Indian mangoes here!

India's irradiated mangoes are here. This shot is passed along by Vivian at the USDA's photo services center.

Here is the USDA news release:

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2007-U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns on Tuesday welcomed the first shipments of irradiated Indian mangoes arriving through U.S. ports-of-entry, initiating mango trade with the United States.
Indian mangoes are the first fruit irradiated at an overseas site and approved for importation into the United States. Irradiation became an approved treatment on all pests for fruits and vegetables entering the United States in 2002. Last year, a generic dose was recognized for a wider range of commodities, including Indian mangoes. The use of irradiation provides an alternative to other pest control methods, such as fumigation, cold and heat treatments.
"This is a significant milestone that paves the way for the future use of irradiation technology to protect against the introduction of plant pests," said Secretary Mike Johanns. "India and the United States began talking about shipping mangoes 17 years ago. Irradiating Indian mangoes safeguards American agriculture while providing additional choices for U.S. consumers in today's global marketplace."
APHIS, the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, approved the importation of precleared, commercial shipments of fresh mangoes from India, provided certain conditions are met. To ensure that plant pests of quarantine significance do not enter the United States though the importation of this fruit, the mangoes must be treated with specified doses of irradiation prior to export at an APHIS-certified facility. Each shipment must also be accompanied by a certificate issued by the national plant protection organization of India with additional declarations certifying that the treatment and inspection of the mangoes was made in accordance with APHIS regulations. In addition, inspectors with the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection may further inspect precleared commodities at the port of first arrival.

Robbing Peter to pay Paul

Here is the link to the April 30 Agricultural Prices report from the USDA. Ag prices are indexed to a base of 100, when 1990-1992 equals 100.

The USDA's preliminary All Farm Products Index of Prices Received by Farmers in April, at 135 percent, based on 1990-92=100, increased1 point (0.7 percent) from March.

Except for unusually high grain prices, fruit and vegetable prices indexed higher than most every other other commodity group. Livestock prices had an index of 129, cotton was 79 and oil bearing crops were 122.

An argument you are hearing more lately is that federal subsidies of program crops such as cotton, grain, and oilseeds contribute to the poor diet habits of Americans by making calories cheaper (corn syrup, processed food) while fruits and vegetable prices continue to rise with higher costs.

From the report:


Potatoes & Dry Beans: The April index, at 164, is up 15 percent from last month and 19 percent above April 2006. The all potato price, at $9.78 per cwt, is up $1.44 from March and $1.43 from last April. The all dry bean price, at $26.00 per cwt, is up 20 cents from the previous month and $7.10 above April 2006.

Fruits & Nuts: The April index, at 148, is down 7.5 percent from March but 11 percent higher than a year ago. Price decreases for strawberries and oranges more than offset a price increase for pears.

Commercial Vegetables: The April index, at 191, is down 2.1 percent from last month but 36 percent above April 2006. Price decreases during April for lettuce, celery, and snap beans more than offset price increases for onions, tomatoes, and broccoli.