Author Archive
Young adults can preserve their heart health decades later by eating fruits and vegetables, according to a new study published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation.
The study concluded “higher intake of fruits and vegetables during young adulthood was associated with lower odds of prevalent coronary artery calcium after 20 years of follow-up,” according to the article. “Our results reinforce the importance of establishing a high intake of fruits and vegetables as part of a healthy dietary pattern early in life.”
Coronary artery calcium is used to measure the atherosclerosis, a disease that hardens arteries is a factor in many types of heart disease, according to a news release from the American Heart Association.
Researchers found that people who ate the most fruits and vegetables at the study’s start had 26% lower odds of developing calcified plaque two decade later, compared with the those who ate the least amount of fruits and vegetables, according to data from more than 2,500 study participants.
The research represents the first study to evaluate whether eating more fruits and vegetables as young adults could produce a measurable improvement in heart and blood veseels years later.
“People shouldn’t assume that they can wait until they’re older to eat healthy — our study suggests that what you eat as a young adult may be as important as what you eat as an older adult, ” lead author Michael Miedema, senior consulting cardiologist and clinical investigator at the Minneapolis Heart Institute, Minneapolis, Minn., said in the release.
“Our findings support public health initiatives aimed at increasing fruit and vegetable intake as part of a healthy dietary pattern,” Miedema said. “Further research is needed to determine what other foods impact cardiovascular health in young adults.”
Imported grapes from Peru are now being handled by a port of entry in Georgia.
The Port of Savannah is now receiving Peruvian imported grapes, adding to the list of cold-treated perishables using Savannah as a port of entry. The port also is handling avocados, citrus and sweet onions from Peru, although the season for the latter commodity has recently ended.
With the introduction of Peruvian red globe grapes, Savannah is now receiving all of the grape category leaders from Peru.
The grapes, moved from Andean Sun Produce farms in Ica and Piura, Peru, are part of a USDA’s program, in which citrus, grapes and blueberries are chilled for at least 17 days prior to entry into the U.S. Removing potential pests via cold treatment reduces the need for pesticides.
By delivering fresh produce in Savannah, receivers are taking advantage of much shorter and faster refrigerated truck transportation to Atlanta and other major markets across the U.S. Southeast. For example, this means only a four-hour truck ride to Atlanta versus a day and half from the Philadelphia ports.
The USDA program to allow cold-treated produce to enter through more U.S. ports will relieve congestion at older ports of entry, while shortening the supply chain between producers and final consumers. The ultimate goal is to deliver imported fruit to our U.S. receivers faster, fresher, and at competitive prices, cutting logistics costs.
As imports of melons from Central America begin to wind down, domestic loadings will become available from California and Arizona, as well as with melons crossing the border from Mexico.
Cantaloupe. honeydew and watermelon shipments from Arizona and Mexico are expected to start earlier than normal this year as imports from Guatemalan and Honduran come to a close in early May.
Various melons from California’s Imperial Valley should start shipping in late April and hit peak volume in May, perhaps its earliest start ever. This will be closely followed by melon shipments originating around May 10-15 from Yuma and Maricopa, Az. From there cantaloupe and honeydew loadings will start from California’s Westside district in the San Joaquin Valley around the 4th of July.
California Onion Shipments
California onion shipments from the Imperial Valley should get underway in mid April, lasting about five to six weeks. Normal acreage in the 10,000-acre range is being reported. The Imperial Valley should have onions through May, when the harvest shifts to the San Joaquin Valley. The central valley had less acreage last year, primarily to the California drought.
Southern California citrus and avocado shipments – grossing about $3700 to Chicago.
Pleasanton, CA., — DeltaTrak®, a leading innovator of cold chain management, environmental monitoring and food safety solutions, announces the release of its new FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger.
These compact, single-use temperature recorders are ideal for import and export shipments and provide accurate, reliable monitoring and recording of conditions during transport, storage and handling of any perishable product.
