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November 19, 2010
· Produce industry opposes food safety bill
· ‘Buckets of money’ in water investments
· Food production an economic bright spot
· Low grades in US for eating fruits, veggies
· World farming to get $200M in climate aid
Produce industry opposes food safety bill
(fruitnet.com) – Some 20 US-based produce organizations unite against proposal which would exempt many products from new safety rules
The United Fresh Produce Association and its produce industry allies (including the Produce Marketing Association) are building opposition to a proposed amendment of The Food Safety Modernization Act, which would exempt small farms and business operations from basic federal food safety requirements.
The Food Safety Modernization Act is designed empower the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to order food recalls, keep better track of fruit and vegetable shipments and setting standards for food manufacturers.
However, United Fresh said the amendment proposed by US
Senator Jon Tester of
“United Fresh joined today with 19 other produce organizations to send the Senate a strong statement of our opposition to the Tester amendment,” explained Robert Guenther, United’s senior vice-president of Public Policy.
“As stated in our letter, comments from Senator Tester and supporters are now making it abundantly clear that their cause is not to argue that small farms pose less risk, but to wage an ideological war against the vast majority of American farmers who devote their personal commitment to feeding 300 million Americans every day.
“We are appalled at statements by Senator Tester reported
today in the Capital Press that “small producers are not raising a commodity,
but are raising food”. Industrial agriculture, he said, takes the people out of
the equation. This is simply hogwash, and should insult not only the farmers of
“The consequences of inadequate food safety precautions have no boundaries as to size of operation, geography, nor whether the product is sold at a farm stand or grocery store. The consumer has a right to know that all food that they purchase has been produced, transported and offered for sale under the same food safety requirements.”
PMA said it also has “long and energetically” been engaged in efforts to modernise food safety laws to protect public health and enhance consumer confidence but now must oppose the bill since the recent changes are “not in keeping with our fundamental position of risk- and science-based food safety efforts”.
“The sad irony is that the amendment that exempts these small facilities will hurt small growers and processors – in the end causing them to lose market opportunities,” PMA explained in a statement. “What retailer or restaurant will buy unregulated food when regulated products are readily available?”
PMA said the amendment also weakens consumer protection because many products will not be subject to the new safety rules.
“Consumer confidence is essential to our industry, and having national safety standards for all is critical to building that confidence,” the organisation stated.
“We strongly urge the Senate to strip this provision from the bill or, failing that, to reject the bill. Should it pass, it is essential that this be dealt with in a conference with the House of Representatives, which passed a different bill more than a year ago.”
In addition to PMA, the following produce groups remain in opposition to the bill and its amendment: United Fresh Produce Association, American Mushroom Institute, Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, National Potato Council, National Watermelon Association, Produce Marketing Association, U.S. Apple Association, Western Growers, California Citrus Mutual, California Strawberry Commission, California Grape and Tree Fruit League, Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, Florida Tomato Exchange
Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association,
Northwest Horticultural Council,
‘Buckets of money’ in water investments
(Reuters via Gulf Times) – Water scarcity will generate big returns for the irrigation sector once climate change and population growth take their toll on farming, private equity managers have said.
Asked at an agriculture investing conference whether it is possible to make money from water, typically a public good rather than a bankable commodity, Judson Hill of NGP Global Adaptation Partners was unequivocal.
“Buckets, buckets of money,” he told the meeting of bankers
and investors in
Smart irrigation technology will be at a premium in arid
regions and places where higher crop yields are needed to meet rising food
demand, Hill said, also citing opportunities from water rights in
“Irrigation is a big industry and it is growing. I think
it’s going to grow dramatically,” he said, estimating the sector at $3.5bn
today. “In parts of the
Gary Taylor, a partner with AgriCura,
a fund focused on
“We have done extensive work to understand the aquifer
system along the
For agricultural equipment manufacturers such as John Deere, there are also opportunities in tailoring irrigation systems to drought-resistant seeds developed by companies such as Monsanto, Dupont and Syngenta.
“There are very efficient ways to approach irrigation,” said Cory Reed, John Deere’s director of strategic marketing, describing a need to water certain commodity crops with careful volumes on a fixed schedule.
