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October 10, 2008
· No bailout for Florida tomato growers
· Filipinos testing ‘mysterious’ wood vinegar
· USDA awards $28M for specialty crop research
· Fluorescent markers make corn sorting easier
· Organic grower finds success in biodiversity
No bailout for US tomato growers
(MiamiHerald.com) – Florida tomato growers and packers like Billy Don Grant are going to have keep dreaming about any compensation from the federal government to offset the millions they lost due to this summer's salmonella outbreak.
While Congress was busy bailing out the financial services
industry, efforts to seek compensation for the tomato growers died -- at least
for this year and potentially for good -- during the closing weeks of the
session. Growers in
''This was outside of our control and we had nothing to do
with it,'' said Grant, whose
Grant and others in North Florida were among the hardest hit
of
U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney,
In the waning days of the session, there was an attempt to
add the growers assistance into the massive Congressional Appropriations bill
that provides ongoing funding for all government activities through the end of
the year. But that ran into a roadblock from one or more senators who have been
critical of the
The agreements typically call for workers to earn an additional penny per pound for the tomatoes they pick, money that would be paid by the fast-food chains. But the growers have refused to participate in those agreements, and without their participation the deals have not been implemented.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, Ind-Vt., made it known that he wouldn't support any legislation that included compensation for the tomato growers because of the conflict over worker wages.
Michael Briggs, a spokesman for Sanders, said the senator
felt the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange came to
''Sen. Sanders is less than sympathetic to bailing out an industry which pays its workers abysmal wages, has been involved in a number of cases of human slavery and continues to adamantly oppose all efforts to improve the lives of some of the most exploited workers in America,'' Briggs said in a statement. ``The Florida Tomato Growers Exchange needs to clean up its house before it asks for a taxpayer bailout.''
Although Sanders' objections weren't the only issue, it certainly may have been a final straw at a time when Congressional leaders couldn't afford to let major legislation get bogged down in extraneous debate.
A spokeswoman for the Coalition for Immokalee Workers did not respond Wednesday afternoon to a request for comment.
The point Sanders and others may have missed is that
Also, even within
''It's sad that they've linked a labor dispute from a group that doesn't represent a majority of the workers and allowed them to overshadow a major screw-up by the federal government that harmed an entire industry,'' said Bob Spencer of West Coast Tomato in Palmetto. ``It's typical Congress. Politicians just love to grandstand. We're not going to sit around waiting on them. We're just going to go back to work and try to survive as an industry.''
Mahoney still holds out hope of trying again for the growers -- as long as he is reelected in November.
''I was disappointed that our efforts to get tomato growers
compensated for their losses did not succeed this session,'' Mahoney said in a
statement. ``I will work with my colleagues next session to reintroduce
legislation so that we can preserve jobs in this industry, which are critical
for
Filipinos testing ‘mysterious’ wood vinegar
(Sun.Star) – IT CAN kill insects and fungus. It controls microorganisms' germination. It eliminates noxious odor in fecal discharges of animals. These are only some of the things that this mysterious liquid can do.
This liquid is one component of the project for better farm
income by the organic-based vegetable production in the
It is being implemented by the Japan Agricultural Exchange
Council (JAEC), Department of Agriculture (NAFC, BSWM, BPI, ATI, AMAS, FOS,
DA-RFU-CAR), Japan Agricultural Exchange Council Alumni Association (JAECAAP),
Benguet State University (BSU),
The supporting agencies are the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) and rural-based organizations.
The mysterious liquid
Wood vinegar is a by-product of a "dry distillation-cooling down-condensation" process of organic materials, which include wood, coconut shell, bamboo, grass, etc. In the demonstration project in Alno, bamboos and coconut shells are being used.
These organic materials undergo dry distillation turning them into organic substances as water, carbon dioxide and smoke. These substances will be cooled down and condensed to come up with the wood vinegar that has pH 2 to 3 and 10 to 20 percent organic compounds with over 200 chemical substances.
Content of the Wood Vinegar
In a study done, the wood vinegar contains 200 chemical substances which include: organic acids (formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, etc); phenol group; carbonyl group (formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, etc.); alcohol (ethanol, methanol, etc); neutral materials (levoglucosan, acetol, maltol, etc); base (acidic substances like ammonia, methylamine, dimethylamine, etc.)
