Archive For The “News” Category
As consumers continue to search for fresh produce that offers the healthiest fare available, they are increasingly turning to berry consumption.
And this trend also confirms that inclusion of berries as an active ingredient in a host of food items at home continues to grow: they are a do-not-disregard ingredient.
One of the rock stars of the berry category is the blueberry, which today is only surpassed by strawberries among consumer berry purchases. Due to their undeniable presence as a superberry and superfood, blueberries have been equally embraced by Millennials who are writing their own formulas for physical fitness as well as seniors, the generation of consumers that continues to embrace food as vehicles of nutrition carefully and naturally packaged to deliver a one-two punch.
According to Josh Borro, author of The Upshot, information released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that blueberry consumption increased 411 percent from 2000 to 2012. Strawberry consumption increased 60 percent during this time frame, and fresh raspberry consumption increased 475 percent.
Borro said that advances on the supply side, which have resulted in delivery of a superior piece of fruit farmed under optimum conditions, give consumers exactly the kinds of berries they are craving.
While the total percent increases show that Americans are loving their berries, there is a sacrificial side to the equation. According to Burro, increases in berry consumption are reflected in decreases in consumption of other fruit such as apples and bananas.
One of the factors influencing increased — and increasing -– availability of berries is the fact that these categories have been strengthened through increased plantings of superior strains in ever-growing locations around the globe. The berry industry is a global category, and consumers are able to enjoy their berries of choice regardless of the time of year as larger export volumes make their way into the United States during the domestic off-season.
Another factor that has driven berry sales is the fact that they are a perfect fruit to eat “as is.” According to the 2015 State of the Plate report issued by the Produce for Better Health Foundation, 83 percent of all fruit is eaten “as is.”
Quality issues are being reported with late season Chilean imported grapes as Mexico’s table grape exports are arriving in the U.S. in light volume. Mexican grape shipments are expected to be down 18 percent this season from 2015.
In 2015, Sonora, Mexico exported 17.22 million cases of table grapes. This year loadings are expected to hit 14.17 million, a drop of 3.05 million boxes, or 18 percent.
Early green seedless grapes are the only Sonora category of grapes expected to increase in volume this season. These are estimated at 871,000 cases, up 15 percent from 2015.
Here are the estimates for shipments of other Mexican grape varieties:
Flames: This red seedless grape may be down over 1 million cases from a year ago. In 2015, Sonora exported 8.6 million cases; the estimate for this year is 7.6 million boxes, which is a drop of 12 percent.
Sugraone: This green seedless variety is expected to drop 26 percent, to a total of 3.1 million boxes. This is down almost 1.1 million boxes from 2015, when 4.17 million were exported.
Perlettes: This white seedless grape is expected to be down 21 percent in 2016. There is a drop of 314,222 in the estimate from the 2015 export crop of 1.464 million. It is estimated that 1.15 million cases of Perlettes will be exported in 2016.
Red Globes: This variety faces the largest percentage of volume drop of all Mexican grape varieties in 2016. The Red Globe export estimate for 2016 is 400,000 boxes — a sharp decrease from the 825,848 boxes of Red Globes exported from Mexico last year.
Black grapes: The volume from Sonora is expected to be 650,000 cases, down 26 percent from 877,872 in 2015.
Other grape varieties will cumulatively be down 14 percent to 400,000 cases in 2016. This is a drop of 67,000 boxes from a year ago.
There should be good volume with grapes at Nogales the week prior to the Memorial Day weekend.
There is light volume with vegetables and mangoes, with rising grape volume crossing the border at Nogales – grossing about $3200 to Chicago.
U.S. citrus shipments and production will steadily decline over the next ten years, according to new projections from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The projection also can be used as guide to what direction produce shipments will take over the next decade.
The USDA’s recent Agricultural Projections to 2025 report said U.S. citrus fruit production, which has been affected by citrus greening disease, is forecast to drop by an average of 1% per year in the next decade. The forecast for falling production is linked to continued declines of bearing acreage, notably in Florida, according to the report.
USDA projections call for total U.S. citrus output to drop from 18.4 billion pounds in 2015 to 14.3 billion pounds by 2025. The projections indicate that non-citrus fruit production will rise from 36.9 billion pounds in 2015 to 39.9 billion pounds in 2025, a gain of 8% over 10 years. Tree nut production will rise at a faster clip, according to the USDA, with output pegged at 6.08 billion pounds in 2025, up 24% from 2015.
