused about food miles and organic ; which is better, organic from 1,000 miles away, or conventional home grown produced locally. There is no quandary about the backyard garden. I would have to think the segment of the population that would successfully grow a garden is tiny, but the the author correctly pegs the yearning.
I remember when my grandfather had a huge garden in Russell, Kansas. I would take a bucket out to the garden and pick cucumbers and tomatoes. Perhaps one day in my leisure, it will be so again.

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South Africa is looking up

The USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service reports that South Africa's deciduous fruit growers will have an up year.

From the May 25 attache report:

South Africa’s CY2007 updated deciduous fruit production figures are expected to reach 1.35 million MT, a 5% increase of the actual 2005/6 level because of the improvement in climatic conditions and the natural lifecycle of the trees. Total exports for 2006/7 are expected to increase by about 5% because of increased production for export. Fresh pear and apple exports may increase by about 18.4% and 4.5% respectively, while table grapes may remain the same as last year because of reduced production.


The deciduous fruit and grape industry in the Western Cape generates about $700 million in foreign exchange annually, accounting for about 40% of the total South African foreign exchange earnings from agricultural products. Total annual production reaches about 1.5 million MT for grapes, 0.55 million MT for apples, 0.15 million MT for peaches, and 0.2 million MT for pears.

Fruit South Africa is refining its role as an umbrella organization representing the subtropical, deciduous, and citrus fruit industries. The deciduous fruit industry also dismantled to form the pome (apples & pears), stonefruit and tablegrape organizations.

The Deciduous Fruit Producer Trust (DFPT) continues to handle research, plant improvement, plant certification, and the technical aspects of market access for the South African table grapes industry (SATI). SATI is the consolidated industry organization responsible for organizing all other functions of the table grapes industry.

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Buying local isn't easy

Local growers face a variety of challenges when they try to hook up with retailers, but some chains like Whole Foods are making an extra effort, says this article from The Cincinnati Enquirer.

From the story:


Whole Foods Market’s produce manager for the Southeast, John Walker, says local for that company’s first Nashville store will mean Tennessee, southern Kentucky and northern Alabama. Roughly 15 percent of the produce in Whole Foods stores in the Southeast is local on an annual basis, although the amount varies by season, Walker said.Whole Foods began a $10 million annual loan program last year for local growers to expand the availability of local products in its stores and to strengthen ties with local farmers. Loan recipients get low-interest loans ranging from $1,000 to $100,000, the company said.To get local growers in Nashville, Whole Foods arranged it so local growers could chat with the company’s buyers over lunch or while sitting in rocking chairs on the center’s wraparound porch.But Whole Foods won’t necessarily prove to be a savior for every local grower.Edwin Dysinger grows a variety of fruits and vegetables on family-owned Bountiful Blessings Farm between Columbia and Centerville, Tenn. He brought a couple of flats of his strawberries to the Whole Foods meeting and learned the company pays $14 a flat, whereas he gets $26 selling directly to neighbors.


TK: There is no barrier that economic self-interest can't overcome. If consumers really want local produce and will pay for it, chains should be able to find a way to make it happen.

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Organic supply and demand in China

China's demand for organic produce is growing, says this article on the effect of recent food safety scares on Chinese consumers.

From Reuters:

A clutch of dedicated shops have sprung up in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities, and major supermarket chains are also starting to offer organic fruits, vegetables, meat and washing up liquid too.
"Domestic consumption of organic food is growing, partly attributed to worries over food safety, but exports are the major reason for growth," said Luo Min, an official with the China Organic Food Development Center, which helps with certification.
Those exports were worth some $300 million last year, according to the center's figures.
Such figures are music to the ears of Zhang Lingyu, who was jailed for 102 days for promoting pesticide-free food in the 1970s, at a time when the government prioritized chemical use to squeeze ever higher yields out of China's limited farmland.
"At that time they thought I was mad. How could you produce farm products without chemical fertilizer and pesticides?" said Zhang, whose company San'an Agriculture promotes "safe food."
"But now I'm welcomed everywhere. Local governments have found their products are hard to sell because of the residues," he told Reuters.
"China depends on its cheap prices to push its products on the world market, but it ignored safety. Residues from pesticides and fertilizers are too high," Zhang said.


TK: It sounds like China needs a national certification system, as distrust of various certifications is a problem in building consumer demand.

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McDonald's to add fruits and veggies?

So says this May 24 short report from the annual shareholders' meeting of McDonald's.

From the story:

From the story:

While officials of the fast-food giant gave few details at the annual shareholder meeting, they said future fruit offerings may include smoothies and side dishes. The company says it is also looking at creative ways to integrate fruits and vegetables into Happy Meals.
McDonald's says it has already had success in the US with its apple slices and salads, and that its corn cups are popular in China.

TK: I wonder if the baked potato will someday make an appearance at McDonald's. That would certainly lend a healthy option to the menu.


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Monday, May 28, 2007

Comeuppance for U.K. supermarkets

This feature from BBC news is an undercover piece By Audrey Brown on U.K. supermarket food safety issues. Whistleblower: Supermarkets was broadcast on BBC May 22 and is available for viewing for seven days from the same Web site.
Here are a few excerpts:

Last year I was contacted by several supermarket employees working up and down the country. They told me they had serious concerns about the food they were being asked to sell. One whistleblower in particular, from Didcot, was worried about the things she had seen.
So I applied for positions at a Sainsbury's in Didcot, Oxford, and later Tesco in Woodford Green, North London. I used fake references, which none of the stores checked before I started work.
After working undercover at both stores for a total of four months, I discovered that customers were often deceived about the freshness and quality of the food they were buying.
At times, even customers' health may have been put at risk.

I saw first-hand that cheap food can come at price. What I discovered during my six month investigation into Britain's supermarkets for BBC One's latest Whistleblower documentary will change the way I shop forever.

TK: Brown talks at length about use-by and sell-by dates, and says those dates are easily changed by staff "who would wipe out existing dates and write in other, later dates."

A lot of the time, the counter staff treated the meat and fish we were selling with indifference and, worryingly, there were times at Tesco when they had no idea what the real sell-by date was as they had altered it so many times.
Sometimes it was not until the food smelled bad that it was eventually thrown away.
The counter manager at Sainsbury's regularly asked me to extend the dates on deli items because they smelt "OK".