However, they have not found all chemical properties and actions of the wood vinegar yet. Many researchers are still doing further studies on the mysterious liquid.
Uses of the mysterious liquid
According to Jay Sano, manager of the wood vinegar and charcoal demonstration project, wood vinegar is primarily used in composting in the region. It is sprayed or sprinkled in the soil to enhance decomposition. It also serves as soil conditioner enhancing beneficial microorganisms.
It is also utilized as insect and pest repellant. However, it should be allowed to settle for four to six months because it is too concentrated.
Finally, it is used as odor eliminator especially in the composting site. It is being sprayed on the composed and mixed.
Meanwhile, the JAEC is continuously introducing the wood vinegar technology to the farmers in the Cordillera. It is being done through trainings.
The wood vinegar and charcoal demonstration is a two-year project. It is continuously producing the liquid, which is being sold to farmers at a reasonable price.
USDA awards $28M for specialty crop research
(USDA) – WASHINGTON, - Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer today announced that USDA has awarded more than $28 million through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) to solve critical specialty crop agriculture issues, address priorities and solve problems through multifunctional research and extension.
The Specialty Crop Research Initiative was established by the 2008 Farm Bill to support the specialty crop industry by developing and disseminating science-based tools to address needs of specific crops and their regions in five focus areas: 1) improve crop characteristics through plant breeding, genetics and genomics; 2) address threats from pests and diseases; 3) improve production efficiency, productivity and profitability; 4) develop new innovations and technologies and 5) develop methods to improve food safety. Each of the focus areas received at least 10 percent of the available funds. The majority of the funded projects address two or more focus areas.
The funded projects address research and extension needs for crops that span the entire spectrum of specialty crops, from sustainable production systems for turf grass to mechanical fruit thinning devices for peach and apple. Except for projects that addressed plant breeding, genetics and genomics of specific crops, successful applicants simultaneously addressed needs in more than a single crop. Major projects were also funded to protect important specialty crops from invasive pests, such as Citrus Greening.
Although 17 institutions will manage the research/extension grant funds from this program, each award includes collaborators from an average of three other states who will work together in a multi-disciplinary approach to solve problems. All of the awards required 100 percent matching funds from non-federal sources which will double the impact of the award dollars.
Fiscal Year 2008 SCRI research and extension grants were awarded to:
* University of California-Davis, $3,221,134: Advanced Sensing and Management to Optimize Water and Nitrogen Use in Tree Crops.
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* USDA/ARS U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory (FL), $991,591: Development of a Decision Support System for Managing Viral Watermelon Vine Decline and Other Vegetable Diseases Caused by Whitefly-Transmit.
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* USDA/ARS Pacific
Basin Agricultural Research Center (HI), $437,000: Ohelo, Vaccinium
reticulatum, A Specialty Ornamental and Value Added Crop from
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* USDA/ARS Beltsville Area Research Center (MD), $1,000,000: Generating Genomic Tools for Blueberry Improvement.
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* The
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* The
* USDA/ARS Kika de la Garza Subtropical Agricultural Research Center (TX), $493,290: Development of an Area-Wide Approach for Controlling Infection and Spread of HLB of Asian Citrus Psyllid.
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* USDA/ARS
* USDA/ARS
The 2008 awards included a group of planning grants that will enable awardees to develop quality proposals for future SCRI funding opportunities. The FY 2008 planning grants were awarded to:
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* University of California-Davis, $99,994: A Multitasking Sensor Platform for Precision Management of Specialty Crop Production.
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* The
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Through federal funding and leadership for research, education and extension programs, CSREES focuses on investing in science and solving critical issues impacting people's daily lives and the nation's future. For more information, visit www.csrees.usda.gov.
Fluorescent markers make corn sorting easier
(USDA-ARS) – Kernels of corn are made up of three main parts: the plant embryo, the endosperm surrounding the embryo, and the hard outer pericarp. These different seed components are used in food, animal feed and industrial products.
Now a group of researchers has created experimental corn
lines with visible markers that can simplify sorting through these distinctive
kernel tissues.
Geneticist Paul Scott works in the Agricultural Research Service Corn Insects
and Crop Genetics Research Unit in
GFP was first isolated in a single species of jellyfish. It has since been
cloned and used safely in a wide range of scientific investigations in plants
and animals.
