Fresh Produce Discussion Blog

Created by The Packer's National Editor Tom Karst

Saturday, June 30, 2007

Losing speed

This AP story published The Baltimore Sun story revisits the topic of trade promotion authority, or the lack thereof, for President Bush.
From the story:

President Bush loses his power today to seal "fast-track" trade agreements without intervention from Congress, where Democrats blame recent deals for sending U.S. jobs abroad.
Since 1975, only one other president, Bill Clinton, has lost that trade promotion authority, designed to speed the reduction of trade barriers and open new markets with other countries. Bush won't get it back, and the next president might not, either
.

Democrats have said flatly that TPA is not on the legislative agenda. But that won't stop the Administration from asking for it. Later in the story:

U.S. Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab wrote to Rangel: "More than 100 bilateral trade negotiations are currently under way among our trading partners. It is important that [the U.S.] not sit on the sidelines as other countries lock in new preferential trading arrangements with our competitors."
Democrats say they support expanded trade if it's fair to U.S. workers and doesn't exploit developing countries
.

TK: If President Bush wanted to keep fast track in play, he should have given his negotiators more room to secure an ambitious WTO agreement. As it is, TPA and WTO are dead.



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Making the rounds

You may have noticed I've added a couple of wrinkles to the blog this week. One is a walkabout in various produce departments in my shopping area, taking note of prices and promotions. Another is a daily market snapshot at the f.o.b. level. Give me any feedback on those items, if you wish.

I'm anxious to hear United's reaction to House Agriculture chairman Collin Peterson's remarks about providing $685 million in baseline funding for f/v priorities in the chairman's mark of the farm bill. We don't know the breakdown of those funds yet, and that will be revealing. Still, it's a huge step forward. If Peterson has taken an accurate read of the full committee - if he can preserve his language that includes mandatory funding for f/v priorities - that is huge indeed.

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Friday, June 29, 2007

Attack on SoCal supermarkets

Here is news of a straight- on attack on U.S. supermarkets.

LOS ANGELES -- Acclaimed documentary director Robert Greenwald will hold a telephone press conference Monday to announce the launch of "SupermarketSwindle.com." The hard-hitting multimedia campaign will expose the corporate excesses of the leading grocery chains, whose ballooning profits and CEO compensation are coming at the expense of tens of thousands of workers and millions of consumers. In 2005, Greenwald and his company Brave New Films took on the world's largest retailer in his scathing documentary Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. Greenwald's new project will explore how Ralphs, Albertsons and Vons, Southern California's three top supermarket chains, are following Wal-Mart's business model by slashing benefits and cutting wages to achieve ever-higher profits and executive pay. The campaign is expected to increase pressure on the chains as a potential strike looms.

TK: If responding to competitive pressures is a crime, then Southern California chains are guilty. We'll see if this PR attack campaign plays out.



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Chilean clementines

Chilean clementines 6/24 - http://sheet.zoho.com



The shortfall in South African clementines is supporting the Chilean clementine deal this year, one handler told me today. Depending on the shipper, Chilean clementines should remain active through July and into the first week of August. Though the 3-pound bag is becoming more popular, the 5-pound carton remains the dominant pack.
While citrus is not top of mind for produce managers or consumers, the distributor said movement was steady. Through June 23, season to date shipments of Chilean clementines arriving in U.S. were 14 million pounds, up from 8.7 million pounds the same time a year ago. South African season to date clementine shipments for the same date were 2.7 million pounds, down sharply from 8.1 million pounds at the same time last year.


Meanwhile, Spanish exporters were burned by the navel season, one importer said. California shippers were able to stretch out their supplies and keep their retail accounts after the freeze, relegating Spanish navels to wholesalers at terminal markets where returns were less. However, the Spanish lemon deal has met steady demand and prices at $17-18 for 120s and 140s. Supply will dwindle by September, one handler said. While the shortfall in South African navels appears to leave the door open for a stronger U.S. valencia deal, Spanish valencia exporters are not too eager to revisit the U.S. orange market.

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A baseline for fruits and vegetables

House Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson said the chairman's mark of the farm bill will include $685 million in paid-for baseline funding for fruit and vegetable priorities. He revealed this in a teleconference with reporters today. Peterson credited Rep. Cardoza for working to include the work of the hort subcommittee in the chairman's mark. Peterson did not reveal how the $685 million (over 5 years, apparently) would break down - specialty crop block grants, fruit and vegetable programs etc - nor did he fully explain where the funds would be found (but crop insurance and change in the timing of counter cyclical payments account for the majority). He did say more funding would be sought. "This is just a start. At some point in the process we look to identify offsets that would improve fruits and vegetables beyond what we have now."

Peterson is also going to put forward a second farm bill, that will include $17.5 billion over five years of reserve or contingency funds for various titles of the farm bill, including $1 billion for f/v priorities.

TK: This is a big breakthrough. Very good news. Still details to be revealed about how the funds will break down. But having a baseline for funding is huge and a tribute to the lobbying efforts of United, Western Growers and the specialty crop farm bill coalition. Also, Dennis Cardoza has come up big if this is what it appears. Peterson was also asked about the idea of attaching the AgJobs bill to the farm bill. He laughed and said. "I have enough problems as it is without getting embroiled in that..... and we don't have jurisdiction." However, Peterson acknowledged it was a very important issue for agriculture.

In addition, Peterson said he was not inclined to include any provision about country of origin labeling in the farm bill, saying he has indicated to industry that there will be mandatory COOL by Sept. 30 of 2008. He left the door open just a little if there was consensus on the issue, however.

I didn't get the chance to ask about f/v planting restriction on program crop acres in the chairman's mark.

The two bills - the pay go bill and the bill funded with reserve funds - will be released on the House Web site July 6. Full committee markup is July 17 and the bill is scheduled to be on the House floor by July 26, Peterson said.

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Farm bill traction

Now that Congress dropped the ball on immigration reform, the specialty crop industry turns its attention to the remaining top legislative priority - the 2007 farm bill. An extension of the 2002 farm bill is the worst possible outcome for the fresh produce industry, yet a two-year extension is not beyond the realm of possibility, as this coverage in The New York Times points out. Good coverage of this point is also found in the farm policy blog, found at this link.

The possibility of massive changes to the farm bill on the House floor is not out the question. Some wonder if the pay-go rules that demand budget offsets for new spending might be suspended for the farm bill. In any case, it appears the ambitious schedule of wrapping up work on the farm bill before the August recess may be slipping away.

Tom Nassif of Western Growers told me this week that specialty crop growers can't be told that any money for their projects beyond the baseline will have to come from offsets. That principle might apply if specialty crop programs had been receiving tens of billions of dollars for decades, but right now there is no baseline for specialty crop priorities. Farm subsidies are foreign to fruit and vegetable growers, and the entire specialty crop coalition insists that funding for priorities like the specialty crop block grant program and the fruit and vegetable program for schools must be real and mandatory.

In that context, here is a June 26 letter from the governors of Texas, New York, California and Florida to the leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees.
Excerpts below:

As Governors of the country’s four most populous states, we represent more than 174 million acres of cropland, with products valued at more than $65 billion. While our states are very diverse, we also have much in common. We believe in the vision of healthy people, a clean environment, and a robust agricultural sector. As your committees begin consideration of the 2007 Farm Bill, we would like you to consider several issues of importance to our states.
In addition to these six priorities, our states have many other issues of importance that will be provided to the Committees through our respective congressional delegations.

