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February 25, 2011
· Crop boom not enough to rebuild supplies
· Cold casualties run high for fresh veggies
· Protection sought for New Mexican chile
· Scientist questions the safety of Roundup
· Farming by smart phone; an app for that too
Crop boom not enough to rebuild supplies
(Reuters via Yahoo! News) ARLINGTON, Virginia – Huge U.S. corn and soybean plantings this spring will likely fail to refill razor-thin stocks enough to quell the surge in grain prices, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday.
In updated forecasts for the world's biggest crop exporter, the USDA warned that it could take several years to restore inventories to comfortable levels. It mostly maintained earlier forecasts on how many acres farmers would sow this spring, but said stocks at the end of the 2012 season would remain tight.
The U.S. government's forecasts are likely to fuel more concern globally that high prices could persist far longer than they did in 2008 when they hit record highs, as supplies remain too thin to cope with any further weather disasters.
"While it is often said the cure for high prices is high prices, even with additional supplies expected this year, it is likely that the tight stocks-to-use situation will not be entirely mitigated over the course of one or even two growing seasons," USDA Chief Economist Joseph Glauber told the department's annual outlook conference on Thursday.
The planting forecasts were unchanged from the department's projections made earlier this month, when it projected 92 million acres of corn -- the second largest since 1944 -- and 78 million acres of soybeans, a record amount. Analysts had expected the agency to trim both forecasts marginally.
LITTLE CUSHION IN
The greater surprise was in projections for tight ending stockpiles for 2011/12. While both corn and soybean ending stocks will be higher than this year's levels -- with corn forecast to be the smallest since 1996 and soybeans amounting to a few week's supply -- they suggest very little cushion for unexpected shortfalls.
"It should be bullish all around even though the USDA stuck to their higher estimates than I probably would have done," said Jack Scoville, analyst for Price Futures Group.
"It seems to me they're implying some very strong demand here because the ending stocks estimates remain pretty tight, really across the board," he added.
USDA said 2012 corn ending stocks would rise by 28 percent to a still-thin 865 million bushels, and soybeans stocks by 14 percent to 160 million bushels.
But USDA cut its outlook from a forecast made earlier this month for corn stocks by 23 percent and soybeans by 16 percent for 2012.
Contributing to the slim stocks will be soaring exports, which are expected to rise $9 billion this year to a record $135.5 billion.
"Today there are 7 billion mouths to feed and many of them depend on American agriculture," Debbie Stabenow, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, told the USDA's annual outlook conference.
While the tight stocks figures were bullish, grain futures
at the Chicago Board of Trade fell on Thursday as investors continued to
liquidate positions and seek safer havens on concerns over the turmoil in the
CORN FOR ETHANOL AT RECORD HIGH
Ethanol makers are expected to consume a record 5 billion bushels of corn this year, or some 36 percent of the harvest.
Despite criticism that using food for fuel was driving up prices and contributing to thin stockpiles, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told the conference the government had no intention of scaling back on ethanol.
"There is no reason for us to take the foot off the gas," Vilsack told the conference. "This is a great opportunity for us because we can do it all, make no mistake about it."
Tight global commodity stockpiles have pushed food prices higher, contributing to political unrest in countries with high poverty rates and unemployment.
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton struck a more cautionary
tone on ethanol. "We have to become energy independent but we don't want
to do it at the expense of food riots,"
In the
"We're keeping an eye on this but I would suggest that as a result of what we went through in 2007 and 2008 we are better prepared to respond as a country and as a globe," Vilsack said.
But some analysts caution a bad crop in the
"There are speculators involved... but we've had the
perfect storm over the last two years, and if we don't have a great crop this
year in the
Cold casualties run high for fresh veggies
(QMI
Agency, Canada) –
Local restaurateurs have only one word for the red produce, and that's terrible.
Their disgust is well founded: Following what's being labelled an "Act of God" winter in Mexico, Texas and Florida, North America is entering a season of tomato crisis, marked by soaring prices and crashing quality.
It's the worst tomato shortage in a half century -- already, some restaurants have started pulling the popular fruit off their menus, in response to prices up to 300% higher for tomatoes of dubious taste and texture.
"As far as the Roma tomatoes go, they're absolutely
terrible, terrible, terrible," said Chef Angelo Contrada,
co-owner of Sugo Caffe
Italia in
"They look okay on the outside, but once you cut into them they're all dried out and there's nothing in them. And they're charging way, way too much."
He's not kidding. Over the past few weeks tomatoes have tripled in price due to the Mexican winter, which climaxed in a brutal early-February freeze that killed off 75% of the tomato crop.