Hill also named links with communities as critical to gaining traction in the “very, very local” water sector, where investments can involve negotiations with governments amid growing awareness about scarcity risks.
“The water business is very much like the energy business was 20 or 25 years ago,” he said. “As the price of water increases we are all going to become better stewards, not because we all become environmentalists but because it will affect our pocketbooks.”
Food production an economic bright spot
(AP
via Yahoo! News)
Across the nation, food producers are seeing enough growth that many are expanding and investing in new equipment.
For cheesemakers, dairy farmers and vegetable growers, the slow economy has brought opportunities to expand while construction costs are low. Food makers have also benefited from having products that consumers still buy in hard times and from ongoing efforts to open up new markets overseas.
The result is growth — both in sales and in facilities. The
expansions include cheese-making operations in
"Even in tough economic times, people are still going to buy groceries," said Barbara Gannon, a spokeswoman for Wisconsin-based Sargento Foods Inc.
While Chrysler, General Motors and other companies tied to
the auto industry have closed factories in recent years, Sargento
is among the food makers expanding there. It's adding a multi-million-dollar
building to its headquarters in
Sargento is the fifth local cheese company to expand in the past five years, Plymouth Mayor Don Pohlman said. Their growth makes his job easier when it comes to attracting other companies, he said.
"Businesses want to be around other businesses that are growing and expanding," Pohlman said. "The cheese industry here really helps me sell the city."
Unemployment in surrounding
Gannon said Sargento began considering expansion a few months ago to keep up with demand that has remained brisk even as the economy stalled. The company, which is best known for its cheddar, Swiss and provolone cheeses, had about $900 million in sales last year and projects about $950 million in sales this year, Gannon said.
Other cheese makers and distributors — from Vern's Cheese
Inc. in
That's because cheese is recession food, said John Umhoefer, the executive director of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association. People are eating more frozen pizzas, he said, or adding string cheese to the lunches they're increasingly packing at home.
"Even we didn't necessarily see this coming," Umhoefer said, "where a recession is a net positive for cheese sales."
Another reason companies are expanding now is that constructions costs have come down. Edith Knoespel, who owns Vern's Cheese with her husband, said their business hasn't fully recovered from a dip two years ago but it's come back enough that now is a smart time to grow. They expanded their retail store so the space that once held 10 customers can now fit 60.
"It's just a good time to invest in building costs right now," Knoespel said.
If it's a good time for construction, it's also apparently a good time to invest in heavy equipment.
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers is a Milwaukee-based industry group whose members includes companies like John Deere tractor maker Deere & Co.
Sales of 100-horsepower tractors, which cost about $75,000 to $100,000 each, were up 27 percent last month over the same month last year, said Charlie O'Brien, AEM's vice president of agricultural services. Combine sales also have been up.
"They're purchasing the equipment because there's pretty good optimism," O'Brien said of farmers who raise commodities such as corn, soybeans, wheat and rice. "There continues to be good demands for their commodities."
That's partly because
Food producers are "investing a lot of dollars here for
the long term," said Don Koivisto, the director
of
Low grades in US for eating fruits, veggies
(WebMD.com) – Five years after the launch of a national initiative aimed at getting us to eat more fruits and vegetables, Americans are barely getting a passing grade.
There has been some progress in improving access to fruits and vegetables, but it's not translating into Americans eating more of them -- the ultimate goal of the 2005 National Action Plan to Promote Health Through Increased Fruit and Vegetable Consumption. The plan was developed by the National Fruit & Vegetable Alliance, which is co-chaired by the CDC and the Produce for Better Health Foundation.
Only 6% of us eat enough vegetables and just 8% of us eat enough fruit every day, according to information cited in the new report card, which was released today.
"We have seen some improvement over the past five years and are moving in the right direction, but in terms of a macro grade for our country in increasing fruits and vegetable consumption, I would give us a D or a D minus," says Elizabeth Pivonka, PhD, RD, president of the Produce for Better Health Foundation, a nonprofit foundation in Hockessin, Del., that encourages Americans to eat more fruits and vegetable."We need to do far more to stop the negative trend."
The group calls for changes at the federal, state, school, and family level to boost access to fruits and vegetables including adding more salad bars in schools and adding more fruits and vegetables to menus in restaurants and workplace cafeterias, she says.