Specialty Crops: Fruits, vegetables, nuts, horticulture and other specialty products now make up almost 50 percent of the farm gate receipts in this country. Our four states alone contribute over half of this amount and their production is an important component of the agricultural sector in our states. This farm bill should provide increased funding and program flexibility for specialty crop programs, including research and development of production, harvesting, and handling techniques, and open up USDA’s commodity, conservation, and disaster assistance programs, in which specialty crop producers have traditionally had limited opportunity to participate. We agree that it is necessary to not only increase funding but also provide a permanent allocation for the Specialty Crop Block Grant that was authorized in the Specialty Crop Competitiveness Act of 2004. This grant has been used with great success by states to provide a wide array of programs that assist our specialty crop producers to maintain and enhance their competitiveness in the market.

Invasive Species: Whether it is Citrus Canker in Florida, the Asian Longhorned Beetle in New York, the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter in California, or the Mexican fruit fly in Texas, invasive species are a serious problem and require a significant commitment of resources to address. It is essential that the Farm Bill include strong language that provides critical resources in a timely fashion to vigorously respond to and eradicate these threats. Full funding for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is necessary. It is important that, while maintaining funding levels for pest management, additional dollars also be provided for prevention efforts on ports and other pathways of entry. As border states, we all have increased susceptibility through our ports and borders.

Crop Insurance: Increasing the amount of risk eligible for crop insurance coverage and expanding the safety net programs for all farmers, including crop specific revenue insurance, should be part of a final Farm Bill. Also, a structure should be established for providing assistance beyond crop insurance after natural disasters. There is a tangible need for a long-term solution to the ad hoc nature of current disaster assistance.

Conservation: The farm bill must reauthorize and expand funding for all conservation programs as a strategic investment in our nation’s agricultural infrastructure. By increasing outreach and technical assistance funding, states can more effectively deliver and target conservation programs to those farmers who want to participate in the most cost effective environmental programs. By bolstering partnerships with cooperating organizations and agencies, we enhance the availability of technical assistance. Conserving farmland, rangelands, and private forests benefits all Americans.

Nutrition: The Farm Bill must maintain the highly successful Food Stamp Program (FSP), including Food Stamp Nutrition Education, as part of efforts to promote healthy eating and help prevent obesity. Despite recent national increases in participation and significant reductions in state error rates, challenges within the FSP remain. There are simply too many households eligible for benefits that do not participate, particularly among the working poor. States need the flexibility to develop and implement systems that enable more eligible individuals to receive food stamps. It is also essential that the Farm Bill support healthy diets, farmers market programs, better nutrition and greater access to fruits and vegetables. Expanding initiatives such as the successful Fruit and Vegetable Snack Program will promote achievement of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and help to realize our mutual goal to improve nutrition for low-income families and communities for generations to come.

Organic Agriculture: We support provisions that expand support for organic products, allowing our farmers to access this growing and lucrative market. To meet this increasing consumer demand for organic food, we should support farmers who have decided to use organic techniques, especially those who are transitioning to organic agriculture.

We understand that legislation of this scope and complexity involves a long and arduous process to realize final completion. We hope that as the legislative process continues, we can be a resource for you and your staffs as you consider these and many other important issues. Please do not hesitate to contact us if we can provide more information.

Sincerely

Governor Eliot Spitzer
Governor Charlie Crist
Governor Rick Perry
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

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Thursday, June 28, 2007

Veggie Booty recall

Here is the link to FDA's notice of Robert's American Gourmet Food Inc.'s recall of Veggie Booty because of possible health risk: This is a snack food, not produce - though it has dried vegetable ingredients.

Here is the FDA statement below I received in my inbox this afternoon:

FDA Warns Consumers Not to Eat Veggie Booty Snack Food Risk of Salmonella Contamination
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers not to eat Veggie Booty snack food, marketed by Robert’s American Gourmet, due to possible contamination with Salmonella Wandsworth, bacteria that cause gastrointestinal illness.
FDA advises consumers to throw away any Robert’s American Gourmet brand Veggie Booty they have in their home. Veggie Booty is sold in a flexible plastic foil bag in four ounce, one ounce, and one-half ounce packages.
Veggie Booty is often consumed by children, so parents are encouraged to watch their children, and seek medical care if they observe signs of illness.
This warning is based on 52 reports of illness across 17 states, beginning in March 2007. Almost all the illnesses have occurred in children under 10 years old, with the most cases in toddlers. Most persons had reported bloody diarrhea; four were hospitalized. FDA learned of the illnesses on June 27 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which conducted an investigation of the illnesses with state and local health officials. The outbreak is considered likely to be ongoing.

TK: Already 217 news stories (many of the same version) are listed in Google news. Here is Newsday coverage of the recall. Here is the company's Web page and Veggie Booty notice there. The fact that the product is consumed by kids is a little scary, since parents are not always tuned in to how their kids are doing, and small children aren't great at telling exactly what's going on.

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Washington cherries

Wash cherries 6/21 to 6/27 - http://sheet.zoho.com


"Things are going really good." one market observer told me this afternoon. "We have lots of size and lots of quality." Cherries are peaking on 10s and 10.5s, with fewer smaller sizes around. The spot market has been outstanding, the source said. With the volume of crop in Washington, a significant volume is committed at a preset price. "You can't wait until the day and sell them; it would be physically impossible."

Shippers are pleased with the deal, with some areas already peaking and declining with bing harvest. No one is certain what will happen after the July 4 - and some are way after the market performance post July 4 last year - but the market psychology is pretty good.

Season to date truck shipments of Washington cherries through June 23 were 27.8 million pounds, up from 26 million pounds the same time last year. Season to date air shipments were 10.9 million, up from 2.7 million the same time a year ago.

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WG in Washington


WG’s Chairman Steve Patricio of Westside Produce, Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns and WG’s President and CEO Tom Nassif.
I visited with Tom Nassif yesterday about Western Growers' presence in Washington. Nassif was in D.C. - with the the rest of the WG board - earlier this week. Nassif said the board convened in Washington to make the rounds on Capitol Hill talking about the big three issues of immigration, food safety and the farm bill. A cordial and extended discussion with Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns was a part of the agenda, as noted by the photo supplied above by WG. Nassif says WG hopes to have the association's new Washington position filled by the end of July, and Nassif himself had interviewed several candidates this week. I'm developing coverage on the interview, but I will note here that Nassif is very determined about what California and Arizona growers want and need out of the farm bill.

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Status woes

In the last couple of days, I have talked with Tom Nassif of Western Growers, Robert Guenther of United, John McClung of Texas Produce Association, Maureen Marshall of Torrey Farms in N.Y., and Craig Regelbrugge of the American Nursery and Landscape Association. All shared a passion for seeing positive results from Congress on immigration reform and all are assuredly unhappy with the failure of the the Senate.

There is no status quo for the industry but only status woes. Those include increased apprehensions at the border, selective workplace enforcement, labor shortages and shrinking domestic f/v production.


Here is the reaction from the Agriculture Coalition for Immigration Reform.

Here is what the American Farm Bureau said today: The note of optimism and resilience is common with all ag lobbyists, however misplaced their faith is in the ability of Congress to resolve the issue.


“The American Farm Bureau is disappointed that the Senate was unable to move forward today on an issue as vital and critical to our farmers’ livelihood as immigration reform. We respect the hard, bipartisan work that went into the legislation. It is unfortunate for American agriculture, as well as the nation as a whole, that a solution to the problem has not yet been found.

“Up to $9 billion in agricultural production and the nation’s food security is at risk if the immigration issue is not solved. Maintaining the status quo is not acceptable and is not in the nation’s best interest.

“Today’s vote was a setback, not a defeat. We have seen our share of difficulties and delays in the years we have been working for immigration reform, when agriculture was the only sector drawing congressional attention to the problem. Farm Bureau will continue working with Congress for meaningful immigration legislation because reform is not a question of if, but when.”

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The tough votes

There are some issues - no matter how tough or politically unpopular - that Congress seems to push through. Take pay raises, for example - Congress certainly does. When did public opinion against pay raises ever stop Congress from giving themselves a raise? I heard one Senator allude to that this morning. In that context, it seems maddening that Congress can't get immigration reform done. Sure, it's tough, but did you let talk radio stop you from giving yourself a raise?