The FlashLink Mini PDF logger features a built-in USB connector so trip history is accessed without using special reading devices like cradles or adapters. The on-board software immediately generates a secure PDF file once the logger is plugged into a PC or tablet, and can even print reports directly to a printer with a USB port – no computer needed! These plug-and-play features make it easy for receivers around the world to download data as soon as a shipment arrives, and make quick accept/reject decisions based on trip data. Reports can be emailed as necessary to suppliers and transportation companies, or to insurance adjustors in the event of a claim situation.
According to Frederick Wu, President and CEO of DeltaTrak, “The FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger is ideal for import/export operations. Receivers don’t have to install software on their local PC and don’t need to purchase additional equipment for downloading. No matter what country they’re located in, a trip report is at their fingertips in a matter of seconds.”
Ideal for compliance with global regulations, FSMA and HACCP record keeping requirements, these data loggers provide verification that products have been kept within their proper temperature range. Each unit comes mounted on a bright green shipping card, making it easy to locate when a shipment arrives. A peel-away barcode label with the logger serial number can be attached to shipping documents and scanned into the shipper’s ERP system for complete traceability.
Available in 15-Day and 75-Day models, the FlashLink Mini PDF Logger is an essential tool to help shippers, third party logistics companies, importers and exporters document their compliance with regulations, ensure consumer safety and deliver high quality products with a longer shelf life.
About DeltaTrak®
DeltaTrak® is a leading innovator of cold chain management, environmental monitoring and food safety solutions for the produce, food, pharmaceutical, life sciences, and chemical industries. Contact DeltaTrak® by phone at 1-800-962-6776 or by email at marketing@deltatrak.com . Additional information can be found at www.deltatrak.com .
Numerous compounds including vitamin C and beta carotene, as well as several polyphenolic compounds including gallic acid and their larger polymers gallotannins are contained within mangoes that have been linked to anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory activities.
The absorption, metabolism, and excretion of mango galloyl derivatives have not previously been investigated in humans. In a human pilot trial published in the journal of Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 11 healthy volunteers between the ages of 21 and 38 years old consumed 400g/day of mango-pulp for 10 days, with blood and urine samples taken on days one and 10 of the study following mango consumption.
Participants refrained from consuming dietary supplements and foods which could be sources of gallic acid such as berries, grapes, and tea for one week prior to the beginning of the study and during the 10 days of mango consumption.
It was first necessary to study how these compounds are metabolized in the body to determine if these polyphenolic compounds have potential benefits to human health at realistic food consumption amounts.
Following 10 days of mango consumption, seven metabolites of gallic acid were identified in the urine of healthy volunteers, and of those two microbial metabolites were found to be significantly more excreted. The presence of gallic acid and pyrogallol metabolites in human urine after the consumption of 400gms of mango indicates the absorption, metabolism, and excretion of mango galloyl derivative and confirms the bioavailability of these mango-derived metabolites.
The research shows that mangoes have the potential to enhance the diet as a source of gallic acid and gallotannins, which may possess anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties.
Source: news-medical.net
By Larry Oscar
With the end of winter, thank God for global warming, We can expect an increase in stupid behavior.
Now most of us old timers know the best place to enjoy the show will be lake area boat launching ramps. Nothing like sitting back in the warm sun with a cold beer and taking in the show. Interesting thing is how regardless of how many times you tell folks what they need to do before they put their boat in the water they never listen and learn. It must be something in the human mind that turns off their common sense, or maybe they never had any to start with.
Physics is the study of matter and energy and the interaction between them. Merely by observing, we have been able to develop the mathematics of a great deal of the universe. It has been amazing to me how much of the interactions in the universe we can now accurately predict. Yet we cannot predict, with any mathematical certainty, most of human behavior. There are several psychologists who have sophisticated theories on human behavior, but none seem to work better than good old common sense.
For example: Water flows downhill because it takes the path of least resistance. So does electricity, and so do humans for the most part. Even though humans are supposed to have enough intelligence to stop and reason things out, they seldom do. This behavior is observed in governments, businesses, and in our personal lives. Why is that governments continue to spend beyond their means when they are warned the day of reckoning down the road will be much more painful than dealing with the problem today?
