Archive For The “News” Category
by The Alliance for Food and Farming
Watsonville, CA – The Consumers Union has released yet another produce “shoppers’ guide” list that can only contribute to increased consumer confusion about healthy dietary choices.
he article in Consumer Reports categorizes certain produce items that have been proven very safe as “high risk.” This categorization comes despite the Consumers Union’s own admission that half of the produce sampled by the USDA had no detectable residues at all. If residues were detected, the majority came in at levels well below Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tolerances (99.8%).
Further, both USDA and EPA state that “residues do not pose a food safety concern.”
“For all of us involved in promoting better consumer health, increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables is among our main objectives. The benefits of consuming plenty of fruits and vegetables is absolutely indisputable. Consumers should eat both organic and conventionally grown produce without worrying about minute levels of pesticide residues,” says Dr. Carl Keen, Professor of Nutrition and Internal Medicine at University of California, Davis.
“Despite the best efforts of the government, health experts and nutritionists, consumption of fruits and veggies has stagnated. Telling consumers one moment that certain produce items are ‘high risk’ and the very next advising them to ‘eat more’ is confusing and cannot be helpful with efforts to increase consumption for improved health,” says Marilyn Dolan, Executive Director of the Alliance for Food and Farming.
Most recently, a peer reviewed study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health showed that higher consumption of fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of premature death by 42%, heart disease by 31% and cancer by 25%.
Recently, a new peer reviewed study conducted by the John Hopkins Center for a Livable Future found that conflicting messaging on food safety and nutrition may be having a detrimental impact on the dietary choices of consumers, especially those with lower incomes. Researchers involved in the study recommended that “those who want to improve food production techniques and those who want to improve nutrition cooperate to create consistent messaging about healthy eating for the benefit of consumers.”
“The science is clear that the best advice for consumers is also the simplest – eat more conventional and organic produce for better health,” Dolan says. “And, if you are concerned about residues, wash your produce.
The Alliance for Food and Farming is a non-profit organization formed in 1989 which represents organic and conventional farmers and farms of all sizes. Alliance contributors are limited to farmers of fruits and vegetables, companies that sell, market or ship fruits and vegetables or organizations that represent produce farmers. Our mission is to deliver credible information to consumers about the safety of fruits and vegetables. The Alliance does not engage in any lobbying activities, nor do we accept any money or support from the pesticide industry.
Kenny Lund doesn’t argue with the American Trucking Associations annual study, American Trucking Trends, which shows independent truckers and leased owner operators making $56,167 on average in 2014, which was 7 percent more income than the previous year. However, the vice president of operations for the Allen Lund Company, a third party logistics provider, says freight rates still aren’t increasing enough and operating costs are high.
For example, gasoline in California is $4 per gallon, while Number 2 diesel is about $3.50 per gallon. Take on excessive government regulations, plus an economy that leaves a lot to be desired, and Lund doesn’t see the freight rates keeping up with other costs.
“Truckers are making more money, but the rates aren’t up as much as expected, and the economy was expected to be much stronger,” Lund says.
He points out produce trucking is still dominated by companies with five trucks or less.
“God bless the owner operators out there. They don’t realize collectively what they do for this country and how important they are,” Lund surmises. “We try to convey that as a company and treat these owner operators with the respect they deserve. They are a critical component in the economic system of the U.S.”
He recently heard someone point out if all access to Los Angeles was cut off, there is only a four-day supply of food available. Lund calls that thought “sobering” and notes people just do not realize what a great transportation system has been built in this country due to all of the small companies working together.
“With the efficient distribution system throughout the U.S., you can pretty much get strawberries anywhere in the U.S. the year around, and this is true with most major commodities,” he says.
ALC Logistics
As for Allen Lund Company, he is particularly excited about a division of the firm, ALC Logistics. He developed the company’s Transportation Management System, building it from the ground up. It is the first one created and provides software solutions ranging from claims management to freight audits, and carrier contracts, among other features.
“It is pretty exciting. We are running about $1.4 billion through the system, working with the companies we have now, and we are just getting started,” Lund says.
As for the trucking industry itself, Lund is very interested in the development of driverless trucks. For example the technology is now available where you can follow someone on I-40 from New Mexico to Arkansas and never touch the steering wheel. He sees this addressing problems associated with hours of service regulations.
“I think we’re only five years or less away from it (driverless trucks),” he notes.
“If you can sell this to the driver by saying you are almost out of hours, then you put it on auto pilot. The driver can then go to sleep while the truck is moving down the road, and have your hours still available when you arrive at destination,” Lund observes. “It makes the single drivers like teams.”