I talked to Craig Regelbrugge, senior director of government relations for the American Nursery and Landscape Association, Washington, D.C. this morning. He noted a group of lobbyists were meeting with Sen. Larry Craig later today to discuss strategy. Craig, a Senate champion of immigration reform for agriculture, will help determine what, if anything, comes next.

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It's over

The Senate failed to invoke cloture on the issue of comprehensive immigration legislation by a vote of 46 yea to 53 nay. That's means that the Senate bill has died. Will the Congress have the appetite to take up AgJobs stand alone legislation? It's hard to imagine that likelihood, but never say never.

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Key test - again

Another key battle in the fight for comprehensive immigration reform looms for today, notes this AP piece by Julie Hirschfeld Davis. Several amendments were defeated Wednesday, but their defeat has siphoned off support for the bill, and today will bring further challenges:
From the story:

Particularly worrisome to backers of the bill is an amendment by Sens. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, Barack Obama, D-Ill., and Max Baucus, D-Mont., to overhaul the employee verification system.


This story links to Rep. Tom Tancredo's publicity stunt with produce. From CNN:

It’s not every day a presidential hopeful sends Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff a head of lettuce, but that’s what Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colorado, is doing Wednesday to show his disagreement with Chertoff’s recent comments on how failure of passing immigration reform might affect the agricultural industry.
Tancredo says he disagrees with recent comments Chertoff made that suggested if the immigration bill fails, the agricultural industry will suffer. To prove his point he is sending Chertoff a head of lettuce, a fruit basket, and a card saying, “much, much more where this comes from.”
“The administration has taken hyperbole to a whole new level this time,” Tancredo said in a statement. “They are now trying to convince the public that without amnesty, the American people are going to starve?”
“The agriculture industry and the free market has managed to keep producing through floods, droughts, and $3.00 per gallon gas,” Tancredo added, “I doubt very seriously that a nominal increase in labor costs is going to be the end of lettuce as we know it.”



TK: Unbelievable. Tancredo has taken irresponsible public service to a whole new level. Critics like Tancredo and Lou Dobbs are against both outsourcing of American jobs AND a guest worker program/immigration reform for agriculture. Can't they see that American farmers must outsource their production if they can't find workers?

C-SPAN's immigration links and video page is found here. If the comprehensive immigration bill does fail, there will be an effort to raise the AgJobs legislation as a stand alone bill. Reactionary critics like Tancredo and the inability of Congress to come to closure on any and all aspects of this debate are problems that don't appear to be going away.

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Wednesday, June 27, 2007

If the unthinkable occurs

In response to an earlier post about USDA preparedness for the Avian Influenza, I received an email from a representative of www.pandemic101.com. The company has preparedness kits for both families and corporations.
I'm sure there other companies out there doing the same thing, but they may be voices in the wilderness. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I bet very few, if any, produce suppliers and retailers have invested in preparedness for a pandemic scenario. Today there is much angst - and deservedly so - for a foodborne illness outbreak that may sicken 200 and kill two. Imagine what would happen if history were to repeat. The Spanish flu of 1918-1919 infected 20% of the world, and ten times more Americans died of influenza than were killed in World War I.

TK: Perhaps the world can continue to avoid another massive pandemic, for that is the only future we have prepared for.

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Add 30 days

There appears to be little doubt that citrus leaders in California, Texas and Arizona will ask for another 30 days to examine the USDA rule on Florida fresh citrus shipments from growing areas known to have citrus canker. Right now the deadline for comments is July 23. I have a call into APHIS, and one my questions will be whether such an extension will be considered. Given the fact that the USDA must respond to the highly technical comments in the rulemaking process, it calls into question whether the agency can issue the final or interim final rule in time for the start of Florida's season.

"It looks to be a lessening of protection, and we want to have that evaluated," one citrus leader told me.

TK: There have to be some rules in place this fall for Florida citrus. No matter how technical the science, or how faulty the conclusions, something has to be in place by this fall. Pushing the deadline to Aug. 23 may be impossible for the USDA.

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Raving raw almond fan

TK: This was left as a comment in the previous almond pasteurization post, but the comment link at the bottom still showed zero, so I post it here. From Heidi:


Tom,

You are correct in saying that most consumers are not interested in fumigants in their almonds.The biggest issue with the almond pasteurization situation is that the Almond Board is simply over reacting.They are worried about some potential lawsuit in the future where one person gets sick from salmonella...and the only way they get sick with salmonella is from contaminated almonds from almond farms near factory meat farms.There is a group of consumers that are raving fans about raw almonds. Sadly, the Almond Board doesn't want them as customers anymore.And I am one of those raving fans for raw almonds. Yet I am hopeful, that the Almond Board will see a dramatic drop in sales of fumigated almonds, and will quietly announce raw almonds once again.Looking hopefully to the future

Heidi

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Farmers market: safer than the supermarket?

Probably not, but there is no accounting for public opinion. Here is a story passed along by K-State's food safety network that cites statistics from a Food Marketing Institute survey of consumers noting a decline in the total confidence consumers have in food sold at supermarkets. Here is the link to the article "Where the food is fresh" published in the Sioux City Journal.

From the story:
According to an online poll conducted by the Food Marketing Institute, an Arlington, Va.-based outfit that does research and public relations for its 1,500 member food retailers and wholesalers, of the 2,307 shoppers surveyed, the number of consumers "completely confident" or "somewhat confident" in the safety of supermarket food has decreased from 82 percent last year to 66 percent.

Later...

Earlina Huffman and James Black of Sioux City visited the Floyd Boulevard Local Foods Market's farmers market for the first time on Saturday.Huffman said freshness and foodborne illnesses are a concern for her and Black when shopping at the supermarket."He wouldn't let me get spinach for a while," she said of Black. "Here, you know where it's coming from."

TK: Down is up and black is white. And farmers markets are safer than supermarkets. If I ran a supermarket, I would be none too happy that my consumers believe my produce is less safe than the mud-caked potatoes at the farmers market.



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Vidalia onions

Vidalia 6/15 to 6/26 - http://sheet.zoho.com


One major onion shipper in Vidalia said supplies are anticipated through the end of August, with expectations that prices will strengthen into the mid to high $20s for 40-pound cartons as the deal progresses. I noted the USDA reported prices of organic Vidalia onions this year, and the shipper said that organic Vidalia onions are expected to stay near $30 per carton through the balance of the deal, which also extends into August.

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Headlines for 6/27

R-Calf criticizes American Meat Institute over Roll Call ad COOL PR war heats up

Royal roots rejected A row over rejected carrots in England and if local produce is possible for UK multiples

Consumer food safety breakthrough? Activated Oxygen technology touted for home use


Wal-Mart's Chinese imports cost 200,000 America jobs, think tank says

Immigration and the GOP The Wall Street Journal looks at what is at stake for GOP if immigration fails

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Pushback on almond pasteurization

This link from K-State"s food safety network picks up on a post from http://www.localharvest.org/. The author, Erin Barnett, is the director of Local Harvest.
She writes:

In 2001 and 2004 two outbreaks of salmonella poisoning were traced back to almonds. According to the Center for Disease Control's documents, a total of 33 people were hospitalized; no one died. (For perspective, the federal government estimates that about 1.4 million people get salmonella poisoning every year, approximately 15,000 of whom are hospitalized.)
For the almond industry, it was undoubtedly a big deal. Millions of pounds of almonds were recalled. The potential for future incidents spelled trouble, and industry leaders were savvy enough to know that another recall could have major long term consequences for a crop they spend millions each year promoting as "the healthiest specialty crop in the world."
The industry's federal marketing order, the Almond Board of California (ABC), took action immediately after the 2004 outbreak. Under zero pressure from the public (and about as much input) they voluntarily created, and then asked the USDA to mandate, an action plan that goes into effect on September 1, 2007.
The new protocols require all raw almonds sold in North America to be pasteurized, thereby killing off any wayward bacteria. How? By quick-steaming the nuts, or spraying them with propylene oxide (PPO), a chemical so nasty that it was banned by both the National Hot Rod and American Motorcycle Racing Associations, where it had been used as a fuel before being deemed too dangerous. PPO is also a carcinogen. For these and other reasons, most countries, including the EU, ban imported nuts treated with PPO. (The ABC is actively working to change that.)
I like to avoid ingesting post-harvest fumigants when I can. Especially hot-rod fuel. Trouble is, the almond industry is not going to be advising the public which nuts got the steam treatment and which ones got the PPO. I, for one, would like to know. A little moist hot air is one thing; a cancer causing has-been motorcycle fuel is another.
Now, of course, those who prefer steam can fork over the considerable cash for organic almonds, which in my neighborhood are going for $17.79/pound. Thanks to the national organic standards, those pearls are guaranteed to be PPO-free. But that's the only way to know you are getting steam-pasteurized nuts.
One of the funkiest things about this whole situation is the lack of options. Growers are not allowed to opt out of the pasteurization program, regardless of how they market their nuts. Even almonds sold at farmers markets must be zapped beforehand. Nor are consumers allowed to make their own decisions regarding the relative risks of salmonella vs. PPO. Unpasteurized nuts are simply banned from the market. And since the ABC claims that pasteurized nuts retain all the qualities of rawness, the nuts will continue to be labeled simply as "raw almonds." Most people won't even know there has been a significant change in the product.
This issue has gotten virtually no press outside of the "raw food" world, where people are understandably upset. Almonds are a mainstay for people who eat only raw food, where the nutritional paradigm calls for avoiding any foods whose enzymes have been altered by high heat. For them, steam-pasteurized nuts are as bad as roasted ones.
That consumers were not asking for greater protections misses the point. The absurdity of an industry actively promoting the use of a dangerous chemical, which is four to five times more costly than its alternative, is similarly off track. Given the incredibly low odds of almonds getting caught up in a major salmonella outbreak, even public health is not what this is about.
It's convoluted, I know, but follow me on this next part: this is a perceived public perception issue. The Almond Board is so concerned that consumers may turn their backs on almonds that it is willing to use a sledgehammer to kill a mosquito. See the following statement from the ABC's Action Plan for pasteurization: "Pasteurization fulfills the industry's vision to produce the world's healthiest specialty crop, protects the multi-million dollar investment the industry has made in the nutritional benefits of California almonds, and protects the favorable image consumers have about California almonds."
Unfortunately for the almond industry, in trying to protect their image, they have gone too far and will end up losing some of us who have dutifully and happily been eating our "can a week," like the old commercials asked. This consumer would far prefer to see the ABC press its growers and processors to implement the agricultural practices that prevent bacteria problems. If that is too much to ask, I'd like to see the Almond Board offer the market a choice: give us both pasteurized and unpasteurized nuts, properly labeled, and allow us to decide which goes down better with our tea and toast.


TK: No good deed goes unpunished, and the Almond Board of California finds a critic in Barnett. There is exposure for ABC if the fumigant treatment is perceived worse than the risk of salmonella. I would assume that most marketers will prefer the steam treatment over the the option of PPO when the mandate goes into effect Sept. 1.

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Beet it

Kansas City area produce managers may wonder why beets are flying off the shelf today, and then they will look at the KC Star Food section. The lede to the story "Grown-ups keep the beets" reads thus:
"The difference between a girl and a woman, a boy and a man? Beets."

That about sums it up right there, no doubt. The author does make fresh beets sound much more appealing than the pickled variety. Another food section feature highlights raspberry sorbet with fresh blueberries, and no sell job is required for that.

Armand Lobato, retail columnist for The Packer, notes food section coverage does influence movement at store level. If a store sells three cartons of leeks in a day instead of one per week, perhaps a recipe for the world's greatest leek soup just got front page treatment in the food section.

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Tuesday, June 26, 2007

On the winning side?

Lee Frankel, president of the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas in Nogales, wrote this letter to the House Agriculture Committee. The letter was forwarded to The Packer by Allison Moore of the FPAA.
From Frankel's letter:

We are writing to express our concern regarding a provision included in the House Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture Title of the Farm Bill that will significantly reduce the importance of agriculture inspections of produce entering the United States. Section 41 of the draft bill repeals the transfer of APHIS import inspection functions to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) made under the Department of Homeland Security Act of 2002 and requires the return of those functions to USDA. We strongly oppose this provision.

The Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, located in Nogales Arizona, is a non-profit trade association representing U.S. importers of fresh fruits and vegetables from Mexico. In our experience, agriculture inspections have received increased emphasis at ports of entry since their transfer to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), providing better protection for U.S. agriculture against invasive agricultural pests.

CBP has significantly increased staffing of Agriculture Specialists since the transfer of agriculture inspections to DHS. CBP has 30% more Agriculture Specialists on staff than when the inspection program was part of APHIS. There are now Agriculture Specialists are 150 ports, 20 more ports than were covered under APHIS. In addition, all 18,000 CBP officers now receive more intensive agriculture training, making them more effective at referring potential pest risks to CBP Agriculture Specialists. This has elevated the importance of agriculture inspections significantly at all ports of entry, making them an integrated part of all CBP frontline inspections.

Additionally, CBP has elevated the voice of the Agriculture Specialists by placing senior agriculture officials in positions to directly have input in port operations. It is clear that under the new structure longstanding issues are being addressed to ensure the accurate reporting of inspections performed at the ports and to allocate staffing based on risk assessment and need at the individual ports. Inspection priorities are now electronically and accurately transmitted to all ports of entry to ensure better consistency of inspections across ports.

Moving agriculture inspections back to USDA-APHIS would be a significant step backwards, again relegating agriculture inspections to second-class status at all ports of entry. We would like to point out that movement of this function would also be expensive and disruptive. At a time when the security of our nation at the border should be paramount, it makes no sense to engage in this disruptive and pointless move.

We would also like to bring your attention to the fact that both the Department of Homeland Security and USDA agree that the function should remain with DHS. We believe that their understanding of the cost and security implications of moving the functions at this time should be respected.

Again, I urge you to repeal Section 41 of the House Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture Title of the Farm Bill in order to maintain the effectiveness of agriculture operations at our ports of entry. I am also attaching a briefing document that explains the dangers of this proposal in more detail. Please do not hesitate to contact me with additional questions regarding this issue.
Sincerely,

Lee Frankel

President
Fresh Produce Association of the Americas


TK: I have a call into Lee but haven't talked to him. Although many produce trade associations support moving the border inspections back to the USDA, several industry leaders I have talked to doubt Congress has the energy or will to make it happen. Lee may be on the winning side of this debate. However, Frankel's argument that CBP has now provides better protection for U.S. agriculture against invasive pests than the USDA did would sound better coming from an association of U.S. growers, rather than a group of distributors who handle Mexican fruits and vegetables.

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Avian flu preparedness

Look here for a link to the Government Accountability Office 60-page report on U.S. preparedness for pathogenic Avian Influenza. More than 60 countries have AI, - the U.S. has had three pathogenic AI outbreaks in the last 100 years - and it is probably a matter of time before the U.S. again faces the bird disease that some fear could mutate to a global killer.
The GAO said the virus has infected 291 humans, and more than half have died.
From the report:

Health experts are concerned that should highly pathogenic H5N1 (or another subtype), to which humans have no immunity, develop the capacity to spread easily from person to person, a pandemic could occur.


Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., was unsparing in her criticism of the USDA in a news release today.
From her office:

The GAO identified four areas of concern in the USDA’s response plans. This includes a failure to identify the entities responsible for carrying out critical tasks, the resources needed, and the provider of those resources; missing components from state plans and states are most likely to discover and initially respond to an outbreak; no advance consideration for issues, like birds raised in backyards, that could increase difficulties in containing the outbreak; and no attention to the amount or source of antiviral medication necessary to protect the health and safety of responders during an outbreak.

“I am very disappointed by the findings in the GAO report about the lack of planning at USDA to prepare for an avian flu outbreak, especially considering the previous shortcomings GAO found in USDA’s avian flu plans."


TK; The risk of an uncontrolled outbreak is one reason DeLauro wants Congress to reject poultry product imports from China, Still, the GAO was more balanced in its appraisal of USDA's performance than DeLauro's comments would have you believe.

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Immigration in the news

Immigration legislation advances
From the AP
The Senate voted Tuesday to jump-start a stalled immigration measure to legalize millions of unlawful immigrants.
President Bush said the bill offered a "historic opportunity for Congress to act," and appeared optimistic about its passage by week's end.
The pivotal test-vote was 64-35 to revive the divisive legislation. It still faces formidable obstacles in the Senate, including bitter opposition by GOP conservatives and attempts by some waverers in both parties to revise its key elements.



TK: Passing the important first test, the Senate gets a second shot at moving forward a comprehensive solution for immigration reform.

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Sweet corn

South Ga. sweet corn 6/1 to 6/22 - http://sheet.zoho.com


Prices above are for yellow sweet corn. Georgia sweet corn growers are having a good year, with season to date shipments of 211 million pounds through June 23, up from 202.6 million pounds the same time a year ago. Peaking right now, Georgia sweet corn should begin to diminish after the July 4 holiday, one Bainbridge shipper told me. By mid-July, various Midwest and Eastern deals start to add to supply.

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Getting their hopes up

Don't do it, Charlie Brown. You know the scene; Lucy is holding the football for Charlie Brown. Not this time, he thinks. Still, he can't resist. Charlie Brown runs full tilt and prepares to boot that ball and watch it soar. At the last minute, Lucy pull the ball away and Charlie Brown tumbles, end over end.

I thought of that visual when I read here that New Zealand is preparing to send a trial apple shipment to Japan. From the linked story:

Pipfruit industry chairman Ian Palmer says New Zealand has had the authority to export apples to Japan for some time, but has been prevented from doing so because of strict importing requirements.
He hopes apples can be exported to Japan on a commercial basis from next season, but says it is unlikely that volumes sent there will match those sent to other Asian countries.
Mr Palmer says the apples need to go through a rigorous treatment process which may affect the fruit quality, so that will need to be tested once the apples reach Japan.



TK: Having been on the trip to Japan with Washington apple industry leaders in early 1995 to see that market open with high expectations, I would caution that appearances can be deceiving. More than ten years later, Washington apple exporters don't ship to Japan, knocked out by unreasonable and over-costly phytosanitary restrictions. Lucy is ready to pull the ball away again, this time on New Zealand.

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John Mackey blog

John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods, has written a long blog post that Pamela Riemenschneider of The Packer keyed me to recently. It was a rare and candid commentary from a CEO; the follow on comments also were entertaining.


Here is Mackey's reason #2 for the acquisition of Wild Oats:

2. Elimination of a competitor — they compete with us for sites, customers and Team Members. Reason #2 seems to be one that particularly bothers the FTC—eliminating a competitor. I'm not sure why this is so troubling to the FTC because every merger between companies that compete with each other necessarily means eliminating a competitor. If eliminating a competitor is inherently "bad" or "wrong" then the FTC should probably never allow any mergers to ever occur, because most mergers necessarily mean the elimination of a competitor from the marketplace. Whole Foods has a 27 year long history of buying companies and eliminating them as competitors. Indeed, Whole Foods was created back in 1980 when two small competitive natural foods companies merged together-Safer Way Natural Foods and Clarksville Natural Grocery in Austin, Texas. Since then we have bought 18 different retail companies including such companies as Bread & Circus, Mrs. Gooch's, Fresh Fields, and Harry's Farmers Markets. In each case we eliminated a competitor, but we also greatly improved the stores that we acquired from these companies (the proof of this is the very significant increase of sales that occurred in virtually every store that we have ever acquired).

It is very important to understand that eliminating any one particular competitor such as Wild Oats doesn't mean eliminating all of our competitors—quite the contrary. Whole Foods has more competition today than we have ever had in our entire history! Numerous competitors to Whole Foods exist in every market we do business in, whether Wild Oats is in that market or not.
For the FTC to prove its case against this merger they would need to do at least two things:
A. Prove that quality or service would probably decrease at Whole Foods or Wild Oats as a result of this deal.
B. Prove that prices at Whole Foods or Wild Oats would increase as a result of this deal.
However, the FTC will never be able to prove either of these allegations because the exact opposite will happen (just as it has always happened before with all of our previous 18 retail acquisitions).



TK: I think Mackey is fighting an uphill battle here. Arguments like "We have a 27 year history of buying companies and eliminating them as competitors" may not score points at the FTC. By the way, Pamela is in mere days moving to Texas and leaving our office here in Lenexa. The good news is that Pamela will continue to be a part of The Packer team. Besides her irrepressible personality, we will miss her frequent contributions to the OBF (over by Fred) food shelf here at the home office. Pamela regularly brought jicama and other produce to share, not to mention that memorable day when she provided the ingredients for fluffer nutter sandwiches.

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Touchback amendment next hurdle

Here is Washington Post coverage of the next phase to the immigration debate. Republican supporters of comprehensive immigration reform want to add a touchback provision for all the illegal aliens living in the U.S.
From the story:

Yesterday, the three senators added a provision that would force illegal immigrants to return to their home countries to apply for Z Visas, not just their green cards.

Last week, in the first-ever poll of illegal immigrants, 83 percent of the 1,600 undocumented Latinos surveyed told the polling firm Bendixen & Associates that they would pay the thousands of dollars in fines and fees, produce the work documents and submit to the background check needed for a Z Visa. But if they also had to return to their home countries, participation rates would drop to 63 percent, according to the poll commissioned by New America Media, a consortium of ethnic news media.

TK: Democrats say the immigration bill is tilting to the right, and that could capsize it. However, supporters of the bill are willing to push forward for passage and hope for a favorable conference with the legislation from the House.

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A new slogan?

This story talks about the kickoff of a fruit and veggie promotion campaign in Hawaii, and it isn't "Fruits and Veggies - More Matters." Instead, for some unstated reason, the campaign is "Fruits and Veggies - Good Choice!"

From the story:

On Monday, Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona Jr. and the Department of Health kicked off its "Fruits and Veggies - Good Choice!" campaign. Television ads and posters will remind island residents to eat one more serving of each every day.


TK: Why is Hawaii straying from the Produce for Better Health message? It could be the concern about obesity in the state. A recent report from Trust for America's Health noted that Hawaii has the highest level of adult obesity in the nation at 16.4 percent, and the 34th highest overweight levels of low-income children ages 2-5 at 10.3 percent. The state spent an estimated $231 per person in 2003 on medical-costs related to obesity, which was the 38th highest amount in the nation, the group said.

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Monday, June 25, 2007

Firecracker promotions

One of the biggest summer produce selling weeks lays ahead of us. Here in Kansas City, the food ads dated June 27 have been released. Here is a window to the world of Midwest produce promotions. Lots of watermelon, but not as much sweet corn action as I would have predicted. Disney/Ito mango nectarines have a couple of spotlighted promotions. Both blueberries and cherries check in at hotter prices.

