Archive For The “News” Category
Here are nine facts you probably did not know about avocados.
(1)**You can judge when an avocado is ready to eat by squeezing it. Color alone does not indicate if an avocado is ripe. Hold the fruit in your palm and then gently squeeze, being careful not to bruise the fruit. It should be firm, but give to gentle pressure.
(2)**Avocados used to be served only to royalty and were a symbol of wealth. Now, you can enjoy them anytime!
(3)**The most popular avocado is the Hass variety, named after mailman Rudolph Hass from La Habra Heights, Calif. He patented his tree in 1935.
(4)**Avocados can be used as an ingredient in desserts. In Brazil, avocados are a popuklar ingredieint for ice creams and in the Philippines they pur’ee avocados with sugar and milk for a dessert drink.
(5)**To ripen, they have to be plucked from trees. To help ripen an avocado, place it in a brown bag and keep in a cool spot for two to three days.
(6)**During the Super Bowl, there are more than 8 million pounds of avocados eaten across America. And during Cinco de Mayo, there are about 14 million pounds eaten.
(7)**Avocados don’t self-pollinate; they need another avocado tree close by to produce fruit. The avocado is an Aztec symbol of love and fertility and they only grow in pairs.
(8)**Avocados were used as a spread instead of butter when European sailors traveled to the New World. Learning from the past, avocados are a healthy alternative to butter, mayonnaise, sour cream, and cream cheese.
(9)**Another name for the Hass avocado is the Alligator Pear because of its bumpy, green skin and pear shape.
A presentation on consumer trends by the Nielsen Perishables Group seems to contradict the widely held belief hat fresh produce consumption is just not increasing on a per-capita basis. The talk was presented recently at the annual United Fresh Produce Association Convention in Chicago.
Jonna Parker, a director for that organization, said over the past five years, dollar volume of fresh produce has increased about 25 percent while unit volume is up 10-13 percent.
Of the top 10 growth items in the grocery sector, six are fresh produce, including two value-added products, specialty fruit, avocados, pineapples and cooking greens, with that last category topped by kale, she said.
Statistics show that annually the average American household spends $338 on fresh produce, compared to only $299 on meat, which comes in second place in dollar sales.
While most customers claim produce is the most important department in picking a store, there are still many trips to the market that do not include a produce purchase. More than half of the times that a person goes to the supermarket they do not put a produce item in their basket.
Currently, the average shopper makes about 40 to 50 supermarket trips per year. Parker said higher-income households (in excess of an annual income of $100,000) are far more prolific produce buyers. They make 51 trips per year and purchase about $454 worth of fresh produce. The least affluent consumers make about 40 trips per year to the supermarket and spend just $221 on produce.
Bananas claim over 50 percent of the volume of fresh fruit imports,” said the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. Excluding bananas, fresh fruit imports rose from 12 percent of domestic consumption.
Bananas are sold the year around in the this country and rank number one in U.S. per capita fresh fruit consumption, followed by apples and oranges. To meet U.S. demand, bananas are imported, primarily from Guatemala, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Colombia and Honduras. Excluding bananas, fruit imports increased an average 7 percent annually over the past two decades.
U.S. fruit imports rose during the last three decades, partly owing to the growing minority ethnic populations in the United States and to an increased demand for new products. Not only have imports expanded for commodities already produced domestically and created competition for U.S. producers, but imports have also increased for nontraditional fruits, especially many tropical fruits.
- Eat at least one banana a day, they are said to contain everything a human needs and they contain all the 8 amino-acids our body cannot produce itself.
- Bananas are a good source of fiber, potassium and vitamin C;
- Red bananas are often dried and converted to meal which is used in many ways;
- Red bananas contain more vitamin C as yellow bananas (the redder a fruit, the more nutritious elements it contains).
The importance of lower prices as a way to promote the purchase and consumption of fruit and vegetables has been highlighted by Researchers from Deakin University’s Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition Research (C-PAN).
The study was released after the first Australian evidence that cutting prices can be an effective way to get people to buy more fresh produce.
In a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the C-PAN “Supermarket Healthy Eating for Life” (SHELf) trial found that a 20 per cent price reduction in fruit and vegetables resulted in increased purchasing per household of 21 per cent for fruit and 12 per cent for vegetables over the price reduction period.
Crucially, the study also found that the price reduction worked equally well across both low and high income groups – good news for low income groups who are at particular risk of poor diets and associated ill health.
The study, the first of its kind ever done in Australia, was led by Professor Kylie Ball from C-PAN and focused on female primary household shoppers.
“Women remain primarily responsible for food selection and preparation and as household food ‘gatekeepers’, represent important targets for nutrition interventions.
“We also know that individuals from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds tend to have lower intakes of fruits and vegetables and higher intakes of energy-dense, nutrient poor foods than their more advantaged counterparts.
“High costs are often given as a reason that people don’t eat more fruit and vegetables, but until now we didn’t know much about how effective price reductions might be.