Normally, the Mexican crop disaster -- described as the
worst in 50 years -- would send buyers north to
Add a frosty
"It's very expensive -- it's killing us," said Marco Abdi, owner of La Brezza restaurant in Bridgeland.
Special-order Roma tomatoes that were costing Abdi $20 for ten pounds only a few months ago are now running as high as $60 for the same quantity.
Sugo's Roma tomatoes, hand-selected by the head chef, have squeezed the restaurant's budget like a bottle of ketchup, going from $20 for a case to $57 on Wednesday.
Some food outlets have decided to weather the tomato storm by steering clear of the vine-grown produce altogether.
Burger giant Wendy's told QMI Agency that tomatoes will no
longer be included on its menu items except by special request and other
restaurants across
Relief isn't expected until mid-April when the
Until then, some food sellers will just go without.
That's all vine and dandy when the tomato is a garnish or side dish, but Italian restaurants can hardly remove the central staple of their national cuisine.
"We have no choice but to use them, because 80 percent of my dishes have tomatoes -- you name it, it's all tomatoes," said Abdi.
"It's a real challenge, because our customers expect taste and quality.
"They've been coming here for 25 years and you can't let them down."
Of course, what hurts the professional kitchen is bound to leave the cook at home crying Bloody Mary too.
Prices are predicted to soar at supermarkets as the supply is squeezed ever tighter, and because bad news always loves company, shoppers will soon discover tomatoes aren't alone.
Bell peppers, celery, cucumbers, green beans, lettuce, squash and spinach are among the produce crops punished by the unusually cold Mexican winter, and prices are expected to rise accordingly.
"Limes are really bad -- they're up about 300
percent," said Bruce McKenzie, owner of Riverbend
Station Pub in southeast
Before
But like other businesses with a menu heavy with tomatoes, the pub owner says he's cringing over the cost of a case, which went from $33 a few weeks back to $97 on the last invoice.
"They're expensive and they're not even very good -- they're green and yellow, instead of red," said McKenzie.
"But can't take them off the menu, because there are so
many items -- we just have to wait for
michael.platt@sunmedia.ca
GREEN LEAF LETTUCE
* Freeze damage is limiting
* Quality problems include epidermal blistering, discoloured peeling, wilting, and yellowing
ICEBERG LETTUCE
* supplies decreased dramatically, hiking prices, much smaller, blistering, discoloured and peeling
* Problems in Feb.
ROMAINE LETTUCE
* Prices rising; epidermal blistering, discoloured peeling, freeze damage, and tip burn
BELL PEPPERS
* Scarce supplies until March
* Mexican supplies to drop 70-80%
CELERY
* West Coast supplies limited
* Blistering, peeling and growth cracking widespread
CUCUMBERS
* Mexican supplies limited
*
* Prices elevated throughout March
TOMATOES
* Mexican,
* Market prices climbing rapidly
LIMES
* Prices jump; supply short
* Harvesting either delayed or halted
SQUASH
* There are shortages in
TENDER LEAF ITEMS
* Spring mix and spinach have frost damage, wilting, and yellow discolouration
* Shelf-life reduced due to cellular damage
GREEN BEANS
*
* Tight Mexican supplies will keep the market strong
Protection sought for New Mexican chile
(Las
Cruces Sun-News)
His bill seeks to punish restaurants, groceries and roadside
stands that lie about carrying
Nuñez, an independent from the chile capital of Hatch, said businesses that are careful to stock the homegrown product asked him to sponsor this bill.
For instance, Nuñez said, Bueno Foods of Albuquerque carries only
Charlie Marquez, representing the New Mexico Chile Association, said false claims by businesses have escalated as farmland devoted to chile has diminished.
In 1992, chile growers in
"We see cans of chile that say 'Hatch,' and that
product does not come from the
Like
Members of the House Agriculture and Water Resources Committee endorsed Nuñez's bill, though with a certain skepticism.
Rep. Don Tripp, R-Socorro, said he appreciated the intent behind the proposed New Mexico Chile Advertising Act. But, Tripp said, the proposed law could be "an impossible thing to audit or police."
Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, said Nuñez's bill had holes in it.
Namely, it mentioned only one type of chile pepper - the "fruit from Capsicum annuum, New Mexican-type."
Cervantes wondered if it also should include other New Mexico-grown peppers, such as jalapenos.
He also was wary of subjecting roadside fruit-and-vegetable stands to punishments under the state's deceptive trade act, as Nuñez proposes. Cervantes said such action could crush those businesses.
Under the bill, the regents of
Diaz Farms in Deming produces about 4,000 tons of green chile annually, but owner Eddie Diaz said he had not heard of Nuñez's bill until Monday.
