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August 9, 2007
·
Chili growers feeling the heat of cheap imports
· Urban approach to veggie farming reaps success
·
Growers take advantage of weed-burning technology
·
Scientists purify biodiesel made from veggie oil
· Natural fungicide gives hope to US garlic growers
Chili growers feeling the heat of cheap imports
(LCsun-news.com)
Growers say the sight, however, could become
much less common in upcoming years, as the chile industry faces rising manpower
costs and increasing competition from
Some say a downward trend in
"Our harvested acreage reached a peak in
1992 at 34,500 acres, and last year it was down to 13,800 acres," said
Terry Crawford, agriculture economics professor at
Crawford said
Crawford said those imports add low-cost
chile to the market, essentially capping how much local farmers can earn. At
the same time, he said, growers face rising fuel and labor costs.
"So the farmers are getting squeezed two
ways," he said.
ncluding
"We've increased significantly since the
early '90s," he said.
In January and February of each year, farmers
work out contracts with chile processors. These agreements define the amount of
chile farmers will produce for the season and how much the processor will pay
them for it. If processors' offers aren't high enough, farmers opt not to grow
the crop.
In
Crawford said declining chile production has
been a general trend in
Mesilla farmer John Clayshulte, who farms
cayenne peppers, said he hasn't cut back on his acreage so far. However, he
said, earning a profit will become difficult in upcoming years as a series of
minimum wage hikes mandated by the state go into effect.
"If we don't get a price increase (from
processors), I'll quit growing it," he said.
Agricultural workers were excluded from a
state law calling for the wage increases, but some farmers have said they'll be
forced to pay higher wages to compete with other industries for workers.
Cervantes said increasing competition from
other countries and higher operations costs could hurt the state's chile
industry.
"It's a $400 million industry to the
state annually and provides for about 5,000 jobs on the processing side,"
he said. "If the large companies, like Border Foods or ConAgra, move out
of area or out of the state, it would have a huge economic impact."
Cervantes said chile is one of the few crops
in the region that gains value after it's sold by the farmer because of
processing facilities in the area. Of the annual $400 million value, he said,
just $50 million of that comes from the sale of the crop to the processor.
Crawford said chile growers are seeking ways
to remain competitive.
"The industry is pushing hard on a
couple of fronts to mechanize harvests and thinning," he said.
"They're trying to reduce their costs to keep the profitability up."
Stephanie Walker, cooperative extension
specialist with nMSU, said the university is working with growers to develop
mechanical harvesters and equipment to remove chile stems — typically labor
intensive aspects.
"In addition, we have a group of
researchers looking at ways to increase chile yields," she said.
"They're looking for reasons why our chile yields aren't as high as
they've been in the past, which is another thing that really cuts into the
profitability for growers."
Urban approach to veggie farming reaps success
(RockyMountainNews.com)
ARVADA - Aaron Brachfeld and his wife, Mary Choate, have just harvested the
last of their summer vegetable crop, planted on several backyard plots rented
from homeowners scattered throughout this northwest suburb.
Most of the agricultural land just outside
"It's like that suit you have in the
back of your closet - it eventually comes back in style," said the
24-year-old Brachfeld, who operates his Coastalfields home-delivery business
with Choate.
The two met when they were studying
agriculture at
Nationwide, shoppers increasingly are paying
attention to the origins of their food. The "local food" trend has
created as much buzz as the organic movement.
The reasons range from concern about the
energy consumed in shipping food across the globe to worries about tainted food
imports from
"Local food has really touched a nerve
with consumers," said Samuel Fromartz, author of Organic Inc., a
book about how natural foods have moved from counterculture to mainstream.
"What's attractive to them is having really fresh food from someone who's
produced it - who they've actually met."
Proponents also say the food tastes better
because it is fresher. And in the case of Coastalfields, the variety suits.
"My husband is a very adventurous eater,
and we've eaten a lot of things this year that we've never eaten before,"
said Michelle Harwood, whose family splits its weekly delivery from
Coastalfields with her parents.
Harwood said she likes the idea of eating
what's available rather than buying a pineapple at the store that had to be
flown in from elsewhere.
Along with the usual suspects, such as squash
and beans, the Harwoods say they've been sprinkling alfalfa flowers on their
salads, eating mustard greens and adding some extra spice to sandwiches with
the flowers from shallots and onions.
Recipes are provided for those who have no
idea what to do with the produce they receive.
Coastalfields also has a cookbook that can be
downloaded for free from its site, coastalfields.com.
About 20 homes subscribe to a weekly service
- deliveries are free in an area that stretches from
The pair will harvest about $170,000 worth of
produce this year, although they will generate less revenue than that because
of the subscriber discounts they offer.
Those who subscribe by March pay $12 a week
for a quarter-bushel box of seasonal produce. The price goes up to $15 a week
once the season gets under way. Partial-season subscribers pay $20 a week for
the box.
Brachfeld says the eating habits of customers
are decidedly local. "People in
The business pays $2,000 for each of the
three acres it rents. It will expand to Agate this fall because that's the only
place with enough extra acreage at the right price.
When Coastalfields becomes more profitable,
it wants to move its larger operations closer to the city. In the meantime, it
will use vegetable oil to power its delivery truck. Sensing an opportunity, it
plans to sell the oil, too, through a venture called Bumblebee Energy.
Demand for home delivery has meant that
businesses such as the Lettuce Patch in
But Coastalfields sees its biggest
competition as the grocery store, where it hopes one day to be able to
distribute its produce.