Managers seemed under pressure to extend the shelf-life of food in order to keep their weekly "wastage budgets" to a minimum and thereby help keep store profits high. They would come out of the weekly "team huddle" - which I saw at both the Sainsbury's and Tesco stores - buzzing and hungry to hit targets. Even as a counter assistant, the pressure other staff seemed to feel was almost tangible.

Supermarket staff are required by law to carry out temperature checks on the fridges storing food. These records are incredibly important because they can be called upon as evidence if, for example, a customer takes a supermarket to court claiming they got food poisoning from something purchased at the store. Yet I regularly saw fridge temperatures being faked by staff. One even showed me how to do it and whose signature was easiest to fake. She told me the figures to put in, adding "put in a high one sometimes" - presumably to make it look more authentic.

From the pristine supermarket uniforms that lull us into a false belief that hygienic practices are being implemented, it is very different behind the scenes. Following my initial induction, which consisted of nothing more than a general health and safety chat, I managed to muddle my way through until I was eventually given something called Bronze Training. Now, Tesco are proud of their training, but when I was tested I was simply handed the answers I needed and told to input them on a separate sheet.

TK: The reporter worked four months in supermarkets settings, and I would venture to say she conveys a fairly accurate picture of everyday reality. There is pressure to minimize waste and pressure to meet sales goals, and these pressures are considered every time employees in the supermarket make a decision. Supermarkets both in the the U.K. and the U.S. better settle on what their policies are for sell-by dating and then make sure those policies are carried out precisely. The report also points to a paucity of adequate training on food safety. The smell test is not good enough for the 21st century.

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Toshiba RIP?

My company laptop has scars from my heavy, unreasonable and incessant use. Hauling through airports, to Capitol Hill, to Chile, to convention duty, to shipping point sections and the occasional high school English essay.

The decals have long since surrendered. The mouse touch pad has a shiny spot in the middle where all the textured coating has worn off. About six months ago, the front cover of laptop had a fault line develop. The hairline stress fracture soon turned into a crack and then a clean break. Now, about one fourth of the bottom front panel of my keyboard is missing.

Lately, the operating system has begun to quit on me, taunting me with the blue screen of death. Somehow, I have been able to successfully reboot ("Windows has recovered from a serious error") and continue its torturous regime. This weekend, though, the machine failed to successfully reboot. In fact, even the power light LED that shows the unit is plugged in has turned off.

Wally and Steven in IT have a tall task ahead; resurrect the Toshiba for further produce journalism exploits. I am afraid the Toshiba may want no part of it.

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Sunday, May 27, 2007

Headline roundup

Wal-Mart must take lead on food safety Wal-Mart is China's eight largest trading partner and thus is in position to influence food safety

Lake of the Ozarks tested for E. coli It's just routine testing, and I still envy those families with cabins at the lake.


Vaccine can reduce incidence of E. coli in cattle By extension, the vaccine could reduce presence of E. coli in produce, I presume


A Faustian bargain - immigration reform - Coverage from Florida on immigration legislation


Meatpackers support immigration reform

Senators brace for immigration blowback


Democrats protect immigration reform

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Saturday, May 26, 2007

MSN article on genetically modified fruits and vegetables

Here is a point-counterpoint on GM fruits and vegetables from the MSN Web site. Mostly standard fare, and nothing in the news to distinguish the piece particularly.

Here are two paragraphs that sum up the report:

You can’t name a food that has not been genetically modified,” asserts Joseph H. Hotchkiss, chairman of food science at Cornell University. “Traditional breeding does exactly the same thing as GE, which is to change the genome of a food crop. Orange juice is a great example; we have a hundred years of breeding out bitterness from citrus. GE has exactly the same goals [as traditional breeding], but it’s much more targeted and extremely more specific. Conventional breeding is hit-and-miss.”
Opponents are not so convinced of GE’s specificity, and they’re concerned about health risks. Rebecca Spector, West Coast director of the nonprofit
Center for Food Safety, says, “Our position is that GE foods are inherently unstable. The gene insertion is random. They use a gene gun to insert the gene they’re trying to change, but they don’t know where it’s going to land. Each genetic insertion has the possibility to change formerly nontoxic elements into toxic elements. They’re getting better at it, but there’s a pretty high failure rate

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Friday, May 25, 2007

Sticker shock on aisle 1

This story looks beyond sticker shock at gas pumps and looks at the sticker shock in the grocery store. Of course, the two are related, as higher gas prices also increase the delivered costs of fruits and vegetables. The rising price of corn, tied to escalating ethanol demand, is also contributing to higher cereal, milk and meat prices. The story also notes the impact of the freeze on California citrus prices.

TK: Rising fuel and food costs will put pressure on household budgets and could suppress fruit and vegetable demand. Produce managers will have to keep a watchful eye on that reality this summer and come up with some creative ways to overcome that barrier to increased sales.

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Totally non-produce related: I'm a proud papa - My daughter's gold medal relay race last Saturday - she is first off the block

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Disaster assistance for ag

There is relief for farmers in a supplemental appropriations bill, but not as broad as originally sought. From the House Ag Committee Web site:


WASHINGTON, DC – Despite stiff opposition from President Bush, the U.S. House of Representatives has prevailed to pass a supplemental appropriations bill that includes about $3 billion for agriculture disaster assistance that will provide needed relief to farmers and ranchers nationwide who experienced serious losses in 2005-2007.

After President Bush vetoed the supplemental spending legislation that included agriculture disaster assistance, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic leaders negotiated a compromise bill with the White House that will still provide agriculture disaster assistance.

Earlier this month when the House considered the supplemental appropriations bill again, President Bush issued a veto threat, citing the proposed agriculture disaster assistance provisions as “unnecessary and unwarranted.”

However, House leaders recognized the reality facing rural communities nationwide – that natural disasters including floods, droughts, wildfires, heat waves, blizzards, freezes and other weather related events have caused serious damage to farmers and ranchers. In these communities, the proposed disaster assistance is both necessary and warranted.

