Florida tomato reaction

From the Florida Tomato Exchange this morning:


MAITLAND, Fla. (June 11, 2008) – Florida’s tomato growers enthusiastically welcomed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s announcement that consumers are clear to eat tomatoes harvested in 19 Florida counties. The counties encompass the Ruskin-Palmetto and Quincy areas of the state, Florida’s prime tomato-producing regions.

The FDA said the following counties are not associated with the outbreak of salmonella saintpaul: Jackson, Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Suwannee, Hamilton, Hillsborough, Polk, Manatee, Hardee, Desoto, Sarasota, Highlands, Pasco, Sumter, Citrus, Hernando and Charlotte.

“This allows us to get Florida tomatoes back into supermarkets and restaurants and to move forward in rebuilding consumer confidence in safe, healthy produce,” said Reggie Brown, executive vice president of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange. “Our growers are working overtime to get their products back into the marketplace.”

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services worked with the FDA to get the counties added to the “safe to eat” list. Growers will provide a certificate issued by the state with each shipment of tomatoes verifying they were harvested after May 1. The Tomato Growers Exchange urges restaurants and supermarkets to contact their shippers for more information.

The losses already incurred by the state’s tomato industry during the outbreak are major. Growers estimate that ultimately the economic impact will be more than $500 million.

“Until now, the market has been in complete collapse. Crops have remained in fields, packinghouses and in the distribution system,” Brown said. “The losses are staggering.”

No illnesses linked to Salmonella saintpaul have been reported in the Southeast, a primary destination for Florida tomatoes this time of year. “It’s unfortunate that anyone has become ill. However, we’ve had confidence in our tomatoes all along – we just had to wait for FDA and the CDC to do their trace-back work,” Brown said.

The Florida tomato industry remains committed to the production of a safe product. Florida is the first state in the country to adopt a comprehensive food safety program with mandatory government inspection and audit of its tomatoes. “Those involved in the growing and marketing of fresh tomatoes voluntarily incorporate food safety as part of their everyday business practices,” he said. “We’re committed to taking the steps necessary to ensure consumer confidence in our crops.”

CONTACT:
Lisa Lochridge
Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association
(321) 214-5200
Lisa.lochridge@ffva.com

FFVA: Finding a place in farm policy

From the FFVA:

The Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association today strongly applauded Congress for passing a landmark farm bill that for the first time addresses the needs and priorities of the U.S. specialty crop industry.

“This bill reflects the tremendous contributions specialty crops make to U.S. agriculture and the health of all Americans,” said FFVA President Mike Stuart. “It’s been a long and sometimes difficult process, but we are especially pleased that the House and Senate conferees were able to work out funding issues that had slowed the bill’s progress. We commend the leadership in both houses as well as members of the committees who worked so hard to bring this to a successful conclusion.”

The Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 (H.R. 2419) passed in the House on Wednesday by a 318-106 vote, and the Senate approved the bill 81-15 on Thursday. President Bush has threatened a veto, although the votes in both houses signal that an override is possible.

Specialty crops – fruits, vegetables, tree nuts and other crops – account for nearly half of all cash crop receipts in the United States. Florida ranks second in the nation in production of fruits, vegetables and nuts.

The bill targets nearly $3 billion to support specialty crop producers by:

Expanding the USDA Fruit & Vegetable Snack Program to all 50 states. This program develops lifelong healthy eating habits for children through consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Establishing a specialty crop research initiative to develop and disseminate science-based tools to address the industry’s needs.

Increasing funding for state-level specialty crop grants that focus on local, regional and statewide programs to enhance producers’ ability to compete in the marketplace and provide consumers with safe, abundant food.

Enhancing critical trade assistance and market promotion tools that will grow international markets.

Investing in prevention and mitigation programs and tools to combat invasive pest and diseases, which cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars per year.

Facilitating producers’ access to and participation in conservation programs.

Stuart serves as a co-chair of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, a group of more than 120 organizations representing growers of fruits, vegetables, dried fruit, tree nuts, nursery plants and other products. The alliance has worked for more than two years to broaden the scope and efficiency of U.S. agricultural public policy by including these crops in the 2008 Farm Bill.

“Our industry does not receive direct payments, nor has it advocated for them in this farm bill,” Stuart said. “Rather, we have worked with Congress to provide the resources necessary for us to remain competitive and grow in a global marketplace.”

Stuart also commended members of Florida’s legislative delegation who voted for the bill. “We appreciate their support for a bill that will put more fruits and vegetables in schools, enhance our industry’s efforts to fight invasive pests and diseases, and help us to market our crops domestically and globally,” he said.

The Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association (www.ffva.com) is an agricultural trade organization representing Florida's producers of fruits, vegetables and other crops.

The labor situation

Watch CNN's The Situation Room sometime this week to see the Florida perspective on the labor situation.