Wal Mart:
Fresh slicing tomatoes: 88 cents per pound
Fresh, juicy peaches: 76 cents per pound


Hen House: (rewards card)
Red ripe whole seedless watermelon: $3.99
Jumbo size sweet dark red cherries: $3.99 per pound
Del Monte Golden Ripe pineapple: $3.99
Earthbound Farm organic spring mix or baby spinach: $4.99 (16 ounce)
Mix and Match - 5 for $5 - Dole Classic Cole Slaw, Green Giant Baby Cut carrots (16 ounce), red radishes (16-ounce), green or red leaf, Romaine lettuce
Sweet Vidalia onions 99 cents for 1 pound
Green beans or new crop red potatoes: 99 cents per pound
Hot House tomatoes on the vine $1.49
Locally grown squash, yellow or zucchini, 99 cents per pound
Calif tree ripened peaches, nectarines, and red or black plums $1.99 per pound
Red and white seedless grapes: $1.99 per pound


HyVee:
Kandy label cantaloupe: 3 for $5
Stemilt cherries: $2.99 per pound
Black seedless grapes: $1.97
Dole salad: 9 to 12 ounce: $1.48
Blueberries (pint) 2 for $5
Sweet red peppers: 88 cents per pound
Disney mango nectarines: $3.99 per pound
Stemilt Artisan natural apricots: $1.88 per pound
Zespri gold kiwi: 2 for $1
Sunkist choice lemons 2 for $1
Fresh cut veggie tray 10 inch $8.88
Fresh cut fruit tray: $9.99


Dillons:
Red ripe whole seedless watermelon: $2.99 each
Northwest sweet red cherries: $2.99 per pound
Corn on the cob: 5 for $2
Cantaloupe: 2 fo $4
Large ripe hass avocados or Fresh Express Cole slaw: 4 for $5
California peaches/nectarines: $1.99 per pound
Driscolls strawberries or blueberries: 2 for $6
Vidalia sweet onions: 4 pounds for $5
Russet baking potatoes: 79 cents per pound
Fresh green onions or cucumbers: 69 cents each

Price Chopper:
Whole seedless watermelon: $3.77
Driscoll's strawberries: 2 for $5
Blueberries: 2 for $5
Superior Seedless grapes: $1.49 per pound
BC Hot House tomatoes on the vine: $1.49 per pound
Cantaloupe: 2 for $4
Green Giant sliced whole mushrooms: $1.69 pound
Green Giant baby cut carrots (2 lb( 2 for $5
Jumbo Del Monte pineapple: $3.99 each
Jumbo Vidalia onions: 99 cents per pound
Zucchini or yellow squash: 99 cents per pound
Pick of the Week: Ito mango nectarines: $2.99 per pound
Dole classic cole slaw (16 ounce) or Mann's broccoli slaw (12 ounce)

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Double standard?

For retailers, the hot social trend is minimizing food miles and sourcing local produce. Does a grower with a six-week deal in Rhode Island have to jump through the same hoops as a year-round supplier from California?
Is there a double standard relating to food safety audits for home grown produce compared with fruits and vegetables from commercial shippers? If so, is a double standard defensible?
I think conventional shippers are wrong to think that locally grown produce is not produced responsibly. Still, there can be no doubt that some local produce growers don't have the checks and audits of larger shippers. Allowing for that, smaller growers in some cases must be certified to do business with schools and other buyers; many are moving toward that end.
That topic of food safety certification for smaller growers is addressed in this link.
From the winter 2007 article from the University of Rhode Island:

For the last five years, the New England Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) program, centered at URI, has been educating small farmers as to how they can take steps to eliminate the risk of pathogens in the produce they sell. Now with the resurgence of consumer interest in locally grown food the importance of that education-and the certification process-has taken on even more significance.
Recently several small farmers gathered at the US. Department of Agriculture conference room in Warwick to take the first step toward getting their farms GAP Certified. The afternoon-long series of presentations by Lori Pivarnik and Martha Patnoad, both URI food safety experts, covered such topics as water quality, soil amendments, worker hygiene and proper storage and transportation issues. Both professors are in the CELS Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences.
Some of the farmers present were interested in becoming a supplier to schools and in order to do that, Chartwells, a distributor of foods to schools in the state, requires that participating farms be GAP Certified. So far just two GAP Certified farms in the state are enrolled with Chartwells. There are 18 farms in Rhode Island that are GAP Certified.
Kenneth Ayers, chief of the state Division of Agriculture, told the gathering that federal guidelines are pushing for an increase in fresh foods in the schools.
"The schools are an untapped market for local farmers," he said noting that the farmers can usually sell their produce at prices between wholesale and retail.
In addition at least one insurer, Farm Family, is exploring the idea of offering premium credit for GAP Certified farms. Farm Family already offers the credit (10-15 percent of the liability premium) for some types of farming operations.


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Fresh Start in danger

California's Fresh Start Program, which provided an extra 10 cents for each student's breakfast to provide fresh fruit, could hit a budget wall soon. Here is a story about the program and the money woes at the state level, as reported by The Press Enterprise. One school foodservice official quoted said that she won't let go of the program easily. "You'll find a way to make it work," she said.

At a time when the federal fruit and vegetable snack program is desperately seeking solid farm bill funding to expand, this news of a reversal for California's Fresh Start program is disappointing.

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Letter to FDA

Here is the link to a letter from members of Congress to the FDA with a tersely worded request for information about planned lab closings by the agency. The June 15 letter, from Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. with Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., asks the agency to provide Congress with a detailed explanation of what inspection services will go away if the labs are closed and more than 190 scientific specialists are cut from the agency. That number is about 40% of the total number of lab analysts working with the Office of Regulatory Affairs, the letter observes. With food imports doubling every five years, the Congressmen called planned reductions "deeply disturbing."

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W-M delays green report

The Financial Times and others report that Wal-Mart is delaying its "green report."
The story notes Wal-Mart has not set a date for the release of the report, which deals with the retailer's commitment to the environment and social sustainability.

Flashback: The Packer's David Mitchell wrote in November of last year:

Now suppliers who do business with Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Bentonville, Ark., and its Sam's Club division soon will be asked to take one more step to bring their products to market.
The world's largest retailer announced in September that it planned to reduce packaging from its global supply chain by 5% by 2013. On Nov. 1 at the Conference at Pack Expo, Wal-Mart spelled out how it planned to reach that goal with Web-based scorecards that will rank suppliers and packaging manufacturers. By 2008, packaging sustainability information gleaned from those scorecards will be one of the factors Wal-Mart considers in purchasing decisions, including produce.
"We at Wal-Mart recognize that we have unique strengths and a unique opportunity to have a positive impact on the environment through our own actions, those of our customers and those of our suppliers," said Matt Kistler, vice president of package and product innovations for Sam's Club. Starting Feb. 7, Wal-Mart plans to begin a one-year trial, during which its 60,000 global suppliers -- including more than 1,000 produce shippers in North America -- will input, store and track data about their packaging.
Suppliers will be rated on greenhouse gas emissions, material content, cube utilization, transportation, recycled content, renewable energy, innovation and other factors related to their packaging.


TK: Wal-Mart''s scorecard on itself has been delayed. While such an effort is undeniably complex, Wal-Mart's follow through on this issue is a measure whether it can walk the talk as well as talk the talk.

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New Vegetable Melon and Outlook report

The USDA Economic Research Service has released its bi-monthly Vegetable and Melon Outlook report here.
Some highlights:

If the direction of spring potato prices in California, Florida, and Texas is an indicator of average domestic prices for the 2007 crop, growers may expect another year of both higher production and prices. Projected average prices across the 3 States for spring-crop potatoes are $19 per cwt compared with $12.30 per cwt in 2006. Demand for potatoes and available supply are both stronger than in 2006 as evidenced by the 4-percent expansion of market shipments through May 2007. For the 2006/07 crop, potatoes used for processing is up 8 percent through May.