“I appreciate the House Leadership for remaining steadfast in their support for this assistance, which will help our rural communities recover from weather-related disasters that have damaged local economies over the past few years,” said Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson. “This Congress has delivered a fiscally responsible package that meets the most pressing needs for assistance in agriculture and rural communities.”

The agriculture disaster assistance package includes assistance for farmers who lost 35% or more of their crop in 2005, 2006 or 2007 and for livestock producers in counties that experienced USDA designated natural disasters during that time. Producers can apply for a disaster payment for only one of those three years, and for the first time, only farmers who had insured their crop through crop insurance or the Non-Insured Assistance Program are eligible for payments.

A coalition of more than 30 farm and allied organizations consistently voiced strong support for the agriculture disaster assistance provisions in the supplemental appropriations bill.



TK: I earlier noted an incorrect USA Today report that said $25 million was still in the bill for spinach growers. That is not the case, as one of our readers points out. I'm still looking for a link for the full text of the Iraq supplemental spending bill. Anyone have that?

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Produce Guru

No, it's not my self appointed title. Produceguru.com is a new Vance Web site, a kind of online Produce Guide for consumers. Right now it is still in Beta version, so work is ongoing. You can take a peek at it now. You may be asking, What is produceguru.com? I'm glad you asked.
From the site:

Welcome to ProduceGuru – your portal to everything you need to know about the delicious fruits and vegetables you enjoy. Here, you’ll find answers to all kinds of questions – from why you should eat more produce to how to prepare artichokes. If it’s a specific fruit or vegetable you’re interested in, either click on the fruit or vegetable pull-down tab at the top, or type the name in the search tool. Once you enter the world of your chosen produce item, you’ll find loads of background and variety information, nutrition specifics, serving sizes, preparation ideas and care and handling tips. Perhaps you’ve read about a specific nutrient offered by some fruits and vegetables, and you want to investigate it. Just use the search tool to locate the nutrient.For a broader sweep of the produce world, check out the tabs on the left. For example, stay current with everything going on in the ever-changing realm of produce by clicking on the “Produce in the News ” tab. We scan hundreds of newspapers and magazines and pass along what's important to you, whether it's new cooking methods, breaking news about food safety or seasonal produce information.As you think of adding more healthy produce to the dinner plate, no doubt you’ve grappled with such questions as, “How can I get my child to eat more fruits and vegetables?” or “What’s really the deal with organics?” You can find answers to those questions by clicking on the appropriate tab at the left. And if you’re not convinced that there’s any good in the greens, just look at the “Produce and Your Health” section. Whatever we’ve missed in ProduceGuru, hopefully you will find it in the links provided throughout or in the “Links” section at the left. Otherwise, if there’s a fruit or vegetable not listed on this site that you would like to learn more about, or you think of an idea that would make this site more complete, we want to hear from you. Simply click on the “Submit an Idea” link at the bottom.It’s time to get started on your journey into the wild-and-tasty, living-and-breathing world of fruits and vegetables.

TK: I like the light, fresh look of the site. I know a lot of work has been done to load it with useful information and work continues. Check it out and drop us a line, leave us a comment and tell us what you think.



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The cost of reform

The CBO has released a preliminary review of the comprehensive immigration legislation and its impact on the federal budget.
From the report:

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) have conducted a preliminary review of Senate Amendment 1150, in the nature of a substitute for S. 1348, the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007. CBO plans to release a more detailed and formal cost estimate for the legislation in the next several days. In the meanwhile, we can provide the following preliminary information:
CBO and JCT estimate that enacting S. Amdt. 1150 would increase federal direct spending by $13 billion to $17 billion over the 2008-2012 period and by $32 billion to $38 billion over the 2008-2017 period. Over the 10-year period, about 4 percent of those totals for direct spending would be for Social Security benefits, which are classified as off-budget. The single largest component of the expected direct spending is for outlays from refundable tax credits, estimated by JCT.
CBO and JCT estimate that enacting the substitute amendment would result in a net increase in federal revenues of $15 billion to $19 billion over the 2008-2012 period and a net increase of $70 billion to $75 billion over the 2008-2017 period. Increased revenue from Social Security payroll taxes, which are classified as off-budget account for most of the changes in revenues over the 10-year period

S. Amdt. 1150 would impose intergovernmental mandates, as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA), because it would preempt state and local authority and require states, local, and tribal governments to verify the work eligibility of employees. CBO estimates that the cost, if any, of complying with the preemptions would be small. The cost of complying with the requirements to verify work eligibility would depend on regulations to be developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Until the regulations are developed, CBO cannot determine whether the total costs to state, local, and tribal governments would exceed the annual threshold established in UMRA ($66 million in 2006, adjusted annually for inflation).
• The amendment also would impose private-sector mandates, as defined in UMRA, on employers and other entities that hire, recruit, or refer individuals for employment. The most costly mandate would require all employers and other entities to verify the employment eligibility of workers. Based on the large number of individuals that employers and other entities would be required to verify under the bill, CBO expects that the aggregate direct costs of the mandates would exceed the annual threshold for private-sector mandates ($131 million in 2007, adjusted annually for inflation) in at least one of the first five years the mandates are in effect.


TK: There will be both increased revenues and greater federal spending with immigration reform. Employers will pay more to verify worker eligibility. Ag employers will gladly do so if there are in fact eligible workers available.

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Thursday, May 24, 2007

If not produce safety....

In a conference call today, both Peter Goulet, chairman of the Newark, Del-based Produce Marketing Association, and Emanuel Lazopoulos, chairman of the United Fresh Produce Association, expressed strong support for their associations' unified approach on produce safety. Both said the industry will be engaged with the Food and Drug Administration to help put in place science-based standards.

One of them made the comment that if the two groups can't work together on produce safety, then what could they do together....

The clear meaning is that produce safety is of core importance to the industry. The members of both groups desire for PMA and United to be talking with each other - staff and industry leaders - and as unified as possible. Kudos to all concerned for the effort and resolve to make it happen.