“A staggering 95 per cent of the Australian adult population do not eat enough fruit and vegetables for good health, so strategies to help people to eat more fruit and vegetables are urgently needed,” she said.
The C-PAN study is the first rigorously designed trial in Australia and one of only a few in the world to test how price reductions in real world settings where people select and purchase food influence purchases of different foods and beverages
Owner operators working with Cool Runnings Ltd. seem to be doing a little better financially this year, but company president Fred Plotsky would still like to see a more robust economy.
Based in Kenosha, WI and observing its 29th anniversary this month, Cooling Runnings has the majority of its business hauling produce out and California and the Northwest.
Plotsky cites lower diesel fuel prices as a primary factor in produce truckers doing better this year. Despite less money going for fuel, the owner operators his truck brokerage works with are saying they still need $2 per mile as freight rates continue to struggle keeping up with the increasing cost of operation.
“Business is better than last year,” Plotsky observes, “but it still could be better. There is an up tick in the economy, although I still see it as pretty flat to maybe slightly better at best.”
Cool Runnings has a history of working on a regular basis with the same produce truckers. The company provides advances to drivers, but Plotsky says one sign they are doing better, is fewer advances in pay are requested. “This leads me to believe the drivers have more money in their pockets,” he says.
Still, Plotsky knows that excessive rules and regulations on the trucking industry are taking its toll. For example, he points to the electronic logs being pushed this year by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).
“A lot of the older guys are not going to plug it (electronic logs) into the engine. They are saying, ‘you know what, I’m not going to do this, and they are hanging it up,” Plotsky says. While implementing electronic logs is not that complicated, he says it is matter of excessive FMCSA government oversight.
His truckers generally feel they are doing a good job of providing service and doing it safely. They are not hurting anyone, and trucking legally for the most part.
At the same time, Plotsky notes in produce trucking it is a challenge when there are so many multi pick ups. Delays at loading docks make it more difficult to operate legally. Yet, drivers are going to have to find a way to do this when the electronic logbooks become mandatory.
“With the multiple pick ups and delays in loading, it makes it a challenge to make on time deliveries. If you don’t get out of California on Monday night or early Tuesday morning, you can’t make it to Chicago on Friday. You can drive it, but not legally,” Plotsky concludes.
By The California Walnut Board
FOLSOM, Calif. – The California Walnut Board (CWB) today announced the launch of its Waldorf Salad Refresh Recipe Challenge in partnership with the legendary Waldorf Astoria New York, the birthplace of The Waldorf Salad and many other iconic culinary innovations. From now until July 23, 2015, foodies of all skill levels are invited to create and submit their most creative twists on the classic Waldorf Salad while incorporating the salad’s three signature ingredients: walnuts, celery and apples.
The winning dish will receive the honor of being featured on the menu of the Waldorf Astoria New York’s prestigious Sunday Brunch menu this fall, as well as on the California Walnuts website.
Since its inception in the late 1800s, The Waldorf Salad has become a beloved dish that has inspired countless variations over the years. For instance, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resort‘s annual Taste of Waldorf Astoria culinary challenge paired five established and five emerging chefs together to recreate one of Waldorf Astoria’s iconic dishes. The winning dish, Celery Risotto Alla Waldorf, was a recreation of the famous Waldorf Salad between Waldorf Astoria Master Chef Heinz Beck and JBF Rising Star Semi-Finalist Chef David Posey at the Waldorf Astoria in Rome, the Rome Cavalieri. Similarly, the Waldorf Salad Refresh Recipe Challenge celebrates this timeless American classic and the delicious taste of walnuts by encouraging home cooks to develop and share their most unique and innovative recipes with California Walnuts in the spirit of friendly competition.
“We are pleased to celebrate the culinary versatility of walnuts with the Waldorf Salad Refresh Recipe Challenge. We want contestants to inspire walnut lovers everywhere by creating their most original versions of this American classic,” said Dennis A. Balint, CEO of the California Walnut Board. “And having the opportunity for the winning recipe to be featured on the Sunday Brunch menu at the Waldorf Astoria New York is simply a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Finalists will be selected by the California Walnut Board with the ultimate winner being selected by the Waldorf Astoria New York’s Director of Culinary, Chef David Garcelon. The grand prize winner will also receive $5,000 and a trip for two to New York City, which includes a two night stay at the Waldorf Astoria New York (blackout dates apply), brunch for two and one spa treatment at the hotel’s Guerlain Spa.
Not only do walnuts add flavor and a delightful crunch to salads and foods of all kinds, but they are also the only nut that provides an excellent source of plant-based omega-3 fatty acid (2.5 grams), as well as being a convenient source of protein (4 grams) and fiber (2 grams), per one ounce serving.
For more information about the contest and to submit an original Waldorf Salad recipe and photo, visit www.Walnuts.org/Waldorf.