From the newsletter of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association:

"FFVA Board Member John Stickles hosted CNN’s Miami correspondent John Zarrella Jan. 14, answering questions about the agriculture industry’s need for a dependable, legal workforce. Stickles, general manager of Dover-based Florida Pacific Farms, discussed the H-2A program, which he uses to obtain workers. The piece is part of a series leading up to the Florida primary elections covering issues of interest to the state. It is scheduled to air on “The Situation Room” program sometime this week."

About Harkin's legislation

What can we make of Sen. Harkin's produce safety legislation? In some senses, it seems to deliver what United, PMA and other elements of the industry have been asking for - strong, nationwide federal oversight of produce safety that also accounts for imports. On the other hand, industry leaders (note Tom Stenzel's earlier statement on the blog) are cautious that the legislation may be over prescriptive and inflexible. Some believe food safety regulations should come from FDA, not Congress.

Given the short time frame for enacting the farm bill, I don't think there is any way that this produce safety legislation will be attached to the farm bill - yet that seems to be a concern among some.

Here is an audio clip from the panel of industry leaders I moderated Tuesday at the FFVA convention. The question featured in this clip is the panel's reaction to Sen. Harkin's then pending produce safety legislation. I apologize the audio quality isn't that great. You will find the panel is concerned about potential legislation that represents a knee-jerk reaction by Capitol Hill, legislation that doesn't take into account what industry has already done and legislation that would be linked to the farm bill. The industry leaders on the panel are: Tom Nassif, president of Western Growers; Emanuel Lazopoulos, chairman of the United Fresh Produce Association; Mike Stuart, president of FFVA; and John McClung, president of the Texas Produce Association.

Charles Bronson speaks at FFVA

Here is the audio link to Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson at the FFVA convention Sept. 18. Bronson addresses the distrust that some members of Congress feel about the specialty crop block grants program, largely based on the fact that some states didn't accurately account for previous funds disbursed under the program.. He praises Mike Stuart in his role as co-chair of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance and also speaks about the farm to fuel program in Florida. Bronson also talked about the pending nosedive of the rural economy if Congress does not act soon on comprehensive immigration reform. "Sides have been taken to the point no one is willing to move," he said.

"If you want to see the food supply of this country taken over by foreign counties...(lack of action by Congress) will cause the economy in the state of Florida fall like they have never seen."

TK; Here is an audio clip of the presentation of the award for the George F. Sorn Scholarship. The award is presented to a child of a farm worker in Florida. It was heartwarming to hear this young lady speak and to see George Sorn present her the award with her family. She (Nanci Palacios) graduated with a 5.0 grade point average and well proves the contributions and value of both farm workers and their families in the U.S.

Harkin and DeLauro statements

Just wrapped up the morning meetings here at the FFVA. Round table discussion with John McClung, Mike Stuart, Tom Nassif and Emanuel Lazopoulos illustrated many points of agreement on food safety, the farm bill, pest issues and immigration. The industry is still not totally in sync on where to next on food safety, whether that means federal marketing order, FDA regulation, legislation or state-based program. There are many uncertainties, to be sure. Meanwhile, the Dole lettuce recall prompted this statement today from Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa.
Here is the statement:


Harkin: Latest American Recall
Has International Implications

Senate legislation to be introduced later this week

Washington, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, today issued the following statement on the recall of Dole's Hearts Delight bagged salad due to E. coli O157:H7 contamination. Eighty-eight cases - or 528 bags – of the bagged salad were distributed in Canada and 755 cases containing 4,530 bags in the U.S., according to Dole.

“From bagged salad with E. coli to spinach that contains Salmonella, food safety is increasingly becoming a concern for American consumers as they visit the produce aisle,” said Harkin. “Not only is this a concern for domestic producers and consumers, but now we’re seeing American produce recalls have international implications. It is long past time for Congress to act and later this week, I intend to introduce legislation to restore confidence in American produce and the agency that regulates it.”

Harkin is preparing to reintroduce legislation he has previously proposed to set up a national program that would require food safety practices for growing and processing fresh produce at most risk of causing foodborne illness.



And from Rep. Rosa DeLauro

DeLauro Welcomes Additional Voice in Supporting
Stronger Food Safety System
Announces Upcoming Hearing to Address Import Safety

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (Conn.-3) issued the following statement welcoming the proposal for improved food safety from the Grocery Manufacturers Association.

The proposal, as well as the federal government’s ability to ensure the safety of food imports, will be addressed at an oversight hearing on food imports Tuesday, September 25, 2007 at 10:30 AM in Room 2362A of the Rayburn Building (witness list forthcoming). DeLauro chairs the House Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration Appropriations Subcommittee, with jurisdiction and oversight responsibilities of food safety operations and its budget.