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The FAS reports

In agricultural attache reports from U.S. embassies abroad:

From Canada...
CANADA SET TO HARMONIZE SOME PESTICIDE STANDARDS TO MATCH U.S.: Canada is getting ready to harmonize some of its standards on pesticide use for fruits and vegetables to match those of the United States. The regulatory change, which is being done on a case-by-case basis, will apply to pesticide limits where it has been determined that no risks are posed by the regulatory change. In some cases this will require lowering the limit, in other cases raising it. Growers on both sides of the border have long complained that the lack of harmonization is a trade irritant. In 1996, Canadian and U.S. regulators formed a technical working group to address how pesticide regulations could be harmonized to eliminate some of the trade barriers. While differences in the ecosystems and patterns of use accounts for many of the differences in the limits between the two countries, the trend is to use
less due to the high costs of pesticides
.


From Argentina...

Overall, the pear and apple crop in Calendar Year
(CY) 2007 is forecast at 1.8 million metric tons (MT), slightly above CY 2006 production due to favorable weather conditions in the Southern Valley (i.e., Neuquen and Rio Negro provinces) during Spring 2006, and despite the pact that many plantations have recently been pulled up. Fresh deciduous fruit production for CY 2006 is estimated at 1.75 million metric tons (MT), a five-percent decrease compared with the CY 2005 harvest. This season suffered neither hail nor late frosts, which usually occur, resulting in a much better quality fruit, and better yields at packing.
The CY 2007 apple crop is estimated to increase three percent due to a series of factors including, favorable weather conditions in the Southern Valley, new plantations entering production, and better technology applied to those new plantations. Overall, calendar year (CY) 2007 citrus production is estimated to remain at the CY 2006 level of 2.63 million metric tons (MT). In CY 2007, lemon production is expected to decrease to 1250 MT, seven per cent down with respect to CY 2006 production due to a combination of factors. Sources in the industry state that many small farmers whose fruit quality was suitable only for industrial purposes had to leave the business as a result of the poor industrial prices of the last three years. That land then went to the planting of other corps. Despite the latter, new plantations will enter into production in CY 2007. The same sources state that the higher yield of these new plantations will compensate the production of those that went out of production. The grapefruit crop in Northwestern Argentina (NOA) is forecast to increase in CY 2007 due to better weather conditions. Sources in the industry state that CY 2007 looks better in terms of yields but quality has been severely affected buy unfavorable climatic events. Too much rain in the spring of 2006 and the summer of 2007 resulted in development of cryptogamic diseases as citrus canker. Industrial sources informed that the crushing capacity is being overwhelmed by the larger amount of fruit that is being channeled to industrial usage due to the symptoms of that disease. Also, is the important production area of Province o Jujuy, hail and winds storms in October 2007 damaged fruits. Thetangerine crop is expected to increase 12 per cent in volume in CY 2007. Industrial sources estimate that Clementines and Nova varieties will be the stars of CY 2007. Also, the orange crops look better than in CY 2006. However, production is expected to increase only five per cent to 760,000 MT. CY 2006 production was 400,000 MT for tangerines and 730,000 MT for oranges, seven and five percent less than in CY 2005, respectively, due to unfavorable weather conditions namely, drought and a series of frosts. The most severe frost occurred on 1July 31, 2006, and affected mainly the Murcot variety.

From Japan.....

According to the Nikkei Newspaper’s survey targeting 300 working
mothers 20-40 years of age in Japan, the U.S. and U.K. concerning what they do purposely everyday for their health, the Japanese working mothers’ answers tended toward taking an easy solution, while the U.S. and U.K. working mothers answers tended toward harder ones such as jogging and eating less. Doing a stretch was top, consuming food/drinks that are said to be good for health such as vinegar and soy products was second, trying to lower their total intake calories per day was third, and drinking vegetable juice was the fourth most popular solution in Japan.

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A park bench for Kyle

This story is about Kyle Allgood, the two year old Idaho boy who died nine months ago, apparently from eating tainted spinach. I can't imagine what it would be like to lose a child. Even to see your child sick or injured is a wrenching experience.

From the story:

One project neighbors are working on right now is raising money for a bench to be put in the park across the street from Kyle's house. That kind of support helps the Allgoods, but what helps above all is above all.
Jeff Allgood, Kyle's Father: "That's more where closure comes to me is understanding that this was part of my Heavenly Father's plan for my son. It's not what I would have chosen by any stretch but I have to have faith in him."
Robyn Allgood, Kyle's Mother: "We're more concerned about getting back there too him than holding someone accountable."
That accountability could come in the courts. The Allgoods have never been contacted by the growers responsible for the tainted spinach. They have been contacted by attorneys.
But the Allgoods say for them and their situation, legal action would only prolong their pain.
Robyn Allgood, Kyle's Mother: "We found a lot of peace in just letting go and remembering Kyle and the happy times we had with him."


TK: Let the industry never lag in its genuine commitment to produce safety, and may we all carry a part of the pain borne by Jeff and Robyn Alllgood.

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Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Paying for plum pox eradication

Just talked to a few people about plum pox eradication costs. It seems the state of New York has argued for a 50 meter buffer zone for infected trees and the USDA has insisted on a 500 meter buffer. One grower said that Ontario's weak plum pox eradication program - at least it has been considered weak until now - has not convinced New York growers they can stave off the plum pox virus based on their own efforts alone. What's more, the 500 meter buffer zone will slash output of affected producers. In one instance, a 500 meter buffer would mean three growers of stone fruit would have to destroy trees - even though only one of them had an infected tree.

Meanwhile, in Michigan, the Michigan State University Southwest Michigan research station is hard hit, with the 500 meter buffer zone taking out all of its stone fruit acreage and years of research work on that farm.

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Together on produce safety

PMA and United have just issued a statement indicating both groups have found agreement with an "independent but common" conclusion that produce safety standards must be federally mandated, risk-based and allow for commodity specific regulation.

TK: This is a watershed moment. Both organizations have staked their positions in the same camp, and that is a sign of unity and solidarity that must be appreciated by their members. In my view, neither PMA or United wants federal mandates for produce safety that weigh down the industry with excessive costs. However, both groups understand the need for federal oversight to restore consumer confidence. What is problematic is the fact that the public has substantially less confidence in the FDA right now than they have in produce growers.

