Alliance letter

In the game of political power plays, who will blink first? This just slid across the inbox from the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance:

July 3, 2007
The Honorable Collin Peterson - Chairman
The Honorable Robert Goodlatte -Ranking Member

House Committee on Agriculture
1301 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC

Dear Chairman Peterson and Ranking Member Goodlatte:

We are writing you today in response to the announcement that the renewal of the 2007 Farm Bill will be addressed with two separate pieces of legislation. The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, representing 110 domestic specialty crop organizations strongly believes only one version of the 2007 Farm Bill should be brought before the Agriculture Committee so that mandatory funding is available to all sectors of agriculture. We adamantly oppose addressing federal farm policy by way of two separate pieces of legislation which reserves the bulk of mandatory funds for only those benefiting from the existing Farm Bill provisions. In the coming days, your Committee will markup the 2007 Farm Bill and we believe that this legislation should contain the priorities identified in H.R. 1600, the Equitable Agriculture Today for a Healthy America Act (EAT Healthy America Act). This legislation has 119 cosponsors and represents the policies supported by over 350 different specialty crops including fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, grapes, nursery and landscape material. H.R. 1600 makes America healthier and offers dietary options that can help reduce childhood obesity by expanding the USDA Fruit & Vegetable Snack Program to all 50 states; provides critical trade assistance and market promotion tools that will grow international markets for specialty crops; expands research and APHIS initiatives to combat pest and disease reducing the economic losses to plant agriculture; invests in “cutting-edge” research making the nation’s food supply safer, more economical, better-tasting and nutritious; and expands funding for “State Specialty Crop Competitiveness” projects in all 50 states which have a proven track record of delivering results. The Farm Bill is no longer just about domestic support programs and it’s not enough for the Agriculture Committee to continue down the same decades-old path addressing only the needs of the traditional program crops. The new Farm Bill should embody the current priorities of all of agriculture many of which are reflected in H.R. 1600. As this Farm Bill moves through the committee process, we look forward to working with you in bringing equity to farm policy and include a level of mandatory funding that recognizes the importance of specialty crops to agriculture in all 50 states.

Sincerely,

(list of members)

Lemon time

It is the middle of summer, and it's not that hard to sell lemons right now. One West Coast marketer said demand is as strong as always, with hot weather everywhere spurring demand. The supply of lemons is storage is being extended until the start of harvest in District III (Arizona). However, the crop in Arizona is light because of the January freeze, and the set is reported to be 50% less than last year. In the near term, look for 115s and 140s from California to be in adequate supply, while the larger 95s and the smaller 165s and 200s will tighten up first. Prices may remain mostly stable, however, the shipper said.
Cold weather in Chile spurred picking of fruit by growers concerned about a possible freeze. That flush of fruit could arrive in the U.S. market by late July and weigh on supply. Meanwhile, Spanish lemons have been a constant presence in the market since not long after the January freeze. Season to date shipments of Spanish lemons through June 30 were 24 million pounds, up from 6.7 million pounds the same time last season.

Canker rule for the last time

I just talked to Joel Nelsen who said experts in California were attempting to work their way through the proposed rule for the shipment of Florida citrus from regions that have citrus canker to non citrus states. Nelsen all but said that stakeholders may be compelled to ask for more time to evaluate the proposed rule. He noted that rule may be the last time to consider the safeguards in place for citrus shipped from canker infested regions to the U.S. market.

Along that line, I talked with one lobbyist for Argentina's lemon growers/exporters in northwest Argentina, and he said that a pest risk assessment may be published by the USDA in the next six to eight weeks relating to Argentina lemon exports to the U.S. After that, the source speculated that rulemaking on a proposal that could allow Argentina lemons to the U.S. could begin in late winter or early spring.

Pepsi v. Coke in produce

I was reviewing some notes of when Tom Stenzel of United Fresh Produce Association was in the office in June to speak at our annual editorial meeting.

Speaking about marketing issues, Stenzel was recalling his days at the National Soft Drink Association, when the cola titans of Pepsi and Coke were at each "with blood and guts."

The net effect of the cola wars was rising consumption for everybody. "They were laughing all the way to the bank."

Stenzel said, "If we would have said, "Drink more soda, it's good for you, it would have been boring," he said, "And not true," I added. "And not true," he agreed, to laughter of the assembled Packer crew.

Of course, one of the great things about produce is that it is good for you, and that theme is a central consumer message. But is generic promotion too boring? The thesis that generic fruit and vegetable promotions are boring or bland is worth considering. My contention that "boring" is nothing that $100 million in promotion funds wouldn't solve.

Funded at just a few million in any given year, The Fruits and Veggies - More Matters campaign is underfunded for the size of the industry. I believe that a national promotion order for fruits and vegetables would be a great step forward for this industry. Funded at competitive levels with dairy, beef, pork, generic fruit and vegetable promotions could be both funny, creative and carry the beloved health message.

Perhaps the produce ads would tweak the other stodgy food groups with funny, well-aimed zingers. I'd love to see the industry on equal footing, at least.

As far as consumer brands for produce, perhaps Dole and Chiquita, or Green Giant and Del Monte, will oblige us with a taste challenge. Consumers could weigh in on the storied rivalry between mature green versus vine ripe tomatoes, or Mexican and U.S. avocados.
Would you believe Walla Walla sweet onions versus Vidalia?

Produce is the Pepsi that needs a Coke villain.

Irradiation: a healthy glow

The FDA's proposed rule to relax the use of the radura on food that has been irradiated has attracted some notice. Her is coverage from The Sacramento Bee that explains why the FDA acted:


But following last fall's high-profile E. coli outbreaks, the agency has been more receptive. On April 4, it proposed several changes to the labeling rules:
• Irradiated food would not have to be labeled at all unless the irradiation process induced a "material change" -- such as an alteration in its taste, smell, shelf life or nutritional value.
• If the process did induce a material change, manufacturers would have to use the radura label -- but it could be accompanied by text saying that the food had been "cold pasteurized," rather than "irradiated," providing the company demonstrates that irradiation kills microbes on the food as effectively as does ordinary heat pasteurization.
After the public input period closes Tuesday, the FDA will consider the comments and prepare the final text of the rule. That process can take months or years.


TK: The Center for Food Safety, a consumer advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., says they have submitted over 13,000 comments opposing the change. Here is a blog post with a similar message. I think this proposed rule should happen, and I think what opposition there is to the rule is from the top down from consumer group, not the bottom up.