And this about the general vegetable outlook:


During the first 5 months of 2007, fresh-market vegetable prices at the point of first sale (e.g., grower or shipping-point) averaged 31 percent above a year earlier. Higher average prices were received for crops such as fresh dry-bulb onions, celery, snap beans, and broccoli—easily outweighing lower average prices for tomatoes, cucumbers, and head lettuce. Following a winter quarter which saw fresh vegetable prices average 36 percent above a year earlier, farm prices this spring were up 23 percent from 2006. This summer, fresh vegetable prices are expected to average below the highs of a year ago as harvested area rises slightly and yields improve from last summer’s weather-reduced levels.

Potatoes: During the first 5 months of 2007, grower prices for potatoes averaged 3 percent above a year earlier due largely to good demand from processors and exporters. Grower prices for processing potatoes were up 8 percent through April while fresh-market prices were down 6 percent. In contrast, retail potato prices have remained fairly steady during the first 5 months of 2007, with fresh white potatoes averaging just 1 percent above a year ago (at 52 cents /lb.) and potato chips down 1 percent to $3.45/lb.


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Blue skies

N.C. blueberries 6/1 to 6/22 - http://sheet.zoho.com


Very strong demand is noted from one major blueberry shipper this morning, who said prices really aren't expected to bend lower than $18-20 per flat despite ample supply from New Jersey and Michigan. Higher prices for blueberries from processors, plus higher labor costs, have put upward pressure on prices this year. Michigan's harvest is running five to seven days ahead of schedule. Good supply is generally expected through July.

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Worthy links

If you one of the growing number of readers that subscribe by email to the full feed of this blog, I wanted to alert you that you may want to check out new links on the Web site as well. As the farm bill heats up and food safety issues continue to percolate, I've added RSS headline links to several bloggers who worth reading in the course of the debate.

Check out Ken Cook and Mulch Blog here.

The Blog for Rural America

Farm Policy blog by Keith Good.

Also we have the RSS feed of Marlerblog, from Seattle food safety lawyer Bill Marler.

Explore the fresh produce industry discussion group linked to the blog and you will find it has some active members. I've added a consumer-oriented discussion group that has only just begun but may prove interesting in time.

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Monday headline roundup 6/25

Food safety worries grow By Shelley Shelton , Arizona Daily Star
Gist: Safey of imported food, COOL
Lede:
For those who've been alarmed by recent scares involving tainted imported products, there's bad news and … moderately comforting news.
Sources: Consumer Federation of America; Lee Frankel of Fresh Produce Association of the Americas; Arizona Dept. of Health Services

His latest challenge; keeping food supply safe Q and A with FDA's David Acheson
Produce related quotes:
Q. Give an example of how a prevention focus changes FDA actions.
A How do you prevent E. coli 0157:H7 from getting on spinach? That's the bug that caused the spinach outbreak. You need to do the basic science to understand how that contamination can occur. How do you prevent it? Do you test the water on a regular basis? Do you push cattle further away? Do you need better washing strategies in the processing plants? You then educate industry on how to do that. And then, potentially down the road, verify they are doing it.
Q Is that happening now?
A No, it's not. But it's where we need to go.


Q Critics make the case for a single food safety agency with recall authority and a mandate to standardize inspections.
A Simply creating a single food safety agency, moving groups of federal employees around under a different organizational structure, frankly, I think is more likely to create a bigger hole in food safety, certainly for sure in the short term. I worry about that.


Q Is mandatory recall authority among new powers the FDA seeks?
A It's on the table as an authority that could be looked at.
Q Which other new powers would be helpful?
A [We're] looking at what the strategic plan, overall, would shape up like. What could be achieved with current authorities? What could be achieved with what you might call a tweak on current authorities? And what needs new authorities? There needs to be overall buy-in to the strategic approach . . . I don't want to jeopardize anything or preempt anything by jumping too far in front.



Tesco trains staff in generational talk This describes Tesco's training of older workers in the U.K. on the strange talk of the younger generations. Some examples:

Bad: Good (but this can also mean bad. When in doubt, just nod).
How’s it hanging?: How are you today?
Laters: Cheerio, goodbye.
Minging: Ugly, unattractive.
Phat: Wicked (in the good sense), cool.
Slammin’: Pleasing to the eye.
Talk to the hand: I’m not listening.
Wack: Weak, boring



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China's apple invasion

This AP story, published in USA Today, talks about how U.S. apple growers are bracing for imports from China. The story notes that Chinese workers make 28 cents an hour, compared with $9t o $14 per hour in the U.S. The Chinese have been seeking access for their apples in the U.S. market since 1998, but significant hurdles remain.
From the story:

The U.S. Apple Association said the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service sent a list of more than 300 insects and diseases of concern to the quarantine inspection agency of the Chinese government in 2003. The Chinese government responded the next year, and then the United States asked for information on 52 pests from the list.

TK: John Rice and Jim Allen are quoted in this story, and the context is the issue of country of origin labeling. If Chinese apples are allowed into the U.S., country of origin labeling becomes a bigger issue for U.S. apple growers. By that time, however, the issue of COOL will already be settled. Most think it will be some years before Chinese apples are allowed into the U.S., while final action on COOL should be in this year's farm bill. Beyond COOL, the story notes of the tree fruit industry's technology road map that seeks research funds to address issues such as mechanical picking machines. I recently had a Q and A with U.S. Apple Association's Jim Cranney on that issue that will be forthcoming.

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Sunday, June 24, 2007

Cruising through the produce department

I went to three retailers Sunday (June 24) here in suburban Kansas City. Here is a quick report of what was on sale. Stone fruit and grapes were heavily promoted, along with mini seedless and standard watermelon. The most attractive price was probably 99 cents per pound for Thompson seedless at Price Chopper, with the "shopper" card. Here is a link to just a few retail price observations.


Hy-Vee had a "Mega Produce Sale," advertised, with a prominent tilted rack display as you walked in the story. Ripe 'N Ready peaches at $1.48 per pound, with nectarines at $1.98 and $2.88 for plums.

Some other features: Kandy cantaloupe $2.88, honeydew at 2 for $5. Mini-seedless watermelon marketed at $3.28 each. Bananas at Hy-Vee, as always, were 49 cents per pound.

Thompson seedless grapes at Hy-Vee were $1.48 per pound, with black seedless at $2.98, with red seedless at $1.98.


At Hy-Vee, Driscoll strawberries in one pound clamshells were 2 for $4. Jumbo navels were $1.68 per pound, while lemons and limes 68 cents each.


Sweet corn was marketed at 6 ears for $3, while yellow peppers were 98 cents and red peppers were 2 for $3; Jalapeno peppers were 98 cents each.


On apple row, Hy-Vee marketed galas and fujis at $1.78 per pound, with cameos at $1.68 per pound, braeburn at $1.28, $1.48 for pinata and $1.28 for granny smith.


At Wal-Mart, a bin of regular size watermelons was placed immediately in the path of consumer walking even the door, where the shopping carts are distributed. The price was $3.88 per melon for the Jaybird label.

Inside the store, Wal-Mart's sweet corn was marketed at 28 cents each , and Chilean clementines in a 3-pound mesh bag were $3.97; the 5-pound carton of Chilean clementines was $6.98. A 10-pound bag of russets was priced at $2.98. Iceberg lettuce was a bargain at 78 cent for head.

Avocados were priced at 98 cents each, and mangoes were 68 cents each. Green seedless grapes were`priced at 1.74 per pound,

Fresh Express spinach in a 9-ounce bag was $2.68, while green peppers were merchandised at 78 cents each.

Wal-Mart's apple pricing: Michigan red delicious, 5-pound bag, $4.78. Per pound Romes, 1.48;, Galas, $1.58; Goldens $1.54; Fujis, $154; granny smith, $1.54; smaller grannys, $1.28; red delicious, $1.28; and braeburn, $1.28.