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Don't blame it on Milton

This link to a blog about food safety comes from KSU's Doug Powell and the Food Safety Network. The blog author is Jacob Grier, self described as " a barista, bartender, close-up magician, and freelance writer loosely associated with the libertarian policy scene in Washington, DC."

In his criticism of a Time magazine column by Paul Krugman, Grier cites this passage by Krugman.

The Bush administration won’t issue food safety regulations even when the private sector wants them. The president of the United Fresh Produce Association says that the industry’s problems “can’t be solved without strong mandatory federal regulations”: without such regulations, scrupulous growers and processors risk being undercut by competitors more willing to cut corners on food safety. Yet the administration refuses to do more than issue nonbinding guidelines.

Grier writes this in response:

Citing this as evidence displays an astonishing degree of ignorance from a professional economist. When existing industry players call for supposed public interest regulation, that should immediately send up a red flag that what they really want is to squeeze out potential competitors. Strict regulations will almost certainly put up barriers to entry in the food industry. Whether they’ll actually make things safer is far less obvious. At no point does Krugman explain what regulations he’d like to see put in place, how they’ll deal with imported food, and whether or not they’ll be cost effective.


TK: Are food safety outbreaks a failure of the markets or a failure of regulation? Or do lawyers share some blame? Buyers, lawyers and government are all trying to atone for those failures now. United's call for government oversight is still a matter of great interest and amazement, as evidenced by Krugman and Grier.

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Rising tensions

I see that Ken Cook's Mulchblog has coverage from of the House Ag Committee markup of conservation programs. Chuck Abbott of Reuters also had this coverage. The long and short of it is that there is no money for new programs, including those efforts to more equitably fund conservation needs of fruit and vegetable producers. Some environmental group leaders are saying that the lack of responsiveness by the Ag Committee could lead to a greater effort to amend the farm bill with floor debate.

From the Reuters piece by Abbott:

Without more money for land stewardship, the Agriculture Committee may face a revolt when it brings its bill to the House floor, warned Scott Faber of Environmental Defense.
"The leadership has to provide more funds for conservation ... Today is a good day for those who want to write the farm bill on the floor," said Faber, who is part of a coalition of environmentalists, small-farm activists, fiscal hawks and international development groups who say the U.S. farm program should spend more on stewardship and less on crop subsidies.
Land stewardship programs will get roughly $5 billion a year under congressional formulas for agricultural programs. Crop supports will get $8 billion.
California Democrat
Dennis Cardoza said stewardship programs must be expanded so that fruit, vegetable, nut and nursery crop growers can meet a mounting regulatory burden and so that specialty crop growers get a more equitable share of supports.
He proposed a $305 million air quality program to combat dust and ozone but withdrew it because there was no money.

Kirsten Gillibrand, a New York Democrat, proposed full funding of the Conservation Security Program, which would cost billions of dollars, but withdrew her amendment because there was no way to pay for it at the moment. Created in 2002, CSP is the first green payment program for land stewardship. Under current plans, it would be mothballed until 2012.
Under the outline drawn by Agriculture Committee leaders, funding will double, to $2 billion a year for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which shares the cost of controlling farm and feedlot runoff. Funding would climb for the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program, which buys easements to prevent urban sprawl.
But enrollment in wetland and grassland programs would stall. The land-idling Conservation Reserve would retain its cap of 39.2 million acres.
Although a $20 billion reserve may be created for agriculture, there is no assurance lawmakers can meet the rules for using it. It is fairly certain that renewable energy programs will get $4 billion to $5 billion from the reserve.

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Canker rulemaking

The USDA issued a May 22 notice on citrus canker regulation in Florida.

The USDA is extending the comment period until June 11 for the agency's interim rule that amended the citrus canker quarantine regulations to explicitly prohibit, with limited exceptions, the interstate movement of regulated nursery stock from a quarantined area.

From the notice:

In an order dated April 26, 2007, the United States District Court of the Middle District of Florida, Ocala Division, instructed the U.S. Department of Agriculture to begin a new round of notice-and-comment rulemaking on the issue of the interstate movement of regulated nursery stock from areas quarantined for citrus canker. We solicited comments on the interim rule for 60 days after its publication. Comments on the interim rule were required to be received on or before May 21, 2007. We are extending the comment period on Docket No. APHIS-2007-0032 for an additional 21 days, until June 11, 2007.

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Extraordinary emergency

Findings of the plum pox virus in Michigan and New York have added to the urgency of eradication efforts, bringing to mind earlier efforts to eradicate citrus canker in Florida.The May 22 Federal Register included this grave notice about the plum pox virus.
From the notice:

Declaration of Extraordinary Emergency Because of Plum Pox Virus An exotic plant virus, plum pox virus, has been confirmed in New York and Michigan. Plum pox virus is the most devastating viral disease of stone fruit worldwide, causing yield losses to growers and reducing the marketability of fruit. Previously, the disease was known to be present in the United States only in portions of several counties in south-central Pennsylvania.

Plum pox virus is the cause of an extremely serious plant disease, affecting a number of Prunus species, including peach, nectarine, apricot, plum, and almond. Infection eventually results in severely reduced fruit production, and the fruit that is produced is often misshapen and blemished. There is no cure or treatment for the disease once a tree becomes infected. In Europe, where plum pox has been present for a number of years, the disease is considered to be the most serious disease affecting susceptible Prunus species. The disease is spread over short distances by a number of different aphid species, and over longer distances through the movement of infected budwood and nursery stock. Since the detection of plum pox virus in Pennsylvania in 1999, an aggressive eradication program has been conducted in that State, involving a cooperative effort between APHIS and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. The program in Pennsylvania has resulted in significant success, with no spread of the disease outside of the general area in which it was first found in 1999, and with only trace amounts of plum pox virus being detected in 2005 and 2006. Following the detection of plum pox virus in Pennsylvania, APHIS has worked with States in which there was commercial production of peaches and other stone fruit to conduct a series of national surveys. Prior to 2006, the result of these surveys has always been negative.

