Vegetable and Melon Outlok - April 16

The USDA issued a 46-page Vegetables and Melons report today. Find it here. From the report:


Despite water shortages in California where 96 percent of processing tomatoes are grown, U.S. tomato processors expect to contract for 13.9 million short tons in 2009—up 14 percent from a year earlier and 8 percent above the 1999 record. Although production was relatively robust in 2008, export demand for tomato products (particularly paste) was well above average during calendar year 2008, providing a foundation for strong wholesale prices and higher contract prices for U.S. tomato growers in 2009.

Fresh-market area for harvest for 11 selected vegetables was forecast to decline 4 percent to 194,200 acres this spring (largely April-June). Prospective area was down for 8 of the 11 crops, with the greatest percentage declines for cauliflower, cabbage, and carrots. California, which accounts for more than half of spring vegetable area, expects to harvest 6 percent fewer acres, with much of the reduction occurring in carrots, broccoli, and head lettuce crops. Although scarce and more costly this year, water is not expected to be a limiting factor in fresh-market vegetable supplies this spring.

Domino's responds

This is a sobering lesson for Domino's and its two feckless employees who created a damaging video and posted it to youtube. Here is a link to a Miami Herald about the incident. Below is Domino's response, which I think is well done. There but for a video camera goes any company....

Fruits and vegetables are the new peanuts!?

Apart from the usual crop of "fruits and veggies are good for you" stories we find everyday on the Web, the BBC has an article about the rapid rise in allergies related to fruits and veggies. "Fruits and veggies are the new peanuts" says one source in this story. I think this article is the first one I can recall about this issue. Here is the link to the story "Concern over rise in allergies." From the story:

Dr Ewan, who sees more than 8,000 people with allergies a year, said most patients with reactions to fruit and vegetables were youngsters.
Symptoms include swelling in the mouth and throat, and breathing difficulties.
She said: "We have seen a big rise in the number of cases in the past four to five years.
"It is a bit like the peanut allergy was the epidemic of the 1990s. I think fruit and vegetables are becoming the epidemic now.
"In term of numbers, fruit and vegetables are the new form of peanut allergy."
Dr Ewan urges parents to take the problem seriously.
"We think fruit and vegetables are healthy, which they mostly are, but you can be allergic to them."

TK: Is this MOOAMH - mountain out of a molehill - are something more serious on the horizon? I would tend to think doctors are getting better at understanding allergies but of course there is nothing here that suggests allergies to f/v are pandemic. In fact, the stat in the story shows that cases of "oral allergy syndrome" are counted 5 in every 100,000 people. Back to the sheaf of stories that f/v are good for you....