"People want to buy their food at a
supermarket," Choate said.
Choate figures that if they work with other
farmers they can act like a bigger outfit, producing enough food to begin
supplying stores.
Toward that end, Coastalfields is forming an
association with other small farmers who follow the same unconventional methods
of growing produce.
Unlike conventional or organic farmers,
Brachfeld and Choate shun herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers of any kind.
They simply till the soil in the spaces between their plants, letting nature do
the rest.
Wearing a T-shirt printed with the word Squashbuckler,
Brachfeld says he's "in it for the money" because that's the way he
thinks farmers can "serve society best."
But Brachfeld and his wife are clearly
passionate about their approach to growing food, so much so that they teach
their customers and anyone else who's interested how to "farm" in
their backyards.
Aaron Schwartz gave it a try this year, but
he planted his crops on a plot of land that was too far away from his house.
Since he doesn't have a car, he couldn't tend to them on a regular basis.
"My crops did really poorly,"
admitted Schwartz, a 24-year-old
"It's become a necessity" because
of the environmental impact of shipping food from far away," Schwartz
said. "And some people trust local food more because they can see where
it's grown."
Growers take advantage of weed-burning technology
(FarmingUK.com)
– Recent advancements in Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) weed burner technology
has helped to make the process easier and quicker for farmers.
Thermoweed,
which launched the six-metre weed burner in the
Powered by Calor LPG, the LPG weed burner provides a more environmentally
friendly and economically viable alternative to the use of chemicals for weed
control. Thermoweed managing director, Richard Pearson believes the
modifications to the burner will help to improve productivity for farmers.
"Increased legislation and consumer pressure is forcing growers to look
for alternative methods to chemicals and we are continually investigating new
technologies which will enhance the burner's performance.
"The vaporization column under the canopy has been lowered helping to
minimise the effects of gusty winds. This has resulted in a stronger working
flame as the liquid gas is turned to vapour at a higher rate. The chains at the
front of the machine have been replaced with galvanized metal plates which
provide further protection from strong winds leading to cost savings for the
customer."
Calor LPG brings with it many benefits. Problems with chemicals such as having
to notify residents of intent to spray and the closure of footpaths, do not
arise with the LPG burner. It can be used in any weather, next to residential
properties, watercourses and rights of way - making it a more convenient and environmentally
friendly option for farmers. The burner can cover up to 24 hectares per
eight-hour day - making it much faster than the traditional two- metre burner.
Further developments are planned for the weed burners, which are manufactured
by Richard Western Limited for Thermoweed.
"Looking toward 2008, the weed burner will incorporate a three bed folding
burner and this deeper design will allow each crop bed to have its own separate
enclosed working area," concludes Richard.
Scientists purify biodiesel made from veggie oil
(News Wires) – A
group of Chemists from the
The team, led by Professor Andrew Abbott is
able to remove glycerol, the main by-product of vegetable oil-based biodiesel,
using ionic liquids made in part by vitamin B4 (choline chloride).
If left in biodiesel, glycerol (a syrupy
sugar alcohol) would damage engines but this technique simply washes it out of
the fuel. The ionic liquid developed by Professor Abbott uses a complex of
choline chloride with glycerol to extract more glycerol out of the biodiesel.
The
Professor Abbott commented: “We hope that
further research will optimise the ionic liquid recycling and recovery of the
glycerol. We are hoping to collaborate with a biodiesel producer to test this
technology further.”
Natural fungicide gives hope to US
(UC Davis) – The bulb that made
to make a comeback in
by
nation's garlic, has declined dramatically in recent years from
"white rot," a rapidly spreading, persistent soil fungus that
destroys garlic, onions and related plants. Statewide, growers have
abandoned garlic production on more than 13,000 acres of prime
farmland in the
celebrates its annual garlic festival this weekend, only 500 acres of
garlic remain in cultivation.
However, a commercially developed natural fungicide, tested in recent
years by UC Davis plant pathologist Mike Davis and other UC
scientists, has proven to be 95 percent to 99 percent effective in
controlling the virulent fungus. The garlicky-smelling
sulfur-containing compound known as DADS, for diallele disulfide, is
found naturally in garlic and onions. It acts as a biostimulant when
applied to the soil, tricking white rot into germinating. Then, in
the absence of a crop, the fungus quickly dies. Researchers are
hopeful that DADS will provide growers with a reduced-risk tool in an
integrated control program for white rot.
"I'm optimistic that this fungicide will enable growers to produce a
profitable crop on infested fields,"
our research, a demonstration project beginning this fall, will focus
on how this compound performs in a commercial field."
Department of Pesticide Regulation. He has tested the product at a
variety of locations, including the
Intermountain Research and Extension Center in
northern
"This research is of critical importance, given the pressures on our
industry," said Robert Ehn, technical manager for the
Garlic and Onion Research Advisory Board. "As white rot spreads, more
and more acreage is being forced out of production."
"We know this compound works," Ehn said of the new fungicide. "That's
not the issue. This is not a conventional pesticide as it must be
used at least a season in advance of planting an allium crop. We need
to see how it fits into a farm rotation, and that requires the
university's help through evaluation of commercial plots and meetings
with growers."
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation recently announced
funding for a two-year project to demonstrate how DADS can be used in
growers' fields in combination with other fumigants. The project
could be a major boost for
than 50,000 acres of garlic and onions worth more than $300 million
each year.
End Transmission