Why is it people will let their business deteriorate to the point it collapses before they pull their head out and change course? The old saying that if you don’t learn from history then you are doomed to repeat it is taking place right before our eyes.
My parents grew up in the Great Depression and spent their young adult years in the shadow of World War II. They saw the National Socialist German Workers Party (The Nazi Party) lead by Adolf Hitler rise to power in Germany. Germany was a left wing socialist nation lead by a man most consider pure evil. Adolf Hitler’s belief system was also developed in the aftermath of World War I.
Funny how you won’t hear that from the left wing Democrats that are spewing the so called values of socialism today. An absolute fact they won’t ever mention. Adolf Hitler used a from of deception and promotion of the seven deadly sins to sway the German people to support him to the point of idol worship. The lessons learned then that helped guide my parents throughout their lives are not part of our modern culture today. My parents worked hard to instill the values of freedom, individual responsibility, and capitalism into their offspring.
Today we are facing a generation who has not been exposed to the human destruction and misery that socialism brings with it. We are, in fact, repeating history. Evil almost never confronts you head on. Evil uses deception and works to promote the envy, lust, greed, sloth, gluttony, wrath, and pride in human nature to it’s advantage.
The leaders of nations and churches today, just like Nazi Germany then, are preaching the same things that Adolf Hitler preached to the German people during his rise to power. And all you have to do is look at the votes these preachers of socialism get to see how the masses of stupid people are swallowing it hook line and sinker. Frightening isn’t it. And what makes it even more frightening is that many nations today have what Adolf Hitler’s war machine was trying to develop then. The atomic bomb.
We have spawned a crop of humanity that seems to inevitably march toward socialism with the capability to push a button and annihilate the entire human race. What is surprising is how this year”s carnival of politicians lambast and berate each other and never point this out. The similarities between what happened almost one 100 years ago and what is happening today are obvious to any of us who are old enough to live between those turbulent times in world history.
“And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.” Matt 24:6-7.
Larry Oscar is a graduate from the University of Tulsa and holds a degree in electrical engineering. He is retired and lives with his wife on a lake in Oklahoma where he brews his own beer, sails, and is a member of numerous clubs and organizations.
Southeastern blueberry shipments are running about two weeks later than normal.
Due to unusually warm winter, produce truckers can expect a later start for Florida and Georgia blueberries and good volume for both states is expected two weeks later than usual. In late March, harvest was light in the southern part of Florida near Wauchula.
Some operations started harvesting light volume in mid-March, but packing in volume isn’t expected until April 15. The transition to Georgia is expected to start in mid-April. Something different in Florida is a slow season with drawn-out shipments vs. a seasonal production peak. Florida should ship blueberries through late May, instead of the more typical mid-May finish. As for Georgia, peak loadings should start about May 7, later than the state’s typical late April peak.
This year, Florida expects to ship around 18 million pounds, down from last season’s 25 million pounds. Florida blueberry shipments will be light through early April with larger, truck load volume planned for April 15-20, about two weeks later than normal.
Early season Georgia blueberry shipments will be lighter because of cold weather during February in the Homerville, Ga. area. Up to 25 percent of Georgia’s early crop could sustain losses and good volume shipments are not expected until May.
In Florida, decent volume shipments are not expected until April. Florida will have its heaviest shipments in late April and in mid- to late April, when both states will be shipping.
Florida berries, veggies and tomatoes – grossing about $1000 to Atlanta.
by Columbia Marketing International (CMI)
Shipments of U.S. grown Kanzi® brand apples are peaking and over the next few weeks will set new records for retail sales performance. During the past 52 weeks, flavor-intense Kanzi® have been one of the brightest stars of the apple category, increasing in sales by over 87%.
Robb Myers, Vice President of Sales at CMI reports retail interest in Kanzi® is very high. “Kanzi apples are really turning heads at the retail level,” said Myers. “Over the past year, apple category dollars are down, yet Kanzi® is still driving incredible growth.”