As a result of a cooperative survey conducted by APHIS and the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, plum pox virus was confirmed in Niagara County, NY, on July 7, 2006. A total of three infected trees were discovered in two commercial orchard locations. Cooperative surveys were also conducted in Michigan, in this case involving APHIS and the Michigan Department of Agriculture. As a result of these surveys, plum pox virus was detected in a single plum tree at the Michigan State University's Southwest Michigan Research and Education Center, a State-operated facility, on August 11, 2006. In order to prevent the spread of plum pox virus from these new detection sites, an aggressive eradication program will be necessary. The eradication program will involve removal of all infected trees and of all host trees within 500 meters, conducting delimiting and detection surveys over a period of several years to ensure that there are no additional infestations, and establishing appropriate safeguards to ensure that additional spread of plum pox virus does not occur while the eradication program is being completed. Following consultation with State[[Page 28949]]officials from both New York and Michigan, the Department has determined that the States do not have sufficient resources to effectively carry out an eradication program.
The infestation of plum pox virus represents a threat to U.S. stone fruit crops. It constitutes a real danger to the national economy and a potential serious burden on interstate and foreign commerce. Therefore, the Department has determined that an extraordinary emergency exists because of the existence of plum pox virus in Michigan and New York. In accordance with 7 U.S.C. 7715, this declaration of extraordinary emergency authorizes the Secretary to: (1) Hold, seize, quarantine, treat, apply other remedial measures to, destroy, or otherwise dispose of, any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that the Secretary has reason to believe is infected by or contains the plum pox virus; (2) quarantine, treat, or apply other remedial measures to any premises, including any plants, biological control organisms, plant products, articles, or means of conveyance on the premises, that the Secretary has reason to believe is infected by or contaminated with the plum pox virus; (3) quarantine any State or portion of a State in which the Secretary finds the plum pox virus or any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that the Secretary has reason to believe is infected by or contaminated with the plum pox virus; and (4) prohibit or restrict the movement within a State of any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance when the Secretary determines that the prohibition or restriction is necessary to prevent the dissemination of the plum pox virus or to eradicate the plum pox virus. The Governors of New York and Michigan have been informed of these facts.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This declaration of extraordinary emergency shall become effective May 18, 2007.


TK: What will be the economic effect is this emergency be on tree fruit growers in New York and Michigan? This certainly raises the stakes for all parties. Here is an analysis of plum pox virus by Blue Diamond Growers of California.

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Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Farm bill markup and immigration debate

The immigration debate is beginning in the Senate, though a final vote isn't anticipated until after the Memorial Day break. From United today:

The U.S. Senate is debating comprehensive immigration reform right now on the Senate floor! The bill being debated, “Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007”, S. 1348, would address: 1) enhanced border security, 2) increased enforcement of employer prohibitions in hiring illegal immigrants, 3) a transition to legal status of the 12 million illegal aliens currently in the U.S., and 4) provisions for future temporary worker programs to fill jobs where there are insufficient U.S. workers.

This is a tremendous accomplishment as key leaders from both parties who have been divisive on so many issues finally found enough common ground to support the compromise. Surveys confirm that a majority of Americans believe the current immigration system is broken and they support reasonable accommodations for legal immigration. This moderate perspective is not being heard by your member of congress and the future of comprehensive immigration reform is at risk.

It is imperative that your Senators hear from you immediately or this rare opportunity to actually find solutions to our broken immigration system will be lost.
TAKE ACTION NOW!


TK: Here is full text of the legislation.


Meanwhile, the House Agriculture Committee began work on marking up the farm bill legislation, though as John Keeling pointed out, it was mainly dealing with already existing programs Here is the link to the House Ag Committee home page. The specialty crop industry won't be settling or mythical authorizations to fund proposed programs, but it will be difficult to wrest mandatory funding from the Agriculture Committee.

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Setting the market

While mangoes have been known to trade well below $5 per carton, that reality is not touching the irradiated Indian mango deal.

Chicago, Ill., based Patel Bros. is distributing Indian mangoes for Philadelphia-based Savani Farms, and a spokesman at Patel in Chicago said they expect about 3,000 total boxes this year. Price for the Kesar variety in the U.S. now and the Alphonso expected next week are quoted at $35 per 8-pound box of 12 count fruit. The deal is expected to continue for several more weeks, though I received no ending date for imports.
So far, the Indian mango is a no show on USDA terminal market price reports.

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United's play for organic exhibitors

As expected, United Fresh Produce Association has officially announced that there will be an organic pavilion for next year's show in Las Vegas. How successful will be United be in luring away fresh produce marketers from the All Things Organic show? The All Things Organic Show will be held in Chicago from April 26 to April 29 in Chicago. Can both shows - mere days apart - successfully lure a critical mass of organic produce marketers? I have calls into OTA on this issue but haven't gotten a call back yet.

Here is the United release:

Washington, D.C. - With the shift of the United Fresh Marketplace and FMI shows to Las Vegas, May 4-7, 2008, a new Organic Produce Pavilion will be added to the Marketplace show floor for the convenience of produce buyers to visit with companies offering organic produce.

“We have enjoyed our partnership with the All Things Organic show the past four years, and wish them well with their continued location in Chicago,” said United Fresh President Tom Stenzel. “But, it is clear that supermarket retail management and produce buyers will be looking for organic produce in Las Vegas at our produce marketing and merchandising event.”

“Organic produce is bought by produce buyers and merchandised by produce teams, not generic organic buyers of meats, packaged goods and clothing,” said United Fresh Executive Vice President Jerry Welcome. “Our new Organic Pavilion in the middle of the produce show floor in Las Vegas will make it easy for produce buyers to see the best of organic produce conveniently located in one event,” he said.

Produce exhibitors in the 2007 All Things Organic show in Chicago will be offered a priority waiting list for the new Organic Pavilion at United Fresh Marketplace in Las Vegas, with space assignments beginning June 15. In addition, in recognition of their support of the past Power of Five shows, ATO exhibitors will be offered a discounted rate similar to returning exhibitors in United Fresh Marketplace.