(This is part II of a two-part series. The Allen Lund Company was formed in 1976 by its namesake. I have known Mr. Allen Lund nearly since the founding of the company. His son Kenny Lund joined the company 26 years ago this month. At that time the operation had 32 employees. Today Allen Lund Company has 500 employees, arranges about 250,000 loads a year, of which about 40 percent is with fresh produce. The company has 30 offices nationwide and will soon break the $500 million mark in annual sales. — Bill Martin)
by Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market
Philadelphia — Today marks four years since The Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market (PWPM) moved into its state-of-the art home at 6700 Essington Avenue. “Our facility is unsurpassed in cold chain management, product safety, comfort, security, staging, loading, and recycling,” said Sonny DiCrecchio, President/CEO. “We are proud to be the largest enclosed, fully-refrigerated wholesale produce marketplace in the world.”
Philadelphia has a rich history in the produce business. Tracing its roots back to colonial times, merchants once occupied vibrant Dock Street and later the Food Distribution Center, a modern concept in 1959. By 2000, it was evident that more space and upgraded facilities were needed in order to provide customers with the standards they came to expect.
After a decade of intense planning for a facility that has no equal, today’s PWPM is a modern marvel that establishes the highest global standards for distribution of premium produce. Nearly 700,000 square feet, the PWPM employs over 1,000 people in both union and non-union positions and donates over two million pounds of produce to local charities every year. Made up of 24 fresh fruit and vegetable merchants, buyers have the opportunity to compare products, brands, and price points.
“We wanted to share this treasure with as many people as possible,” said DiCrecchio. “That’s why we chose to open our doors to the public.”
Find out more about the Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market at www.pwpm.net.
Many folks involved in fresh produce transportation are wondering what is going on in California. Despite the state growing and shipping about one-half of the nation’s fruit and vegetables, rates have remained relatively flat during the heaviest volume period of the year.
In search of answers, we turned to Kenny Lund, vice president of operations for the Allen Lund Company of La Canada, CA, a transportation brokerage and logistics company that has been in business nearly 40 years.
“I think we’re in a historic…incredible shift in produce,” Lund states, “where product is being grown where it hasn’t been grown before. It’s hard to get the numbers, but it’s looking like there’s a 20 percent increase in produce from Mexico.”
He also cites production and shipping increases from Canada, as well as boat arrivals with imported produce from around the globe.
“But there is not an increase from the most fertile land in the world (California); there’s a decrease,” Lund contends. “I think the decrease is more significant than people will say.”
While acknowledging the drought has a lot to do with it, Lund sees an attack by environmentalists on the California agricultural industry as being a factor. He points to cuts in water allocations to agriculture and water going elsewhere due to environmental reasons.
He says there has been somewhere between 400,000 and 800,000 acres of California farm land being placed out of production.
“It is political more than anything,” Lund states. “They build pipelines for everything, but for some reason we can’t do it for water. You keep seeing a reduction of water in California and an increase in people (living here). The drought is more political than the actual drought. There is a lack of water going to the farms. The Columbia River going into the ocean is enough in itself to handle California farming needs. But the environmentalists will not let that happen.”
Similar to a statement Lund has made many times about the over regulation of trucking, he says the excessive regulation of farms is “amazing.” For example he recently talked to someone in charge of compliance with a California farming operation and was told she had to answer to 42 different government agencies.
Lund believes this a contributing factor to Allen Lund Company having more produce loads than ever crossing the border from Mexico into California, Arizona and Texas.
“It’s a contradiction. 50 percent of the nation’s produce is grown in California. That is under attack by a lack of water due to over regulation of farming, as well as trucking,” Lund says. “Government is over regulating diesel engines, farming equipment, pumps; all these things are under severe attack.”
Each of these factors are contributing to what he calls a “historic” shift in produce shipments from California. Lund talks of the Autopista Durango-Mazatlan, a 143-mile highway spanning from the growing regions of west Mexico to Texas ports of entry that opened last year. As a result business in McAllen, Tx is booming.
While California produce trucking rates are remaining rather flat, Lund says rates are up significantly in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. At the same time, Florida is “mixed” because it has a very similar growing and shipping season to Mexico with which it competes. Still, he notes Florida does not have nearly as many regulations, plus that state has plenty of water.
(This is Part I of a two-part series. The Allen Lund Company was formed in 1976 by its namesake. I have known Mr. Lund almost since the founding of the company. His son Kenny Lund joined the company 26 years ago this month. At that time the operation had 32 employees. Today Allen Lund Company has 500 employees, arranges about 250,000 loads a year, of which about 40 percent is with fresh produce. The company has 30 offices nationwide and will soon break the $500 million mark in annual sales. — Bill Martin)
A public warning has been issued by Canadian officials about consumers having found toxic iron cross blister beetles in prepackaged salads. The warning otherwise is very vague, except to say that there haven’t been any confirmed illnesses or injuries.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued the warning May 29th, but does not say what country the pre-packaged salads are from or what grower or shipper distributed them. The warning also does not say where the salads were distributed.
