Archive For The “News” Category
By Produce Business
Stretched out onto 113 acres, the Hunts Point Cooperative Market is the largest food terminal market of its kind in the world – that doesn’t sell flowers. It is estimated the Hunts Point Market employs more than 10,000 people directly and indirectly, supplying 23,000 restaurateurs and providing 60 percent of the produce that feeds the area’s 23 million people.
Hunts Point opened in 1967 with more than 130 produce companies. Ten of those original wholesalers who were on The Washington Street Market moved to The Hunts Point Market: Nathel & Nathel (then Wishnatzki & Nathel), S. Katzman Produce, E. Armata, D’Arrigo, Joseph Fierman & Son, Rubin Bros., Kleinman & Hochberg (now LBD), Robt. T. Cochran, A.J. Trucco and M&R Tomato. These firms have expanded and grown in the past 52 years. Today, after tremendous consolidation, there are 32 firms in total.
How do you feed 20.3 million people? It sounds like a mind-boggling feat, but it’s what the farmers, suppliers, produce wholesalers, distributors, retailers and shippers that work in the New York Metro area do every day. According to the 2017 American Community Survey (ACS) of the U.S. Census Bureau, 20,320,876 people live in the area defined as the New York, Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA metropolitan statistical area (MSA). In New York City alone, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the number of people at 8,398,748 as of July 2018.
When Nathel & Nathel opened at Hunts Point, the company was called Wishnatzki & Nathel. The name change came in 1997, when brothers Ira and Sheldon, the company’s third generation, took over. It was their grandfather who started his business with a pushcart in 1922 in Brooklyn. Today, with tremendous consolidation, Nathel & Nathel is among the largest companies at Hunts Point with an average of 100 trucks delivering produce every day.
“Nothing compares to Hunts Point,” says Steve Kaplan, whose company, Florida Produce Brokers, Inc. in Stuart, FL, provides mostly corn and leafy greens to the New York area. “It is in class by itself. Nothing is larger and nothing compares to the scope of what goes on there all the time. It’s the largest wholesale market in the world.”
Transportation
In the produce trade, transportation issues can arrive at a moment’s notice and attention must be given immediately.
“In our business there are so many factors affecting transportation and it has such a big effect on us,” says Stefanie Katzman, executive manager, S. Katzman Produce. “We try to mitigate it as much as we can by sourcing from multiple locations and trying to maintain an on-hand inventory, but there is only so much that can be done. Logistics is one of the most challenging parts of our industry because so much is out of our control, and everything that affects timing just trickles right down the line. There can be product delays at loading, hold-ups at previous stops, traffic, equipment issues, and about a hundred other things that affect the transporting of products from farm to table.”
Why would a wholesaler choose to hire a truck – which means dealing with the driving limits of the electronic logging device (ELD) – instead of a train? The ELD records the number of hours the driver has been driving, ensuring that the driver gets enough rest and is safer on the roads. Still, pulling off for a few hours to rest means unproductive time for perishable items.
“There is actually a lot of traffic on the railways,” says Evan Kazan, director of business development for Target Interstate. Located at Hunts Point Market, Target specializes in transporting produce. Since there are a lot of railcars on each train it takes longer to get them loaded and unloaded.
Instead of a one-day transfer, it can become two to three days. A trip that used to take six to seven days, now it is taking as long as nine days. At that point, especially when you’re dealing with produce, you’re better off going with trucks, says Kazan.
Since last year, capacity and freight rates have gone down. That means, produce wholesalers don’t have the same issues as in 2018. “Now the price difference is not as big of a difference. You are not looking at thousands of dollars, you’re looking at hundreds. For $500, I may decide it is worth it to get me my load to its destination three days earlier even if I am paying a little more. When the freight rates made the difference in price $2,000, wholesalers were faced with a potentially expensive dilemma.
A big thank you to those who are serving and have served our nation to defend our freedom and way of life! And to those who made the ultimate sacrifice, I salute you.
I recently visited the National Cemetery in Ft. Gibson, OK paying respects to those who have served our country, including my cousin Martin L. Johnson and his wife Irene Johnson. Irene passed away earlier this year and was such a wonderful person, who served in the Marines where she met my cousin.
As for Martin L. he served combat duty in 3 wars — World War II, Korea and Vietnam. They met in Honolulu and 2 weeks later were married. The marriage lasted 64 years until his passing in 2015 and they were as devoted to each other as any couple I have ever known.
My God Bless our veterans and this great nation on this Veteran’s Day.