At Price Chopper, where a "truckload sale" was advertised, tree ripened peaches and nectarines were $1.69 per pound, while plums were $1.48. White flesh peaches and nectarines were $2.99 per pound.

Bananas had a 59 cents per pound retail. Heirloom tomatoes were marked at $4.99 per pound and roma tomatoes were 99 cents per pound..

Tangerines were 5 to a dollar.

Grapes were a hot item at Price Chopper, with green seedless at 99 cents per pound with the "shopper" card. Red seedless grapes were $1.99 per pound.

Price Chopper seemed to appeal to the Hispanic shopper,with a wide array of peppers; mangoes were two for $1.

TK: Many produce choices for the consumer, with both grapes and tree fruit categories offering strong deals. I would anticipate more cherry ads this week, since none of the stores offered cherries at much less than $4 per pound. It was interesting that Price Chopper feels it can price their bananas 10 cents pound more than the other two retailers. That indicates to me they have a great deal of confidence in the rest of their department and in the value offered in the department.

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Sunday morning ads

The KC Star had only a couple of produce related ad inserts this morning. Target advertises $1.99 for bagged peaches, plums or nectarines, though the bag size isn't listed in the ad. Target's circular also offers cantaloupe or honeydew melon at $1.99 each, and 2 1-pound clamshells of Driscoll strawberries for $3.

Meanwhile, the Aldi ad offered a three pound bag of yellow onion is 99 cents, while iceberg head lettuce is 69 cents. Sweet corn in a 20-ounce pack was $1.49, while a 20-ounce 4-pack of tomatoes was listed at 99 cents.

More later today about shopping trips I took to three Kansas City area retailers...

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Saturday, June 23, 2007

"Poisoned food"

Here is the link to the CNN site promoting the "poisoned food" special that runs tonight and tomorrow night. No video of the segment is available from CNN yet, but this appears to be setting up as the type of news feature that tends toward the bias that more needs to be done, perhaps in regard to a single food safety agency.

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Labeling transition produce?

One of the things that United's Tom Stenzel mentioned in passing during his talk at The Packer's editorial meeting relates to the issue of labeling on transitional produce that is grown organically. He noted some consumers feel like they should know if produce is grown organically or not. That should include, some consumers believe, produce that is grown organically but is in the transition period from conventional to organic. For good reason or not, some consumers have expressed unease with crops grown organically - perhaps because they think organic production methods are more prone to food safety risks.

In the course of discussion both then and later, I think such a labeling scheme is folly. Already, some organic produce is marketed undifferentiated as conventional because of market conditions. It would be confusing and offer no public benefit to to require a label denoting organic growing methods were used on transitional produce.

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New consumer f/v discussion group

I've created a consumer-oriented discussion group (note box on the side of the blog). Right now the only member is me. so the value of the discussion group is severely limited. Join the group and tell your sister, aunts, neighbors, co-workers, uncles, mothers, daughters, sons, fathers, etc. This is a group that is open to one and all, and will focus on consumer level issues relating to fruits and vegetables.

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Friday, June 22, 2007

Cherry bargain

Calif. cherries 6/5 to 6/18 - http://sheet.zoho.com

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Unleash sales to Cuba

The American Farm Bureau and other ag business groups are supporting a bill in Congress that would less restrictions on sales to Cuba. The legislation was introduced in the Senate by Sens. Max Baucus, D-Mont, and and Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, , and in the House by Reps. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., and Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo.

Here is an explanation of the legislative fix sought, from the National Foreign Trade Council:

For four years, Cuban buyers made cash payments (through third-country banks, as required by TSREEA) to U.S. sellers in advance of taking title or physical control of the goods. The goods were often at sea or in Havana at the time the seller received payment, and then released the goods to the Cuban buyer. In 2005, the Treasury Department issued a final rule that in order to comply with TSREEA, sellers would need to receive payment before the goods shipped from a U.S. port. Many in Congress objected to this interpretation of cash-in-advance payment. If Cuba had paid for goods sitting in a U.S. port, the goods could be at risk of seizure to satisfy unrelated private claims against the Cuban government. Since the rule was implemented, Cuba has not bought U.S. agricultural products on a cash basis, and total U.S. agricultural sales to Cuba have dropped for the past two years. This section (identical to language in S.328, 109th Congress) would define cash-in-advance payment as payment made before the seller will relinquish title or physical control of the goods to the Cuban buyer.

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Tesco: the new Starbucks

I don't claim credit for that word association. The story quoting a Tesco executive using that comparison is written by Quinn Eastman of NCTimes.com, and found here.

From the story:

"There are plenty more to come," said Tim Mason, CEO of Tesco's new American division, at a launch event at the San Diego Gaslamp Marriott.Mason said Fresh & Easy has pledged to have no trans fats or artificial colors and flavors in any product and will not sell cigarettes or other tobacco products.About half of the products in the store will come from Fresh & Easy's own brand.Retail analysts have compared Fresh & Easy to Trader Joe's because of the stores' size -- roughly 10,000 square feet of sales space.But Mason said he wanted to avoid demographic categories and rejected the comparison, adding that he was aiming for a higher standard: being everywhere, like Starbucks Coffee."We want to appeal to the neighborhood in the same way as Starbucks," he said.

TK: This market positioning is brilliant if Tesco can pull it off. But will consumers of any supermarket, manhandling shopping carts and pressed for time, view the experience remotely similar to a visit to Starbucks? And what about the drive through window?

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Friday headline roundup

Dream of fresh produce in the arctic Growing f/v in the most unlikely of places

Bottled water or f/v; which is better for family's health? "Clever" beverage marketers are usurping the health message of f/v

Boiling vegetables impairs antioxidants So says UK study

Senate wants reform minded farm bill, Harkin says From ABC Sen. Tom Harkins says "It's an ideal time to do some reform, to rearrange our priorities and to look ahead," said chairman Tom Harkin, who wants to expand land stewardship programs, spend more on public nutrition, boost biofuels and aid specialty crop growers.

Killer amendments could threaten immigration deal Debate to resume next week

Supermarkets fail to reach labor accord Strike vote Sunday

Wal-Mart unveils new packaging policy in Canada eco friendly policy discussed

FTC tries to block Whole Foods access to competitors data From the Chicago Tribune


Tomato on the vine grade standard comment period extended


China promises food safety reform Produce safety a key concern

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Thursday, June 21, 2007

Feds: No criminal charges

The Associated Press reports here that no criminal charges will be filed related to last year's nationwide E. coli outbreak, according to the U.S. Attorney in San Francisco.

From the story published in The Salinas Californian:

Following the outbreak, which led to the deaths of three people and sickened about 200 others, FBI agents raided two produce processing plants and several farms for evidence of environmental and food-safety violations. The investigation did not find that growers or processors had deliberately skirted the law or were negligent in preventing tainted foods from entering the marketplace, said U.S. Attorney Scott Schools.
Authorities had searched plants in October run by Growers Express LLC in Salinas and Natural Selection Foods LLC in San Juan Bautista, as well as farms in Santa Clara, Monterey and San Benito counties.FBI and FDA agents spent 11 hours searching both companies' facilities, sifting through records for evidence of a paper trail indicating spinach handlers skirted proper food-handling procedures.Federal officials warned consumers not to eat bagged or bunched spinach for two weeks last September after dozens of people in 26 states fell ill after eating leafy greens packaged by Natural Selection Foods and sold under 34 brand names.


TK: This is certainly good news, though it doesn't mean all clouds are gone and only blue skies remain. Seattle lawyer Bill Marler writes in his blog here that the law firm has "we have resolved the claims of 29 individuals and families who became ill or died as a result of eating contaminated spinach." Marler doesn't say how many are pending.

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