“Fresh produce can harbor insects that may be injurious to consumers, but this is rare,” according to the CFIA’s warning.
“The iron cross blister beetle is very distinctively colored, with a bright red head and bright yellow markings on the wings, separated by a black cross. This particular beetle should be treated with caution as it may release an irritating chemical called cantharidin. This chemical may cause blisters at the point of contact.”
The CFIA advises consumers to wash and visually inspect leafy vegetables and remove beetles without touching or crushing them. The warning requests that anyone who finds a beetle to report it to the local CFIA office.
The iron cross blister beetle is generally found in the southwestern U.S. and northwestern Mexico, according to information from the University of California-Davis department of entomology website. Also known as soldier beetles because of their habit of traveling in single-file lines, they are found primarily in late spring and early summer, according to the website, and often occur in immense feeding and mating aggregations.
Here comes the Roadcheck, the annual inspection blitz. It is a joint effort of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and others, is set to take place starting tomorrow June 2nd and continuing through June 4th.
About 10,000 inspectors from state, local and federal enforcement agencies will perform nearly 70,000 inspections on trucks and buses over the 72-hour period. They will be stationed at 1,500 inspection points around North America.
Cargo securement will be this year’s special emphasis, though inspectors will still be primarily performing the full 37-step Level I inspections — the most thorough inspection — throughout the week.
In early June of 2014, the Roadcheck resulted in a vehicle out-of-service rate of 18.7 percent and a driver out-of-service rate of 4.8 percent. Also last year over 72,000 drivers and vehicles were inspected.
CVSA has on its site resources for owner operators and fleet drivers. Here are 9 top things inspectors look for: brakes, coupling devices, lighting, securement of cargo, steering, suspension, plus tires, wheels, rims and hubs.
Attitudes towards health and wellness as well as meal preparation are among the biggest evolving trends in U.S. consumers’ eating habits, according to new research from Acosta Sales & Marketing.
Nine out of 10 shoppers prefer eating at home, driven by a desire for comfort (61 percent), cost (60 percent) and convenience (59 percent), the firm’s The Evolution of Eating survey revealed.
However, more Americans are turning to ready-to-eat and take-and-bake solutions, including “hybrid homemade meals,” such as a grocery store rotisserie chicken with a salad-in-a-bag and homemade potatoes, rather than cooking from scratch.
About 46 percent said they prepared meals at home over the past year, 48 percent when considering only the Millennial generation, who also reported eating prepared foods from grocery stores at home at a much higher rate than total U.S. diners (27 percent vs. 16 percent, respectively). Millennials also reported enjoying cooking the most compared with their older counterparts.
“The way our society views food has come a long way since the TV dinner heyday of the 1950s. From sharing recipes and photos of food on social media to a widespread fixation on healthy food and fads, we have seen a seismic shift in consumers’ attitudes toward food,” said Colin Stewart, senior vice president, Acosta. “Eating has evolved right along with society, and consumer brands and retailers must consider the dynamics, demands and preferences of today’s modern family to deliver successful food and meal solutions.”
Acosta finds that consumers are becoming even more educated about the connection between diet and wellness, and are taking efforts to transform their shopping and eating behaviors, as America’s health trend shows no signs of slowing down.
In fact, the majority of shoppers (61 percent) ranked reading food labels as very important to their health and wellness concerns when they grocery shop, and more than half reported trying to eat more fruits and vegetables in the past year. And shoppers across all segments reported eating more whole grains and buying foods with fewer preservatives.
The Evolution of Eating report was compiled using research conducted by Acosta, as well as the company’s experience working with the nation’s largest CPG manufacturers and retailers.
Has anyone ever accused head lettuce of being sexy? Probably not, at least not until now.
The activist group Peta recently set up shop at the corner of famed Sunset Boulevard and Ivar Avenue, handling out free boxes of vegan burgers and hotdogs just before the Memorial Day weekend. Lettuce Ladies set up in Tinseltown at noon on Thursday, May 22, to entice passersby to sample some veggie-centric foods they may not have considered before.
According to an NBC Los Angeles report, the ladies were to bare their bodies and their cause with signs feature produce promotions such as “let vegetarianism grow on you” and “turn over a new leaf, go vegetarian.”
This isn’t the first time PETA has used this approach to push produce. According to the association’s blog, the Lettuce Ladies have been to countries like Australia, the Philippines, and Kenya, as well as having made a stand in full lettuce garb on Capitol Hill and the NFL Draft while serving vegetarian spins on hot dogs and wings.
While the Lettuce Ladies usually are volunteers for PETA’s cause, well-known names and spokespeople for the association like actresses Pamela Anderson and Elizabeth Berkley have also sported lettuce bikinis and gowns for the campaign.