Myers says that between March 15 and May 1, sales of Kanzi® apples in the U.S. peak. “This is the time for Kanzi®,” said Myers. “Kanzi® flavor develops in storage so we release it in late winter just as sales momentum in the apple category is beginning to slow.”
“There is nothing like a new item to invigorate category sales,” said Myers.
Myers added that the season for this Washington State apple extends through the end of April when imported Kanzi® arrive from New Zealand.
Steve Lutz, Vice President of Marketing for CMI, says national retail scan data results document the strong performance by Kanzi®. According to Lutz, Nielsen data reveals that over the past year, Kanzi® had the number one dollar growth rate among the 35 best-selling varieties in the U.S.
“We’re seeing Kanzi® selling successfully in nearly 3,500 stores nationally,” said Lutz. “The next six weeks are prime time for retailers to let their shoppers try this spectacular new apple.”
The USDA recently awarded $20.1 million in grants to university researchers for research and extension projects to help citrus producers fight Huanglongbing, commonly known as citrus greening disease. This funding is available through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative Citrus Disease Research & Extension Program, which was authorized by the 2014 farm bill and is administered by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
“Citrus greening has affected more than 75 percent of Florida citrus crops and threatens production all across the United States,” Tom Vilsack, U.S. Department of Agriculture secretary, said in a press release. “The research and extension projects funded today bring us one step closer to providing growers real tools to fight this disease, from early detection to creating long-term solutions for the industry, producers and workers.”
The SCRI program addresses critical needs of the specialty crop industry by awarding grants to support research and extension activities that address key challenges of national, regional, and multi-state importance in sustaining all components of food and agriculture, including conventional and organic food production systems.
Since the SCRI CDRE program’s inception in 2014, USDA has granted $43.6 million in research dollars to combat the destructive citrus greening disease. HLB was initially detected in Florida in 2005 and has since affected the vast majority of Florida’s citrus-producing areas. It has also been detected in Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Texas and several residential trees in California. It has also been detected in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 14 states in Mexico. A total of 15 U.S. states or territories are under full or partial quarantine due to the detected presence of the Asian citrus psyllid, a vector for HLB. Those states include Alabama, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Sweet onion shipments are lower this season from Texas and Mexico as we move closer to loadings out of Vidalia, GA. Red potatoes are picking up in one state, while showing disappointment in another.
Peruvian sweet onion imports ended in early March as imports began from Mexico. However, Mexican onion imports are lower this season and are now starting to wind down. At the same time, Texas onion shipments from the Lower Rio Grande Valley have started.
Initial reports indicate Texas acreage will be under 5,000 acres, down from the 6,000-acre industry norm. Still, Texas onion shipments are now in good volume.
However, the nation’s biggest volume sweet onions come out of the Vidalia, GA area. Vidalia onion shipments are scheduled to get underway April 25th. A near perfect growing season has been reported from Vidalia. This season, Vidalia should have production from about 11,600, down a little from a year ago, when there was over 12,000 acres.
The Vidalia region’s 65 growers in 2015, shipped 17% of Georgia onion shipments in April, 36% were moved in May, 27% in June, 16% in July and 3% in August. Total shipments of Georgia onions were about 4.2 million 40-pound cartons in 2015.
Red Potato Shipments
The Red River Valley (eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota) usually has its biggest shipments during November and December, but a bumper Wisconsin red crop and a weak Canadian dollar over-supplied a market resulting in fewer shipments. This year February and March are believed to be the two busiest months with 539,000 hundredweight (cwt.) shipped from the Valley in February, up over 13% compared to last year, and slightly more than either November or December. Some wash plants have added extra shifts to handle the demand and trucks have been in good supply thanks in part to the slowdown of the oil patch in western North Dakota.
Meanwhile, the later Florida crop is expected to be better, but who knows for sure considering the early Florida crop didn’t live up to expectations. South Florida red potato shipments are expected to increase in early April.
South Florida potatoes, tomatoes and vegetables – grossing about $2100 to New York City.
Red River Valley potatoes – grossing about $3000 to Dallas.