“Momentum is clearly growing for strengthening and modernizing our nation’s food safety system. I welcome the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s proposal to improve the inspection of imported foods and ingredients and look forward to closely reviewing the details of the proposal during the hearing next week.

“Given the major recalls this year, their announcement today sends a very strong message that the industry recognizes the inadequacy of voluntary measures to protect public health and reassure American consumers that their food is safe. It is yet one more voice highlighting the need to change our system to one that seeks to minimize hazards by applying science based controls and focus our system on preventing food-borne illness not just reacting when outbreaks occur.”

What's next?

I'm in Boca Raton for the FFVA convention, hot on the heels of the WPPC. As I opened up my email inbox, I found plenty of headlines about the Dole recall. Should be an eventful and memorable day tomorrow as food safety will be the subject of one workshop and I will moderate a group of industry leaders on discussions about the farm bill, immigration, food safety and pest issues. While many questions remain (where was the product sourced from being the chief among them) this recall may certainly give momentum to produce safety legislation and calls into question whether the leafy greens marketing agreement can win the confidence of consumers.

Canada announces recall on Dole product From The Packer's coverage by John Chadwell
(Sept. 17) The Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, issued a nationwide recall of Dole Hearts Delight bagged lettuce on Sept. 16 after a routine inspection discovered E. coli O157:H7, two days after the one-year anniversary of a similar recall of Dole-brand bag of spinach in the U.S.Rene Cardinal, acting national manager for the fruits and vegetable program of CFIA, said a single bag of the Dole salad blend of romaine, green leaf and butter lettuce hearts from a Loblaw’s supermarket tested positive for the pathogen.“We are talking with Dole to try to determine how wide the distribution is in Canada,” he said on Sept. 17. “The product was tested a week ago and it took five days to get the results back. We announced a nationwide recall September 16.”Cardinal said the agency is working with Dole, Monterey, Calif., to monitor the removal of the product from store shelves and the effectiveness of the recall. As of Sept. 17, there were no illnesses linked to the lettuce.The implicated product lot bears the UPC code 0 71430 01038 9 with a “best if used date” of Sept. 19, and a lot code of A24924B.Calif. Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, called A. G. Kawamura, agriculture secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture about the recall.“I am very concerned that any produce subject to the leafy greens marketing agreement could make it not only to store shelves but into a foreign nation’s distribution system before contamination was found,” Florez said in a Sept. 17 statement. “If this is California produce, we will expect to see that an effective traceback was in place to allow us to determine exactly what happened and who is responsible, as promised in the (California Leafy Green Products Marketing Agreement). I’m sure the public is as interested as I am in seeing what type of penalties will be applied under the marketing agreement to effect real change in industry behavior.”

Dole press release about recall From the release:
To date, Dole has received no reports that anyone has become sick from eating these products. The recall is occurring because a sample in a grocery store in Canada was found through random screening to contain E. coli O157:H7.

Coverage from The Ottawa Citizen From the story:
The affected packages contain romaine and green leaf lettuce and butter lettuce hearts."Don't play Russian roulette," said Rene Cardinal, national manager of the fresh fruit and vegetable program at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. "If you have it in your home, destroy it." Cardinal added that not all bags are necessarily contaminated, "but don't take any chances."