We almost forgot to mention – Salinas Valley lettuce is grossing about $1200 to L.A. (Is that to Hollywood, or the L.A. Produce Market?)
The U.S. balance of trade for fruits and vegetables is swinging heavily to imports, with avocados and berries seeing huge growth over the past decade, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. While this may not help improve the country’s trade deficite, it means increased loading opportunities for produce haulers.
The USDA in its annual report of trade projections, estimates the trade deficit in fresh fruits and vegetables will grow from about $7.6 billion in 2014 to $16.5 billion by 2024.
The total value of fresh fruit and vegetable exports will grow from $7.3 billion in 2014 to $10.7 billion in 2024, while imports will grow even faster, climbing from $14.9 billion in 2014 to $27.2 billion in 2024.
The projections are built on trade trends over the past 10 years.
The last time the U.S. had a trade surplus in fresh fruits and vegetables was 1980, when the margin of exports over imports was $25 million. By 1990, the trade deficit in fresh fruits and vegetables was $530 million, increasing to $1.8 billion by 2000 and $6.2 billion by 2010.
Imports will supply 53 percent of U.S. fruits and nuts by 2024, up from 45 percent in 2014, while the USDA said the share of vegetables from imports will rise from 19 percent in 2014 to 26 percent in 2024.
Lower trade barriers have boosted U.S. exports and imports.
Climbing imports
“Twenty years ago you never would have thought of having citrus (imports) in the summer or grapes in November,” said Mayda Sotomayor, CEO of Seald Sweet International, Vero Beach, Fla. “You just had gaps, and consumers lived with gaps.”
Today, Sotomayor said those gaps are now mostly gone, thanks to new varieties, growing areas and storage technology.
In Consumer Reports’ new supermarket survey, Wegmans, Publix and Trader Joe’s remain at the top of the ratings of 68 of stores nationwide. Also earning high overall satisfaction scores were Fareway Stores, Market Basket (Northeast), Costco and Raley’s. Once again Walmart Supercenter landed at the bottom, along with A&P and Waldbaums, two smaller regional chains.
“Once upon a time, low prices, checkout speed and variety were attributes that mattered most to supermarket shoppers,” Tod Marks, senior project editor at Consumer Reports, said in a press release. “While these aspects are still critical, more and more consumers demand better fresh foods, more organics and a greater variety of locally made and grown foods.”
Many Americans believe that good health starts with a good diet. As a result, consumers have become increasingly savvy label readers, wary of preservatives, chemicals and unpronounceable ingredients and the demand for minimally processed foods and shorter ingredients lists has risen significantly. And supermarkets are taking seriously their new role in the health of their customers. Consumer Reports found that 95 percent of chains have a registered dietician on staff to assist with merchandising and marketing decisions. And, more than 75 percent of stores say they carry more locally grown or made goods than they did in 2012.
The report, “America’s Best, Freshest Supermarkets,” which includes the complete Ratings of grocery stores, is available in the May 2015 issue of Consumer Reports and at www.ConsumerReports.org. The feature also decodes common terms such as “fresh,” “natural” and more.
Consumer Reports National Research Center surveyed 62,917 subscribers about overall satisfaction with their supermarket shopping experiences based on 111,208 visits between March 2013 and July 2014. The top-rated supermarkets also received high scores for overall freshness — quality of produce, meats, poultry, bakery items and store-prepared foods as well as store quality, which included scores for staff courtesy and store cleanliness. Walmart Supercenter, consistently one of Consumer Reports’ lowest-rated grocers since 2005, earned low marks in every category other than price.
In addition to traditional characteristics such as service and cleanliness, Consumer Reports asked subscribers to rate their grocers on the selection of local produce and the price of organics at their stores. Only around six in 10 were completely or very satisfied with the quality of their store’s produce, meat, and poultry offerings, according to Consumer Reports’ survey.
Just three of the chains — Wegmans and national chains The Fresh Market and Whole Foods — earned stellar produce scores. Seventeen were below average. Eighteen retailers received low scores for produce variety, notably two big warehouse clubs — Sam’s Club (part of Walmart) and BJ’s Wholesale Club (in the East) — as well as Target and Target Supercenters.
Consumer Reports also asked subscribers about the prices of organic options available at their stores: Trader Joe’s, Wegmans, Costco, and Sprouts Farmers Market received high marks. And, to determine the real-world price differences, Consumer Reports conducted a study by shopping for 15 similar organic and conventional goods, including bananas, milk, and chicken, at eight national, regional and online grocers. The organic items cost 47 percent more, on average, although in some cases, some of the organic versions cost the same or less than the conventional ones. For example, organic Grade A maple syrup cost 11 percent less than the conventional version at Price Chopper.