Young adults can preserve their heart health decades later by eating fruits and vegetables, according to a new study published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation.The study concluded “higher intake of fruits and vegetables during young adulthood was associated with lower odds of prevalent coronary artery calcium after 20 years of follow-up,” according to the article. “Our results reinforce the importance of establishing a high intake of fruits and vegetables as part of a healthy dietary pattern early in life.”
Coronary artery calcium is used to measure the atherosclerosis, a disease that hardens arteries is a factor in many types of heart disease, according to a news release from the American Heart Association.
Researchers found that people who ate the most fruits and vegetables at the study’s start had 26% lower odds of developing calcified plaque two decade later, compared with the those who ate the least amount of fruits and vegetables, according to data from more than 2,500 study participants.
The research represents the first study to evaluate whether eating more fruits and vegetables as young adults could produce a measurable improvement in heart and blood veseels years later.
“People shouldn’t assume that they can wait until they’re older to eat healthy — our study suggests that what you eat as a young adult may be as important as what you eat as an older adult, ” lead author Michael Miedema, senior consulting cardiologist and clinical investigator at the Minneapolis Heart Institute, Minneapolis, Minn., said in the release.
“Our findings support public health initiatives aimed at increasing fruit and vegetable intake as part of a healthy dietary pattern,” Miedema said. “Further research is needed to determine what other foods impact cardiovascular health in young adults.”
Imported grapes from Peru are now being handled by a port of entry in Georgia.The Port of Savannah is now receiving Peruvian imported grapes, adding to the list of cold-treated perishables using Savannah as a port of entry. The port also is handling avocados, citrus and sweet onions from Peru, although the season for the latter commodity has recently ended.
With the introduction of Peruvian red globe grapes, Savannah is now receiving all of the grape category leaders from Peru.
The grapes, moved from Andean Sun Produce farms in Ica and Piura, Peru, are part of a USDA’s program, in which citrus, grapes and blueberries are chilled for at least 17 days prior to entry into the U.S. Removing potential pests via cold treatment reduces the need for pesticides.
By delivering fresh produce in Savannah, receivers are taking advantage of much shorter and faster refrigerated truck transportation to Atlanta and other major markets across the U.S. Southeast. For example, this means only a four-hour truck ride to Atlanta versus a day and half from the Philadelphia ports.
The USDA program to allow cold-treated produce to enter through more U.S. ports will relieve congestion at older ports of entry, while shortening the supply chain between producers and final consumers. The ultimate goal is to deliver imported fruit to our U.S. receivers faster, fresher, and at competitive prices, cutting logistics costs.
As imports of melons from Central America begin to wind down, domestic loadings will become available from California and Arizona, as well as with melons crossing the border from Mexico.
Cantaloupe. honeydew and watermelon shipments from Arizona and Mexico are expected to start earlier than normal this year as imports from Guatemalan and Honduran come to a close in early May.
Various melons from California’s Imperial Valley should start shipping in late April and hit peak volume in May, perhaps its earliest start ever. This will be closely followed by melon shipments originating around May 10-15 from Yuma and Maricopa, Az. From there cantaloupe and honeydew loadings will start from California’s Westside district in the San Joaquin Valley around the 4th of July.
California Onion Shipments
California onion shipments from the Imperial Valley should get underway in mid April, lasting about five to six weeks. Normal acreage in the 10,000-acre range is being reported. The Imperial Valley should have onions through May, when the harvest shifts to the San Joaquin Valley. The central valley had less acreage last year, primarily to the California drought.
Southern California citrus and avocado shipments – grossing about $3700 to Chicago.
Pleasanton, CA., — DeltaTrak®, a leading innovator of cold chain management, environmental monitoring and food safety solutions, announces the release of its new FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger.
These compact, single-use temperature recorders are ideal for import and export shipments and provide accurate, reliable monitoring and recording of conditions during transport, storage and handling of any perishable product.