For more information about opportunities for organic produce at United Fresh Marketplace, please contact Jeff Oberman in the United Fresh Salinas, CA office,
joberman@unitedfresh.org, 831-422-0940

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Monday, May 21, 2007

Over my dead body

"Over my dead body." That's when one Australian politician said NZ apples would enter the Aussie market, and New Zealand growers are probably thinking, "That can be arranged."
New Zealand growers are short of patience about the eternity it is taking to win market access to Australia and have vowed to take their complaints to the World Trade Organization. Here's the latest coverage from a New Zealand news site.

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Immigration particulars

Amid news that the Senate is postponing action on comprehensive immigration reform until June, here is a summation of the bill's major points.
From www.workpermit.com:


Some Key Points of the Senate Proposal:
Current Illegal Immigrants
• only people who arrived before 01 January 2007 are eligible to stay
• a path toward legalization for illegal immigrants
• both a "Y" and a "Z" visa are proposed
family relations will become less important in determining visas
• a points-based system will be developed to attract immigrants by skills
• minors brought into the U.S. who are still under 30 eligible for
green cards in 3 years instead of 8
Border Security
• 18,000 new border patrol agents
• additional 200 miles of vehicle barriers and 370 miles of wall along U.S.-Mexico border
• 70 new ground-based radar and camera towers along the southern border
• undetermined number of new ground-based radar and camera towers along other borders
• deploy four unmanned aerial vehicles and supporting systems
• provide for detaining up to 27,500 illegals per day on an annual basis
Workplace Enforcement
• secure and effective identification tools to prevent unauthorized work
• require employers to electronically verify legal eligibility of new employees
• increase penalties for unlawful hiring, employment and record keeping violations
Future Immigrants
• Spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens and permanent residents would be eligible for green cards based purely on their family connections, but other relatives such as adult children and siblings would not.
• 380,000 visas a year would be awarded based on a point system; scores would depend on about 50%
employment criteria, 25% education, 15% on English proficiency and 10% on family connections
• new limits to U.S. citizens seeking to bring foreign-born parents into the country
• visas for parents of U.S. citizens would be capped annually at 40,000
• visas for spouses and children would be capped annually at 87,000

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Please encourage support of Farm Bill

As Congress begins the process of crafting new farm bill legislation this year, there are both increased challenges and new opportunities that must be considered and addressed. America’s Second Harvest – The Nation’s Food Bank Network has been working to ensure that the opportunity to reduce hunger in America is not overlooked in the budget discussions and to encourage support for a strong nutrition title in the 2007 Farm Bill reauthorization that improves the Food Stamp Program and bolsters the efforts of emergency food providers. As members of Congress consider the 2008 budget resolution, we respectfully request that members provide an adequate level of resources so that these urgent national priorities can be effectively carried out.

Far too many people in our communities lack resources to put food on their tables consistently for themselves and their families. According to the most recent survey of food security conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 35 million Americans, including 12 million children, in the United States live in households that face a constant struggle against hunger.

Providing an adequate level funding for the nutrition title will allow the Food Stamp Program to maintain its basic entitlement structure and will allow more resources to be devoted to the program so that it will not only be able to expand access, but also to provide for greater program simplification.

Providing adequate funding for the nutrition title will also assist the nation’s emergency food providers – the food banks, the food pantries, and the soup kitchens – who are stretched to serve more and more people whose food stamp benefits have run out mid-month or whose income and resources put them just above the food stamp eligibility threshold. Currently, more than 25 million unduplicated people are accessing emergency food annually through food banks. In any given week, some 4.5 million people access food through pantries and soup kitchens throughout the United States. Requests for emergency food assistance are outstripping the resources provided through The Emergency Assistance Food Program (TEFAP) and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP).

Since the enactment of the last Farm Bill, there has been a troubling decrease in commodity donations through TEFAP, a program which serves an estimated 15 million low-income people. At the same time, requests for emergency food assistance have increased by 8 percent or more. Moreover, inventories held to support CSFP and support its costs have virtually disappeared, leaving the program under-funded when appropriations are not sufficient to offset the shortfall.

The reauthorization of the Farm Bill provides an opportunity to strengthen and support critical nutrition programs like TEFAP, CSFP, and the Food Stamp Program. We urge you to ensure that, at a minimum, not less in new funding for nutrition programs is provided in the upcoming Farm Bill than was provided for in the 2002 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act. A strong nutrition title will allow the most vulnerable among us to share in the blessing of this nation’s agricultural bounty.

Rick: We are approaching difficult times for many Americans. We all know that there is going to many increased costs for everything that we use from fuel to apples. It's all connected in one way or another. These are staggering statistics.

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Immigration-Avocado discussion

Again, I must commend some of our Fresh Produce Industry Discussion Group threads. Find the group's link on the right side of the blog or just follow this.

Lately, there has been a discussion of the avocado industry, including everything from the avocado trade's relationship to immigration, California retail price strategies, and fake guacamole.
One of our members notes that instead of focusing on phytosanitary and maturity issues, why not look at topics that could lead to the greater good of all marketers: His candidates:

1. Price
2. Organoleptic qualities
3. The concoction known as guacamole with no avocado

I find myself getting an education already, and all the more if you join as well!

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How green are my golden arches

The National Restaurant Associations notes the green trend in foodservice:


(Washington, D.C.) The National Restaurant Association announced today that it is forming a new Board of Directors task force to take the lead on implementing the Association's recently launched environmental initiative and encourage the nation's 935,000 restaurant-and-foodservice outlets to adopt practices that are good for both business and the environment. The Green Task Force is being created at the Association's Board meeting and trade show in Chicago, and will be chaired by Niki Leondakis, chief operating officer of Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants. The Association launched its environmental initiative in the summer of 2006, and received a grant from the Turner Foundation in April 2007 to continue its efforts.
"As we are advancing our environmental initiative, we called on our Board of Directors to provide guidance toward guiding the nation's restaurant-and-foodservice outlets toward sustainable operations," said Association Acting Interim President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Kilgore. "The Board directors serving on our Green Task Force have the experience and the passion for environmental issues and are a great resource to us and to the industry as we move forward with our efforts."
The goal of the Green Task Force will be to provide support and guidance to the Association and the industry, as well as to help educate and inspire restaurants of any size and concept to conserve natural resources while supporting the economic successes of the $537 billion industry and individual operations.
The initiative was created to educate and guide restaurateurs toward eco-friendly, business-smart practices and the Association is currently developing an online information clearinghouse, including the publication of research conducted in the first phase of the initiative.
The goal of the overall initiative is to identify practices that conserve energy, water and other natural resources, increase recycling, and encourage the creation and use of sustainable materials and alternative energy sources that also reduce operational costs for restaurants.