Diaz said he also was unaware of businesses falsely claiming
that foreign chile was grown in
"We have customers who say, 'I want Hatch chile,' '' Diaz said. "That tells me they've done a good job of advertising Hatch, but we know Deming chile is good, too."
Marquez said nothing compares to iconic
"
Scientist questions the safety of Roundup
(Reuters via Yahoo! News) KANSAS CITY, Missouri – Questions about the safety of a popular herbicide made by Monsanto Co have resurfaced in a warning from a U.S. scientist that claims top-selling Roundup may contribute to plant disease and health problems for farm animals.
Plant pathologist and retired Purdue University professor Don Huber has written a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack warning that a newly discovered and widespread "electron microscopic pathogen appears to significantly impact the health of plants, animals, and probably human beings." He said the pathogen appears to be connected to use of glyphosate, the key ingredient in Roundup.
Huber coordinates a committee of the American Phytopathological Society as part of the USDA National Plant Disease Recovery System. He is a long-standing critic of biotech crops, such as Monsanto's "Roundup Ready" soybean and corn, which have been genetically altered to withstand treatments of Roundup herbicide.
In his letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Huber said the organism has been found in high concentrations of Roundup Ready soybean meal and corn, which are used in livestock feed. He said laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of the organism in pigs, cattle and other livestock that have experienced spontaneous abortions and infertility.
The organism is also prolific in corn and soybean crops stricken by disease, according to Huber.
"I believe the threat we are facing from this pathogen is unique and of a high risk status," Huber wrote. "In layman's terms, it should be treated as an emergency."
Monsanto scoffed at the allegations and said its own
research as well as independent field studies and tests by multiple
"Monsanto is not aware of any reliable studies that demonstrate Roundup Ready crops are more susceptible to certain diseases or that the application of glyphosate to Roundup Ready crops increases a plant's susceptibility to diseases," the company said in a statement.
EARLY STAGE FINDINGS
Huber said in his January 17 letter to the USDA that the findings were at an "early stage," but it appeared side effects of glyphosate use may have facilitated growth of the pathogen, or allowed it to cause greater harm to weakened plant and animal hosts.
He requested USDA participation in an investigation, and he urged a moratorium on approvals of Roundup Ready crops.
USDA officials declined to comment about the letter's contents.
"We're reviewing it, and will respond directly to Dr. Huber, rather than responding through the media," said USDA spokesman Andre Bell.
Roundup has long been a draw for critics, who say the herbicide promotes widespread weed resistance, or "super weeds."
"While the evidence is considered preliminary, the potential damage to humans and animals is severe," said Jeffrey Smith, executive director of the Institute for Responsible Technology.
There have been other alarms raised about Roundup, including a report last year from Argentine scientists who claimed that Roundup can contribute to birth defects in frogs and chickens.
Monsanto says the chemical binds tightly to most types of
soil, is not harmful and does not harm the crops. But some scientists say there
are indications of increased root fungal disease as well as nutrient
deficiencies in Roundup Ready crops. They say manganese deficiency in soybeans
in particular appears to be an issue in key
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said last year that it may review glyphosate for any adverse effects as part of a protocol to review products every 15 years.
But the agency had no immediate comment Thursday as to whether or not such a review would be undertaken.
Farming by smart phone; an app for that too
(Forbes.com) – Farming for geeks is about to get easier, thanks to a new software development platform pioneered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and coming soon to a corn-field near you.
The Object Modeling System (OMS), recently launched by the USDA, allows people anywhere in the world to develop software applications for running complex computer models in the cloud.
“OMS is a computer framework to easily create and update problem- or region-specific compatible models, using science modules chosen from a library. It provides a uniform system of evaluation and delivery of models to users,” Laj Ahuja, research leader at the Agricultural Systems Research Unit in Fort Collins, Colorado, said in a press release.
In the past, running models has been a laborious process. OMS improves the efficiency of using these model services for farmers by 90%. The framework includes several agro-environmental modules and models. Data embedded in resource maps for the area will be relayed to OMS-hosted model services to compute answers leading to recommendations for the resource problems the farmer has identified.
One of the “apps” being developed with OMS will allow farmers to estimate how much soil a field has lost during a heavy rain by simply clicking a few buttons on their cell phone. The “app” plugs the field’s coordinates into the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation version 2 (RUSLE2) model service, which calculates soil erosion under various conditions and scenarios and returns these estimates to the farmer’s cell phone.
“Computer models, managed in frameworks like OMS, coupled with field experiments and wireless delivery devices are the next frontier for agricultural research and technology transfer,” said Ahuja. “These frameworks harness the growing power of computer technology, enabling it to reach its full potential.”
End Transmission