The agency said total U.S. production of fruit, nuts, and vegetables is projected to rise by 0.6% annually in the next decade. While processing vegetable production is forecast to rise 0.8% annually over the next ten years, agency economists predict a modest 0.1% per year increase in fresh market vegetable production.
Fresh market vegetable shipments will barely increase from 41.3 billion pounds in 2015 to 41.7 billion pounds by 2025, according to the USDA.
Michigan state money is helping put more produce on the plates of the needy.
Known as the Michigan Health and Wellness 4×4 Plan, three local agencies receiving a nearly $50,000 grant is the Munson Medical Center, District Health Department #2 and the Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan. The grant offers nutrition with a prescription.
“The most important thing is we’re going to be getting more fruits and vegetables into the hands of our residents. We’ve heard it since we were children, eat your fruits and veggies. However, not everyone takes that to heart as adults. “We’ve had our eye on the fruit and vegetable prescription program for quite some time,” says Munson Medical Center’s community health manager, Christi Nowak. “Fresh fruits and vegetables can be a little intimidating, so we want to help make that not as intimidating with the educational component.”
Munson Medical Center is trying to make produce more accessible and less intimidating.
They’re using a state grant to give prescriptions to those with chronic disease.
“By participating they’ll be given a fruit and vegetable prescription and they’ll be able to partake in some nutritional education classes,” Nowak says. “Once they complete those they’ll be able to go to our farmers market at the Grand Traverse Commons and redeem those prescriptions for fresh fruits and vegetables.”
The program starts this spring and will teach patients how to incorporate fresh foods into their life through classes and rewards.
“One of the main focuses of this project is to help people broaden their horizon in what is available to them in the fresh fruit and vegetable category,” says registered dietitian Laura McCain. “Then what do they do with it. How do they incorporate it into snacks and meals. We want to see it sustainable. We want to see it grow into a community wide effort where there are lots of opportunities if a person doesn’t currently know how to eat healthy to be able to get that help.”
In recent weeks, there have been several news stories mentioning the high cost of vegetables and fruits in the national media. The softening Canadian dollar has in many cases driven up the cost of imported produce, and this is being reflected in grocery store prices. However, one staple vegetable that has not experienced the same jump in prices is Prince Edward Island potatoes.
“The facts are very clear, potatoes are a ‘win-win-win’ on nutrition, affordability and taste,” says Dr. Maureen Storey, President and CEO of the Alliance for Potato Research and Education. “On nutrition, potatoes top other commonly consumed vegetables for delivering heart-healthy potassium. And, studies from the University of Washington show that potatoes and legumes are the most affordable, potassium-rich vegetables that are well-accepted by consumers. As far as taste goes, there’s no argument or bargaining at the dinner table when it comes to potatoes.”
Potatoes are packed with vitamins and minerals, particularly potassium and Vitamin C, while one medium sized potato is only 100 calories.
Whether someone prefers russets, whites, yellows, reds, or mini potatoes, all of these are available from Prince Edward Island potato growers at many grocery store in the Eastern U.S. and Canada. Prince Edward Island potatoes have been grown in the rich, red soil of PEI by farmers who have been growing potatoes for generations.
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.
Numerous new mandates for refrigerated carriers governing not only the condition and operation of equipment used transport foodstuffs but the capture and preservation of shipment temperatures, along with driver training requirements, These are due to become effective March 31.
The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) has new rules approved by Congress and signed into law by the president in 2011.
The mandate requires the FDA [the U.S. Food and Drug Administration] to be an enforcement agency in the food supply chain. Violations of the mandate can lead to criminal prosecution.
While shippers and receivers are primary targets of the FSMA, refrigerated carriers become involved as the new rules require detailed temperature data to be collected and maintained, while imposing equipment and driving requirements as well.
There are three main broad areas where refrigerated truckers can be affected:
(1) They would be required to develop and implement written procedures – subject to record keeping, probably for a 12 month time period – that describes how they provide temperature data;
(2) Their practices for cleaning, sanitizing, and inspecting vehicles and transportation equipment;
(3) and establish requirements for the training of carrier personnel engaged in transportation operations, including a requirement for records that document the training.