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That's the idea

Lorelei DiSogra of United passes on this news from Europe.


From the story:

Europe's farm chief plans to introduce a school fruit scheme similar to that in place for milk, as part of a wider campaign to promote healthy eating and combat obesity among children, officials said on Tuesday.
Earlier this year, EU Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel unveiled plans to overhaul the EU's vast fruit and vegetables industry , revising or scrapping many of the annual 1.5 billion euros ($2 billion) of subsidies paid to farmers.
In the negotiations that the bloc's 27 farm ministers will hold on her reform plan, scheduled for next month, Fischer Boel is expected to recommend using EU subsidies to distribute fruit in schools as part of a compromise reform agreement.



TK: This looks to be enlightened public policy from Europe, and we can only hope the U.S. example, now followed by the EU response will be answered by a vigorous U.S. expansion of USDA fruit and vegetable snack program.

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A vote for a do nothing bill

I heard a couple of sobering comments last week on Capitol Hill.


"A majority of Senators would be happy with a do nothing farm bill." "If you put it to a vote, most Senators would vote for a do nothing farm bill."


Of course, these revelations shouldn't be surprising. The status quo tends to perpetuate itself. But it more clearly defines the challenges for fruit and vegetable advocates in the months ahead.


Also, there was more skepticism about the $2.75 billion that the USDA set aside in their 10-year farm bill proposal for "additional fruit and vegetable purchases" for distribution in food assistance programs. The Congressional Budget Office scored the proposal as zero impact on the budget because the purchases lie within their existing authority and the USDA didn't specify how much of their commodity purchases would be f/v versus other commodities. The USDA either had to pick a fight (with other commodity groups) or spend more money, and the agency did neither.


A more clearly defined benefit to the industry from the Administration would have been to advocate for $2.75 billion over 10 years to fund expansion of the fruit and vegetable program.

There are significant challenges ahead in the quest to fund industry priorities, particularly considering the budget outlook and the propensity for a do-nothing farm bill. This will be the best farm bill ever for fruits and vegetable, but as one Capitol Hill source said, "when the bar is on the ground it doesn't take much to be the best ever." Raising the bar to meaningful heights is the task ahead.

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New feeds

I've added blog feeds of Mulchblog and Marglerblog to FreshTalk. Of course you know Bill Marler, the oft-quoted and well-spoken Seattle lawyer specializing in foodborne illness cases.
As farm bill issues heat up - particularly conservation issues - you will find insight from Ken Cook's Mulchblog. Cook is associated with the Environmental Working Group, of the farm subsidy database fame.

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Saturday, May 19, 2007

Immigration reaction

Here are some headlines from around the country on the immigration deal struck in Congress. As you can see, sealing this deal won't be easy..


Immigration reform sparks local reaction - Iowa

Critics launch attacks on immigration reform bill Chicago Tribune

Is immigration reform Bush's last hurrah? CNN

Immigration reform blasted in Mexico - CBS

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Tesco goes non-union

The Las Vegas Business Press reports that Tesco has decided to run a non union shop. In a story published May 18,

From the story:
At the recent Ward 5 town hall, a representative of United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 711 spilled the beans. Secretary Treasurer Mike Gittings told the crowd Tesco would be picketed from day one because it was freezing the union out of its stores. In a later interview, he was less dogmatic, saying the picket lines were "possible."

Meanwhile this piece from Australia details the sustainabliltiy oneupmanship between Tesco and Wal-Mart. "How green was my trolley"


This news from the Las Vegas Business Press looks at Tesco's efforts to grab real estate in Las Vegas.

TK: Get used to it. Tesco's foray into the U.S. is going to be in the headlines a ton over the next couple of years.

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20 ways to eat more fruits and vegetables

You have heard of "50 ways to leave your lover" by Paul Simon. The Well Fed Network gives us 20 ways to eat more fruits and vegetables.

Here is a nice rule of thumb I too often ignore:

When eating, fill 2/3 of your plate with plant-based food (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes) and 1/3 with lean protein such as fish and poultry.

Martha Stewart's Blueprint magazines tells readers how to build a better salad.



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Friday, May 18, 2007

Very good news

Sharon Hughes of the NCAE said the the compromise comprehensive immigration deal is indeed very good news. The language is bring written this weekend and Ag Jobs is not being grafted in completely but being interwoven in the act. She said Sens. Chambliss, Feinstein and Craig got together and ironed out a few remaining points of contention related to AgJobs. The fact that Chambliss is on board may mean he can bring other Southern GOP senators with him.
While there may be some resistance in the House, she said the fact that so many people have wanted this agreement for so long - and the fact industry is on board - should mean the bill should reach the President's desk by July.

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Adding clementines

There has been interesting back and forth discussion on the H.R. 2209 in the Fresh Produce Discussion group(link on the side of the blog). The bill that would add clementines to the list of fruits and vegetables subject to minimum quality import requirements issued by the Secretary of Agriculture.

Here is the bill:


CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2209
To amend the Agricultural Adjustment Act to add clementines to the list of fruits and vegetables subject to minimum quality import requirements issued by the Secretary of Agriculture.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 8, 2007
Mr. CARDOZA (for himself, Mr. NUNES, Mr. MCCARTHY of California, and Mr. COSTA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To amend the Agricultural Adjustment Act to add clementines to the list of fruits and vegetables subject to minimum quality import requirements issued by the Secretary of Agriculture.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. QUALITY REQUIREMENTS FOR CLEMENTINES.
Section 8e(a) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (
7 U.S.C. 608e-1(a)), reenacted with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, is amended in the first sentence by inserting after `nectarines,' the following: `clementines,'.


TK: Do buyers and receivers feel the added cost of mandatory inspections is necessary? Has the market been diminished because of poor quality imports, or is this proposed legislation a trade barrier? Join the discussion here on in the Fresh Produce Discussion Group.

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