National Retail Report - Feb. 20

From the USDA's National Retail Report:


On the heels of the widespread Valentine’s Day themes last week, the ads this week lacked a universal theme. However, many retailers were highlighting sales on staple items and promotional savings such as, “Dollar Days”, “buy-one-get-onefree”, “10 for $10”, and “5 for $5”. In addition, some retailers were promoting February as National Potato Month. A few were promoting celebratory items such as King Cake for Mardi Gras next week and seafood in qnticipation of the Lenten season beginning next Wednesday. Overall this week, total produce ad activity was up roughly 6%, corresponding to an increase of 8% on fruits and an increase of 2% on vegetables. The top 5 items were the same as last week (grapes, peaches, nectarines, asparagus, and strawberries). However, there was some jostling of positions on all except grapes which continued to be the most widely featured produce item.

CPI - January

The consumer prices index for fruits and vegetables saw its fifth straight monthly decline in January, the Commerce Department reports this morning. Here is the link to the Consumer Price Index for January. From the document:


On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI-U increased 0.3 percent in January after declining in each of the three previous months. The energy index climbed 1.7 percent in January, its first increase in six months, but it was still 31.4 percent below its July 2008 peak level. Within energy, the gasoline index rose 6.0 percent in January after a 19.3 percent decline in December. However, some energy components continued to decline; the fuel oil index fell 3.7 percent in January and the index for natural gas declined 3.6 percent. The food index, which rose sharply during the summer and moderated through the fall, increased 0.1 percent in January after being virtually unchanged in December. The food index has risen 5.3 percent over the past year. TheThe food and beverages index increased 0.1 percent in January, the same increase as in December. A 0.3 percent increase in the index for food away from home and a 0.2 percent rise in the alcoholic beverages index more than offset a 0.1 percent decline in the food at home index. The food at home index has risen 5.7 percent over the past year. Within food at home, the indexes for four of the six major grocery store food groups declined in January. The index for fruits and vegetables fell 1.3 percent, its fifth consecutive monthly decline.The index for fresh fruits fell 2.2 percent and the fresh vegetables index declined 1.6 percent. The dairy and related products index, down 1.1 percent in December, fell 0.6 percent in January, with the milk index declining 1.4 percent. Also declining in January were the indexes for meats, poultry, fish and eggs and for nonalcoholic beverages, each down 0.1 percent. The index for cereals and bakery products was virtually unchanged in January, but was still up 11.3 percent over the last year. The index for other food at home rose 0.6 percent in January, the only major grocery store food group index to increase for the month.

Milk is an antioxidant blocker and other top headlines

This sounds like bad news for the dairy folks. According to this article in Natural News, a study has show that milk blocks the antioxidant effect of blueberries and tea. From the story:

Although it is possible that the studies with blueberries and tea are isolated incidents, such a conclusion seems to go against the tenets of nature which are presented in broad statements. This suggests that a more likely conclusion would be that proteins in milk have a great affinity for many polyphenols found in both fruits and vegetables. It implies that if one chooses to eat fruits and vegetables for their health promoting benefits, no dairy product should be involved in the process until the body has had a chance to make full use of the polyphenols presented.

Fresh green salads may lose much of their antioxidant power when cheese is added, as may peaches with cream or yogurt with fresh fruit. Coffee may lose its health benefits when milk or cream are added. The implications of these findings are huge once a person decides to interpret them as meaning that no fruits and vegetables should be eaten near the time milk products are consumed.

We already know that milk chocolate contains very few polyphenols compared to dark chocolate. This may be because polyphenols in chocolate bind with milk protein and become inactive.


Other headlines snatched from the Web tonight:

Chiquita Brands posts 4Q loss Houston Chronicl-AP Trouble in salad land?
Higher banana prices weren't enough to outweigh dismal results in Chiquita Brands International Inc.'s salad group, leading to a sharply wider net loss in the company's fourth quarter.

Chief Executive Fernando Aguirre told investors that the company got rid of several unprofitable foodservice contracts in its salad division, leading to a big drop in sales volumes.

And shoppers making fewer trips to the grocery store led to even lower sales of the company's Fresh Express salad bags.

"We are disappointed with current market performance with both the category and Fresh Express," Aguirre said. "Clearly the current economic environment has made our challenge more difficult."

Later...

Aguirre told investors that the company's results would likely improve in 2009 as it keeps raising prices and trying to shed production costs in the salads division. He said Chiquita is lowering production costs and working to secure more profitable foodservice contracts to boost volume in the group.

United Fresh spends $190K in lobbying during fourth quarter AP

Truckers report falling demand Manufacturing.net

Extension professors sees bright future for Texas citrus Agnews



Fresh produce opportunities in foodservice sought PMA and IFDA

Canadian buyers plan visits to Florida shippers Coverage from The Packer

A tale of two cities: the fattest and fittest ABC News

The politics of global warming CBS News

Eating apples may help beat breast cancer The Telegraph.com

American researchers found that apple extract given to rats slowed the growth of adenocarcinoma tumours, the biggest cause of breast-cancer deaths.

The more apple the rats were given, the more the growth of the tumours was inhibited, according to the study, which was was backed by the American Institute for Cancer Research.

UA to close citrus research center in west valley azcentral.com

U.S. has dual task on climate change Washington Post - Convincing Congress and other countries

US, Europe at odds over bananas and biotech M & C