The FlashLink Mini PDF logger features a built-in USB connector so trip history is accessed without using special reading devices like cradles or adapters. The on-board software immediately generates a secure PDF file once the logger is plugged into a PC or tablet, and can even print reports directly to a printer with a USB port – no computer needed! These plug-and-play features make it easy for receivers around the world to download data as soon as a shipment arrives, and make quick accept/reject decisions based on trip data. Reports can be emailed as necessary to suppliers and transportation companies, or to insurance adjustors in the event of a claim situation.
According to Frederick Wu, President and CEO of DeltaTrak, “The FlashLink Mini PDF In-Transit Logger is ideal for import/export operations. Receivers don’t have to install software on their local PC and don’t need to purchase additional equipment for downloading. No matter what country they’re located in, a trip report is at their fingertips in a matter of seconds.”
Ideal for compliance with global regulations, FSMA and HACCP record keeping requirements, these data loggers provide verification that products have been kept within their proper temperature range. Each unit comes mounted on a bright green shipping card, making it easy to locate when a shipment arrives. A peel-away barcode label with the logger serial number can be attached to shipping documents and scanned into the shipper’s ERP system for complete traceability.
Available in 15-Day and 75-Day models, the FlashLink Mini PDF Logger is an essential tool to help shippers, third party logistics companies, importers and exporters document their compliance with regulations, ensure consumer safety and deliver high quality products with a longer shelf life.
About DeltaTrak®
DeltaTrak® is a leading innovator of cold chain management, environmental monitoring and food safety solutions for the produce, food, pharmaceutical, life sciences, and chemical industries. Contact DeltaTrak® by phone at 1-800-962-6776 or by email at marketing@deltatrak.com . Additional information can be found at www.deltatrak.com .
Numerous compounds including vitamin C and beta carotene, as well as several polyphenolic compounds including gallic acid and their larger polymers gallotannins are contained within mangoes that have been linked to anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory activities.
The absorption, metabolism, and excretion of mango galloyl derivatives have not previously been investigated in humans. In a human pilot trial published in the journal of Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 11 healthy volunteers between the ages of 21 and 38 years old consumed 400g/day of mango-pulp for 10 days, with blood and urine samples taken on days one and 10 of the study following mango consumption.
Participants refrained from consuming dietary supplements and foods which could be sources of gallic acid such as berries, grapes, and tea for one week prior to the beginning of the study and during the 10 days of mango consumption.
It was first necessary to study how these compounds are metabolized in the body to determine if these polyphenolic compounds have potential benefits to human health at realistic food consumption amounts.
Following 10 days of mango consumption, seven metabolites of gallic acid were identified in the urine of healthy volunteers, and of those two microbial metabolites were found to be significantly more excreted. The presence of gallic acid and pyrogallol metabolites in human urine after the consumption of 400gms of mango indicates the absorption, metabolism, and excretion of mango galloyl derivative and confirms the bioavailability of these mango-derived metabolites.
The research shows that mangoes have the potential to enhance the diet as a source of gallic acid and gallotannins, which may possess anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties.
Source: news-medical.net
By Larry Oscar
With the end of winter, thank God for global warming, We can expect an increase in stupid behavior.
Now most of us old timers know the best place to enjoy the show will be lake area boat launching ramps. Nothing like sitting back in the warm sun with a cold beer and taking in the show. Interesting thing is how regardless of how many times you tell folks what they need to do before they put their boat in the water they never listen and learn. It must be something in the human mind that turns off their common sense, or maybe they never had any to start with.
Physics is the study of matter and energy and the interaction between them. Merely by observing, we have been able to develop the mathematics of a great deal of the universe. It has been amazing to me how much of the interactions in the universe we can now accurately predict. Yet we cannot predict, with any mathematical certainty, most of human behavior. There are several psychologists who have sophisticated theories on human behavior, but none seem to work better than good old common sense.
For example: Water flows downhill because it takes the path of least resistance. So does electricity, and so do humans for the most part. Even though humans are supposed to have enough intelligence to stop and reason things out, they seldom do. This behavior is observed in governments, businesses, and in our personal lives. Why is that governments continue to spend beyond their means when they are warned the day of reckoning down the road will be much more painful than dealing with the problem today?