Corn processors currently identify and measure different grain tissues using a
range of markers. However, they would benefit from tools or techniques that
would allow them to measure fractionated corn seed tissues more easily and
accurately.
The research team developed transgenic corn lines containing GFP as either an
embryo or an endosperm marker. They checked for GFP levels by using an
instrument that measures lightwave emissions from the fluorescent corn tissues.
In one line they developed, 100 percent of the GFP fluorescence was found in
the endosperm. In another line, about 67 percent of the GFP fluorescence was
found in the embryo.
Afterwards, the group hand-dissected about 100 grams of transgenic kernels and
identified GFP concentrations in the pericarp, embryo and endosperm tissues.
This gave them baseline levels to use for identifying different tissues during
the fractionation processes.
The researchers then dry-milled transgenic corn and produced separate grain
fractions from the pericarp, endosperm and embryo. They succeeded in
determining GFP fluorescence levels for each one. But most important, they were
also able to easily identify the mix of tissues in each--a process that
typically is expensive and time-consuming.
These results indicate that transgenic lines of corn containing GFP could be
used to optimize existing fractionation methods and improve processing
techniques. They can also support a variety of corn-related research projects,
including studies on nitrogen use and grain development.
Organic grower finds success in biodiversity
DUNGENESS, Wash. (AP) - "To see things in the seed, that is genius."
So said Lao Tzu, the sixth-century sage who started that craze called Taoism.
A flock of farmers and other curious folk recently followed
the
It was a farm walk through the Nash's Organic Produce
fields, co-sponsored by
The field's wheat waved as Huber strode in. Calling the stalks "long and leggy," he explained that this crop, an experiment exploring which kinds of wheat grow best around Sequim, epitomizes the future of farming here.
Huber, 67, started growing vegetables here about four
decades ago; these days he and his 30 employees are reaping the rewards of the
organic-food movement that has spread across the nation. Nash's carrots,
strawberries and dozens of other products are beloved at farmers' markets and
food stores from here to
But he and his young bunch of farm workers also sow their energies into seed crops and grain, though those don't turn a profit as fast as, say, the fancy arugula.
Life, when it's good, is all about biodiversity, Huber said, his hands grazing soft white and hard red wheat varieties.
"You can't hammer a piece of land" by growing the same crop in it year after year, "or you're going to get in trouble," he said. To keep the soil healthy, he and his crew rotate crops, exchange vegetables for grains, and use much of their grain as a ground-nourishing cover crop.
Besides wheat, Nash's grows barley, buckwheat, oats and rye. And the rye loves North Olympic Peninsula winters, Huber said.
As for the trial wheat field planted this year, Huber made no pronouncements on Monday on which varieties are looking the best. But he said his farm will continue to be a testing ground for other grain and seed crops.
Scott Chichester, one of the managers at Nash's, grew up in
the
"We're in the middle of one of the best seed-growing
regions we could possibly have,"
That doesn't mean organic seed farming is easy, especially now when many of the money crops are ripening fast.
"When it comes down to harvest time and everything else is going on ... we're still trying to keep the weeds down and the aphids off" the seed crops.
"Growing seeds doesn't really pay" monetarily,
Nash's breeds hybrid seeds in the traditional way, he said, but the farm will have nothing to do with genetically modified crops. The latter are a laboratory product, while everything on land owned or leased by Huber is organically grown.
The eat-locally movement is picking up velocity, he and Huber say, as fuel costs drive up the price of foreign food.
"There's this landmark in Sequim,"
"It's a grain elevator. That tells me we might be in a decent location," he said with a wry grin.
Huber, in the wheat field surrounded by blooming sunflowers, rows of scarlet runner beans and people hanging on his every word, reiterated wisdom learned from the Illinois farming family he grew up in.
"What's made our farm really successful," he said, "is the diversity of crops we grow."
Nash's is well-known across the nation as an organic operation; this spring Huber became the first organic grower to win the American Farmland Trust's Steward of the Land award. The prize, which the trust has bestowed for the past 12 years, highlighted Huber as an inspiration to the coming-up contingent of American farmers.
On Monday, Huber said his job now is to "pass what I've learned on to the next generation." But like everything else in farming, that's not simple. "Letting go," he said. "can be one of the major challenges in life."
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