While the FDA will not be telling shippers and carriers how to deliver foodstuffs, it will be in charge of establishing the framework for what’s required to deliver such goods and enforce those requirements. Thus, the FDA now becomes an integrated part of the supply chain. In effect, the FDA will become an enforcement agency – and one of their tools will be criminal prosecution.
Refrigerated fleets will feel specific impacts in several key areas of their operations:
- It will affect trailer designs, depending on shipper requirements resulting from the new rules;
- It will tighten sanitary cleaning requirements of said trailers;
- There will be a “pre-cool” requirement for many shipments;
- Temperature tracking will be mandated;
- Data exchange and retention will be mandated;
- Driver food safety training will be required and a record of that training must be kept on file for access upon request.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc is creating hundreds of management positions as part of a new program aimed at improving the fresh food sections at its U.S. stores retailer.
Wal-Mart, the largest grocer in the United States, has already hired dozens of field managers and plans to hire hundreds more over the next three years. Their job is to train workers and take other steps to improve the fresh food offering in stores.
The move was initially disclosed at an annual private meeting of suppliers recently in Indianapolis.
Wal-Mart spokesman Lorenzo Lopez said,”to help ensure quality and consistency in our fresh operations,” managers are being hired.
Wal-Mart has placed a renewed emphasis on fresh food under the strategy of Greg Foran, head of the company’s U.S. operations. Foran sees a better fresh food offering as key to reviving sales growth.
The move to install a new layer of managers comes as Wal-Mart faces growing competition for grocery shoppers from national and regional supermarket chains like Florida-based Publix Super Markets Inc and Texas-based H-E-B.
The new managers will oversee the fresh food operations at about 10 stores each. Wal-Mart has about 4,600 stores across the United States.
By Scout Logistics
Toronto, ON – For the second consecutive year, and just five years after it delivered its first load, Scout Logistics Corporation – whose name and principles are inspired by the characters Scout and Atticus Finch from the classic novel To Kill A Mockingbird – has won recognition as one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies. This prestigious award highlights the company’s tremendous growth and affirms its fresh, market-leading approach to transportation management.
“We operate on ‘Scout’s honour’,” says Lorne Swartz, founder and president of Scout Logistics, who has doubled it’s work force since 2011. “We stand by our word – we treat our customers, carrier partners and team members fairly, honestly and with integrity. Not only is it the right thing to do but we believe it is also essential to the success of our business.”
Established in 1993, Canada’s Best Managed Companies is one of the country’s leading business awards programs recognizing Canadian-owned and managed companies that have implemented world-class business practices and created value in innovative ways. Applicants are evaluated by an independent judging panel on overall business performance, including leadership, strategy, core competencies, cross-functional collaboration throughout organisation and talent.
“Best Managed companies embrace innovation, seize opportunities and inspire talent. They really set the bar high,” said Peter Brown, Partner, Deloitte and Co-Leader, Canada’s Best Managed Companies program.
“I would like to recognise the entire efforts of Scout Logistics Corporation. It takes a dedicated effort from an entire team to focus on a core vision, create stakeholder value and excel in the global economy to achieve this level of success,” says Mike Runia, Ontario Managing Partner, Deloitte and Co-Leader, Canada’s Best Managed Companies program.
Scout has hired and developed both a dedicated management, and talented sales team by providing team members with industry-leading compensation, and a dynamic work environment. There are no strict dress codes nor cubicles at Scout Logistics – Scout prides itself on its state-of-the-art workplace with an onsite gym, full kitchen and foot-thumping music that adds to an already energetic workday.
Scout Logistics also believes in investing in innovation. It developed proprietary systems for monitoring loads, carriers and sales – innovations that put the company ahead of its competition. In 2014 Scout upgraded its dispatch system to include cutting-edge cellular tracking technology. This system, which allows for the tracking of each and every shipment via cell towers across Canada and the United States, ensures complete client transparency throughout the supply chain.
Furthermore, in 2015, Scout launched its client-facing portal, providing real-time status locations of shipments 24/7/365.
“Earning a spot among Canada’s Best Managed Companies for the second year in a row confirms once again that we are taking the right approach and making smart investments in our people, partners and processes,” says Swartz. “We look forward to continued success in the coming years”.