Why is it people will let their business deteriorate to the point it collapses before they pull their head out and change course? The old saying that if you don’t learn from history then you are doomed to repeat it is taking place right before our eyes.
My parents grew up in the Great Depression and spent their young adult years in the shadow of World War II. They saw the National Socialist German Workers Party (The Nazi Party) lead by Adolf Hitler rise to power in Germany. Germany was a left wing socialist nation lead by a man most consider pure evil. Adolf Hitler’s belief system was also developed in the aftermath of World War I.
Funny how you won’t hear that from the left wing Democrats that are spewing the so called values of socialism today. An absolute fact they won’t ever mention. Adolf Hitler used a from of deception and promotion of the seven deadly sins to sway the German people to support him to the point of idol worship. The lessons learned then that helped guide my parents throughout their lives are not part of our modern culture today. My parents worked hard to instill the values of freedom, individual responsibility, and capitalism into their offspring.
Today we are facing a generation who has not been exposed to the human destruction and misery that socialism brings with it. We are, in fact, repeating history. Evil almost never confronts you head on. Evil uses deception and works to promote the envy, lust, greed, sloth, gluttony, wrath, and pride in human nature to it’s advantage.
The leaders of nations and churches today, just like Nazi Germany then, are preaching the same things that Adolf Hitler preached to the German people during his rise to power. And all you have to do is look at the votes these preachers of socialism get to see how the masses of stupid people are swallowing it hook line and sinker. Frightening isn’t it. And what makes it even more frightening is that many nations today have what Adolf Hitler’s war machine was trying to develop then. The atomic bomb.
We have spawned a crop of humanity that seems to inevitably march toward socialism with the capability to push a button and annihilate the entire human race. What is surprising is how this year”s carnival of politicians lambast and berate each other and never point this out. The similarities between what happened almost one 100 years ago and what is happening today are obvious to any of us who are old enough to live between those turbulent times in world history.
“And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.” Matt 24:6-7.
Larry Oscar is a graduate from the University of Tulsa and holds a degree in electrical engineering. He is retired and lives with his wife on a lake in Oklahoma where he brews his own beer, sails, and is a member of numerous clubs and organizations.
Southeastern blueberry shipments are running about two weeks later than normal.
Due to unusually warm winter, produce truckers can expect a later start for Florida and Georgia blueberries and good volume for both states is expected two weeks later than usual. In late March, harvest was light in the southern part of Florida near Wauchula.
Some operations started harvesting light volume in mid-March, but packing in volume isn’t expected until April 15. The transition to Georgia is expected to start in mid-April. Something different in Florida is a slow season with drawn-out shipments vs. a seasonal production peak. Florida should ship blueberries through late May, instead of the more typical mid-May finish. As for Georgia, peak loadings should start about May 7, later than the state’s typical late April peak.
This year, Florida expects to ship around 18 million pounds, down from last season’s 25 million pounds. Florida blueberry shipments will be light through early April with larger, truck load volume planned for April 15-20, about two weeks later than normal.
Early season Georgia blueberry shipments will be lighter because of cold weather during February in the Homerville, Ga. area. Up to 25 percent of Georgia’s early crop could sustain losses and good volume shipments are not expected until May.
In Florida, decent volume shipments are not expected until April. Florida will have its heaviest shipments in late April and in mid- to late April, when both states will be shipping.
Florida berries, veggies and tomatoes – grossing about $1000 to Atlanta.
by Columbia Marketing International (CMI)
Shipments of U.S. grown Kanzi® brand apples are peaking and over the next few weeks will set new records for retail sales performance. During the past 52 weeks, flavor-intense Kanzi® have been one of the brightest stars of the apple category, increasing in sales by over 87%.
Robb Myers, Vice President of Sales at CMI reports retail interest in Kanzi® is very high. “Kanzi apples are really turning heads at the retail level,” said Myers. “Over the past year, apple category dollars are down, yet Kanzi® is still driving incredible growth.”