Doug Powell of K-State's Food Safety Network passes along this press release from Calif. Senator Dean Florez, D-Shafter.
Press Release
SACRAMENTO--Senator Dean Florez, D-Shafter, today called on the Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture to provide his office with details on the latest recall of leafy greens grown in the United States, this recall announced by our neighbors to the north in Canada over fears of E. coli contamination.Less than three weeks ago, California grower Metz Fresh recalled 8000 cartons of spinach -- which had already been delivered to stores -- over concerns of salmonella contamination.Today, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is warning consumers not to eat Dole brand Hearts Delight bagged lettuce with a “best if used by date” of September 19, which the agency warns Canadians “may have been distributed nationally” and is believed to be contaminated with E. coli 0157:H7 bacteria. Infection by E. coli bacteria can lead to permanent kidney damage or even death, particularly in vulnerable populations such as the elderly and very young children.Florez, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Food-borne Illness, called on CDFA secretary A.G. Kawamura to inform the committee immediately whether or not the lettuce in question was grown in California and, if so, whether or not the grower was a signatory to the Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement proposed by industry as a self-regulatory approach to food safety.After two outbreaks of E. coli from California leafy greens killed at least three people and sickened hundreds nationwide in 2006, Florez authored legislation to regulate the industry.The leafy green industry fought the legislation and pushed for a “voluntary food safety program.” Despite the industry’s previous failure to act on multiple warnings from the Food and Drug Administration regarding nearly two dozen outbreaks, the Assembly Agriculture Committee shelved Florez’s legislation in favor of giving industry one more chance to self-police.“I am very concerned that any produce subject to the leafy greens marketing agreement could make it not only to store shelves but into a foreign nation’s distribution system before contamination was found,” Florez said. “If this is California produce, we will expect to see that an effective traceback system was in place to allow us to determine exactly what happened and who is responsible, as promised in the LGMA. I’m sure the public is as interested as I am in seeing what type of penalties will be applied under the marketing agreement to effect real change in industry behavior.”Dear Secretary Kawamura:I am writing to express my continued concern regarding the safety of leafy green produce grown in California. Less than three weeks have passed since the recent salmonella contamination incident, which the Department has yet to provide adequate response to the Committee’s inquiry. Today, the Canadian Government has issued a nationwide recall of Dole Brand ready to eat salad mix due to possible E. coli 0157:H7 contamination. It is my understanding that the recalled produce was grown in the United States.I am concerned because the Canadian Government recently announced that it would only allow the import of California leafy green produce that is subject to the LGMA. The issuance of a nationwide recall by the Canadian Government is also significant because during the last E. coli 0157:H7 spinach outbreak, the Canadian Government closed their market to foreign leafy green produce. This caused a significant negative impact on California growers. As we move forward it is clear that there is a serious question of confidence in California’s leafy green produce industry.Accordingly, please identify whether the produce subject to the Canadian Government’s national recall was grown in California. This should be easy to determine quickly given the LGMA requires the use of a “trace-back system.” This information should be provided to the Committee immediately upon determination.If the contaminated produce was produced in California, please provide the Committee with the following information:
1) Whether the processor was a signatory to the LGMA.
2) Whether the processor had any testing program in place, and if so why the testing program failed to prevent the contaminated produce from reaching the marketplace, foreign or otherwise.
3) Whether the packaging containing the contaminated spinach bears the official seal of the Leafy Green Marketing Agreement. In the event that the packaging does not bear the seal, please provide an explanation as to why, given that the seal is the only manner for consumers to identify whether a grower is a signatory to the Leafy Green Marketing Agreement and was touted as a cornerstone of the agreement.
4) Whether the processing plant and the fields that grew the contaminated lettuce have been inspected pursuant to the LGMA. If so, please provide the date of the inspection and the results of the investigation, detailing any violations or shortcomings identified. Please provide any documents generated during the inspection process.
5) Whether the grower and/or handler will be subject to punitive action under the LGMA, and what those penalties may entail.
6) What specific actions will be taken by the Leafy Green Marketing Agreement Board in light of this incident.Given the seriousness of the situation, as demonstrated by a foreign government issuing a nationwide recall on specified U.S. produce, please provide a response no later than 1pm on Thursday, September 20, 2007.
Sincerely,
DEAN FLOREZ
Chair, California Senate Select Committee on Food-Borne Illness

Some pics

Headed home soon. Here are a couple of shots from yesterday. Top Ag Secretary Mike Johanns touring show floor with Emanuel Lazopoulos. Below, Mike Stuart of FFVA asking Johanns a question after speech by Johanns in hospitality center.

PBH Marketing Overview brand launch

Here is another audio file from March 17 PBH Board of Trustees meeting. This provides an overview of comprehensive marketing strategy for the brand launch of Fruits and Veggies - More Matters.. Ray Gilmer, formerly with FFVA and now with BASF speaks extensively here.

Fresh Express logic

Here is the link to the Fresh Express statement about their decision to participate in the California leafy greens marketing agreement.

This is a welcome decision of course, but we should be reminded the industry is far from where it wants to be. As Mike Stuart of the FFVA was telling me the other day, the industry's sometimes divergent approaches to food safety - marketing agreement, marketing order, federal oversight, etc. - must be melded. While a food safety marketing agreement may be considered a "building block," what will the finished architecture look like? That's the medium and long term challenge for industry leaders.

H2A growth

I have been making some calls today about the H2A program, the guest worker program for agriculture. Despite the program's flaws , which include high wages and heavy paperwork jams - growers facing worker shortages are turning to the program in bigger numbers. Department of Labor statistics for fiscal year 2006 show that 59,112 workers were certified for the H2A program, up from 44,619 workers in fiscal year 2004 and just 19,500 workers certified in 1997.

Usage of H2A should reflect another strong uptick this year. Mike Stuart of the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association said ag employers there using the association's H2A services brought in only a few hundred guest workers last year. "We've seen a dramatic increase of our members use of the program in the last six to twelve months....essentially about an eight to ten fold increase in utilization of it," he said. Stuart said 3,000 to 4,000 H2A workers are being utilized by FFVA members in Florida this year.

TK: Obviously, enforcement actions against undocumented workers and the resulting labor shortages in fruit and vegetable fields have heightened the interest in the guest worker program. The future of the agricultural workforce appears to be with H2A, making AgJobs reforms that would add flexibility and ease of use of the program that much more urgent.