Parents can also do their part at home to encourage eating of fruits and vegetables. Pivonka says. "Have them readily available on the table or in the refrigerator, and involve kids in growing, selecting, or preparing fruits and vegetables and by setting a good example."
Childhood obesity is at an all-time high level and obesity-related diseases normally only seen in adults are now being diagnosed in children. There is momentum in getting kids to eat more fruit and vegetables, but 88% don't eat their daily recommended amount of fruit and 92% don't eat their daily recommended amount of vegetables, the new report card shows.
"Ultimately what we are looking to do is increase
consumption of fruits and vegetables, and we are making progress, but are we
making a difference in what people are eating? I'd give us a D to an F,
depending on the subgroup," says Laurence Grummer-Strawn,
PhD, the chief of the nutrition branch at the CDC in
All the grades weren't bad. There were a few A’s doled out in the new report card, including A’s for efforts to expand the program that provides free fresh fruit and vegetable snacks in schools, and introducing vouchers for fruits and vegetables as part of the Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infants and Children, as well as the launch of "Fruits & Veggies: More Matters" education campaign.
Experts agree that eating more fruits and vegetables is the best way to prevent cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.
"Eating well, exercising, and weight control are the
most important things we can do to reduce our cancer risk," says Colleen
Doyle, MS, RD, the nutrition director of the American Cancer Society in
It is important to eat whole fruits and vegetables as opposed to individual supplements. "They are packed with so many different phytochemicals and antioxidants, and it is really not clear which ones have the health benefits," she says. "Our advice is to eat a wide variety of colorful fruits and vegetables each day to reduce your risk of cancer."
This advice can also benefit cancer survivors, she says
"Being overweight is the leading modifiable risk factor for people with type 2 diabetes," says Stephanie Dunbar MS, RD, the director or nutrition and clinical affairs at the American Diabetes Association in Alexandria, Va. "A dietary pattern [in which] more than half of the diet is fruit and vegetables plays a critical role in preventing type 2 diabetes by assisting with weight management."
Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH, RD, LD, director of nutritionfor WebMD, agrees. "Fruits and vegetables are Mother Nature’s finest. They are super nutritious, loaded with disease-fighting antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and naturally fat free [and] should be the foundation of everyone’s diet," she says. "As a nation fighting the obesity battle, we need look no further than the produce section to arm ourselves with healthy food that tastes delicious, is filling, easy and very low in calories."
World farming to get $200M in climate aid
(Reuters
via Yahoo! News)
The funding will go to research on how to feed a growing, more affluent world population in the face of expectations of worsening floods and droughts.
"The food security challenge facing us as humans is
large," said Gerald Nelson, a senior research fellow with the
International Food Policy Research Institute in
By 2050 as a result of climate change, global "potential to produce food" could decline by 5 to 10 percent, after an average increase through 2020, said Andy Jarvis, an agriculture policy expert at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, based in Cali, Colombia.
Higher temperatures and more variable rainfall will produce agricultural winners and losers, especially favoring cooler, northern hemisphere countries that do not suffer food shortages.
"It shows globally there'll be greater inequity in production," said Bruce Campbell, head of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), which will help direct the new research programme.
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The programme will use an Australian climate model to look at how rising temperatures and rainfall changes affect 50 major crops worldwide including sorghum, millet, sweet potato, wheat, rice and maize.
Climate models point to accelerating declines in production of rain-fed wheat worldwide of 2.2 percent by 2020, 4 percent by 2050 and 18.6 percent by 2080, unless climate change is curbed or effective adaptive measures are put in place, scientists told reporters.
Early work shows that
In
Maintaining adequate food production in the face of climate pressures may require some societies to switch their staple crops, if varieties more tolerant of drought, floods and pests cannot be successfully developed, Jarvis said.
In one example of how to increase production and cut greenhouse gases at the same time, herders could curb emissions of methane from their livestock and as much as triple milk and meat production by grazing animals on specialized grass species rather than wild pasture.
Agriculture produces between 20 and 33 percent of the world's carbon emissions, depending on whether the conversion of forests to farmland is included, scientists say.
The project aimed to reduce poverty by 10 percent by 2050 in
targeted "hot spot" regions in Africa and
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