Myers says that between March 15 and May 1, sales of Kanzi® apples in the U.S. peak. “This is the time for Kanzi®,” said Myers. “Kanzi® flavor develops in storage so we release it in late winter just as sales momentum in the apple category is beginning to slow.”
“There is nothing like a new item to invigorate category sales,” said Myers.
Myers added that the season for this Washington State apple extends through the end of April when imported Kanzi® arrive from New Zealand.
Steve Lutz, Vice President of Marketing for CMI, says national retail scan data results document the strong performance by Kanzi®. According to Lutz, Nielsen data reveals that over the past year, Kanzi® had the number one dollar growth rate among the 35 best-selling varieties in the U.S.
“We’re seeing Kanzi® selling successfully in nearly 3,500 stores nationally,” said Lutz. “The next six weeks are prime time for retailers to let their shoppers try this spectacular new apple.”
The USDA recently awarded $20.1 million in grants to university researchers for research and extension projects to help citrus producers fight Huanglongbing, commonly known as citrus greening disease. This funding is available through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative Citrus Disease Research & Extension Program, which was authorized by the 2014 farm bill and is administered by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
“Citrus greening has affected more than 75 percent of Florida citrus crops and threatens production all across the United States,” Tom Vilsack, U.S. Department of Agriculture secretary, said in a press release. “The research and extension projects funded today bring us one step closer to providing growers real tools to fight this disease, from early detection to creating long-term solutions for the industry, producers and workers.”
The SCRI program addresses critical needs of the specialty crop industry by awarding grants to support research and extension activities that address key challenges of national, regional, and multi-state importance in sustaining all components of food and agriculture, including conventional and organic food production systems.
Since the SCRI CDRE program’s inception in 2014, USDA has granted $43.6 million in research dollars to combat the destructive citrus greening disease. HLB was initially detected in Florida in 2005 and has since affected the vast majority of Florida’s citrus-producing areas. It has also been detected in Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Texas and several residential trees in California. It has also been detected in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 14 states in Mexico. A total of 15 U.S. states or territories are under full or partial quarantine due to the detected presence of the Asian citrus psyllid, a vector for HLB. Those states include Alabama, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Sweet onion shipments are lower this season from Texas and Mexico as we move closer to loadings out of Vidalia, GA. Red potatoes are picking up in one state, while showing disappointment in another.
Peruvian sweet onion imports ended in early March as imports began from Mexico. However, Mexican onion imports are lower this season and are now starting to wind down. At the same time, Texas onion shipments from the Lower Rio Grande Valley have started.
Initial reports indicate Texas acreage will be under 5,000 acres, down from the 6,000-acre industry norm. Still, Texas onion shipments are now in good volume.
However, the nation’s biggest volume sweet onions come out of the Vidalia, GA area. Vidalia onion shipments are scheduled to get underway April 25th. A near perfect growing season has been reported from Vidalia. This season, Vidalia should have production from about 11,600, down a little from a year ago, when there was over 12,000 acres.
The Vidalia region’s 65 growers in 2015, shipped 17% of Georgia onion shipments in April, 36% were moved in May, 27% in June, 16% in July and 3% in August. Total shipments of Georgia onions were about 4.2 million 40-pound cartons in 2015.
Red Potato Shipments
The Red River Valley (eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota) usually has its biggest shipments during November and December, but a bumper Wisconsin red crop and a weak Canadian dollar over-supplied a market resulting in fewer shipments. This year February and March are believed to be the two busiest months with 539,000 hundredweight (cwt.) shipped from the Valley in February, up over 13% compared to last year, and slightly more than either November or December. Some wash plants have added extra shifts to handle the demand and trucks have been in good supply thanks in part to the slowdown of the oil patch in western North Dakota.
Meanwhile, the later Florida crop is expected to be better, but who knows for sure considering the early Florida crop didn’t live up to expectations. South Florida red potato shipments are expected to increase in early April.
South Florida potatoes, tomatoes and vegetables – grossing about $2100 to New York City.
Red River Valley potatoes – grossing about $3000 to Dallas.