About the California Walnut Board The Walnut Marketing Board was established in 1948 to represent the walnut growers and handlers of California. In April 2008, the Walnut Marketing Board became the California Walnut Board to provide origin designation to the product it represents. The Board is funded by mandatory assessments of the handlers. The CWB is empowered by a Federal Walnut Marketing Order. The Board promotes usage of walnuts in the United States through publicity, advertising and educational programs, and also provides funding for walnut production and post-harvest research.
Bland Farms LLC of Glennville, GA, the nation’s largest sweet onion grower and shipper, is appealing the decision of a Georgia appeals court that says Georgia’s agriculture commissioner has the power to set packing and shipping dates for Vidalia onions, overturning a lower court that sided with Bland.
A three-judge panel of the Georgia Court of Appeals issued a unanimous opinion June 30 stating repeatedly that “all authority to regulate packing and shipping rests with the commissioner.”
The case was filed in the fall of 2013, shortly after Commissioner Gary Black put a new shipping rule into effect.
Black said Vidalia growers sought his help to protect the reputation and value of the state’s trademarked onions after consumer and retailer complaints in 2012 and 2013.
About a dozen growers filed a brief with the appeals court supporting Black. They said they asked for the rule because a minority of growers, seeking to be first to market, had been shipping early, although legally. Their brief said early-variety, poor quality onions with short shelf life had sent retailers and consumers to other sources for sweet onions.
Bland Farms opposed the rule, saying only individual growers know when any given field of onions is ready to harvest.
Bland Farms’ legal challenge claimed Black violated the state’s Vidalia Onion Act with the new rule. Such changes would require legislative action, according to Bland Farms’ complaint. The appeals judges said that argument was “misguided.”
“The Act does not afford growers statutory rights with regard to shipping or packing. Rather, the Act gives the commissioner both the authority to determine and announce a shipping date and the authority to promulgate a rule or regulation for packing,” according to the opinion.
The appeal judges noted Black had considered increasing inspections instead of imposing the new rule, which sets Monday of the last full week in April as the shipping start for Vidalia onions. The rule has a provision for the commissioner to change that date at the request of growers in the event of special conditions.
600 consumers preferred nutrition and sensory over other themes when participating in a Hass Avocado Board marketing study, Engaging and Influencing Shoppers at Shelf.
20 messages were among other themes in the study, which was intended for use on retail display shelves, signs and point-of-sale materials, and were a call to action and usage or occasion.
“Our goal was to ascertain message themes that resonate most with consumers, and in particular, understand which messaging within each theme motivates purchases of hass avocados,” Emiliano Escobedo, executive director of the Irvine, Calif.-based board, said in a news release.
Under the sensory theme, “Naturally Delicious” was the most popular tagline and most likely to motivate purchase. The consumers, all primary shoppers, were drawn by the promise of taste and the sense of “real” food that “may be good for you,” the study cited.
Among the nutrition messages, “Naturally Good Fats” was the top choice, deemed simple, important and believable. Also popular were “Cholesterol Free” and “Good Fat in Avocados Can Replace Saturated Fat.”
It found ratings varied by consumption level, with “super heavy” and heavy users — who buy 120-plus or 37-plus avocados per year, respectively — responding more positively overall to shelf messaging. The study also included medium buyers, who purchase 12 to 36 avocados annually.
Each tagline was tested with identical graphics.
As a second objective, the study measured reactions to everyday category signs. Messages tested were “Fresh Avocados,” “Hass Avocados,” and “Ripe Avocados.” Of those, the former was the most likely to drive purchases.
“The information in this study is intended to help retailers enhance their messaging to appeal to their core market,” Escobedo said in the release. “In-store presentation and messaging are important factors influencing the shopper’s decision to purchase hass avocados.”
Stanley Farms of Vidalia, GA has been placed on one year’s probation by the Georgia Department of Agriculture because it improperly stored other yellow onions at its Vidalia facility. However, it has been cleared by the GDA of accusations that it packed non-Vidalia onions in Vidalia-branded bags.
No evidence was found during its five-week investigation that non-Vidalias were on the packing equipment at Stanley Farms’ facility in Vidalia, Ga., when Vidalia onions were being packed.
“What we did find was improper storage of organic yellow onions in a Vidalia (onion) packing facility,” said Gary Black, GDA commissioner. “We promptly responded with a hold on those onions until all inventory could be traced and accounted for, preventing the onions from entering the retail fresh market.”
The department required Stanley Farms to move 285 field bins of non-Vidalia onions to another facility where they were held under seal. Black said Stanley Farms and members of the Stanley family fully complied with all of the department’s directions and requests during the investigation.
Commissioner Black said the department and the grower-shipper signed a consent agreement that includes a one-year probationary period. If another infraction of the same kind is found during that year, the operation could lose its Vidalia onion license, he said.
Vidalia onions – grossing about $3000 to Chicago; $3300 to New York City.