The Little Potato Co. commissioned a survey that has found 55 percent of Americans rank potatoes as their favorite comfort food. ‘
Spuds outranked pizza (21 percent), macaroni and cheese (15 percent) and pasta (9 percent), according to a news release.
Another finding from the survey was one in four millennials would give up cheeseburgers if forced to choose between them and potatoes.
Favorite ways to eat potatoes include mashed (30 percent), as French fries (23 percent) and baked (22 percent), per the release. Among younger generations, the preference is French fries (32 ;percent), while older generations listed mashed potatoes as their favorite (35 percent).
The survey, which polled more than 1,000 people, found that nearly half of Americans eat potatoes a few times a week, with dinner as the most popular occasion (67 percent). The popularity of potatoes expands every holiday season, when more people (75 ;percent) eat potatoes than any other time of year.
DURHAM, N.H. – Pumpkins are synonymous with Halloween. At the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of New Hampshire, researchers have ensured that pumpkin lovers have plenty of variety to choose from, including the popular white pumpkins, when decorating for this spookiest holiday of the year.
For more than 80 years, UNH has made a substantial contribution to Halloween and autumn because of its breeding of new and often unique varieties of pumpkins. Currently under the direction of Brent Loy, professor emeritus and researcher with the NH Agricultural Experiment Station, of the 150 or so pumpkin varieties available from Northeast seed companies, more than 30 hybrid pumpkin varieties contain either one or two parental lines from UNH pumpkin breeding.
Loy’s experiment station-funded work, which has largely taken place at the experiment station’s Kingman Research Farm, Woodman Horticultural Research Farm and Macfarlane Research Greenhouses, has resulted in more than 80 new varieties of cucurbits — squash, pumpkins, gourds, and melons — sold in seed catalogs throughout the world. Along with cucurbit breeding introduced by the late Dr. Yeager in 1940, this breeding research represents the longest continuous squash and pumpkin breeding program in North America.
According to UNHInnovation, UNH has executed more than 50 exclusive licenses for inbreds and hybrids developed by Brent. Throughout his career at UNH, more than 200 hybrids and inbreds have been licensed or utilized in trial and germplasm agreements. Royalties generated by this portfolio continue to increase each year, including an expected 10 percent increase from last year. Royalties have generated more than $2 million for the university since commercialization began of these varieties.
Recently, UNH has concentrated on developing different sizes of white pumpkins, and pumpkins with unique pigmentation such as yellow and tan. Moonshine was the first white pumpkin released from UNH, a medium-size pumpkin with a dark handle. Other white pumpkins containing a UNH breeding line are Blanco and Snowball, developed respectively by Seneca Vegetable Research and Hybrid Seed of New Zealand. Six additional white hybrid varieties, representing different size classes, have been released to Northeast seed companies for production and sale. All new hybrids have intermediate resistance to powdery mildew disease.
In the yellow class of pumpkin, UNH has developed Owl’s Eye, marketed by High Mowing Organic Seeds, and Sunlight and Mellow Yellow, both produced by Hybrid Seed. “Sunlight is one of my favorites because of its high productivity, good tolerance to powdery mildew, and attractiveness for sales when marketed with white pumpkins. It is excellent for face painting,” Loy said.
“In the standard orange class of pumpkin, there are a lot of varieties from which to choose, but the key is finding pumpkin varieties that have consistently good handles,” Loy said, explaining that the handles of many varieties fall down in this category, especially when growing conditions are challenging.
Secretariat, a relatively new variety containing UNH breeding, has a very robust stem and an appealing, slightly flattened shape. And an older variety, Racer, which has a UNH inbred line, still is popular the 15 to 20-pound class, despite lacking resistance to powdery mildew.
This year saw two new UNH-developed varieties, Carbonado Gold (Rupp Seeds) and Renegade (Johnny’s Selected Seeds), hit the market. “Both look like real winners for the 15 to 20-pound pumpkin class. These two have nice ribbing, outstanding color, and most importantly, handles that resist shrinkage and breakage after harvest. Renegade has a slightly more robust handle than Carbonado Gold; whereas, the latter variety has earlier maturity,” Loy said.
Two years ago, Rupp Seeds introduced Bisbee Gold, another variety containing a UNH breeding line. In the 8 to 10-pound class, this pumpkin is an excellent size for younger children to carve. This variety also has superb color, a very robust handle, and is extremely productive. With the exception of Racer, all the above-mentioned varieties have intermediate resistance to powdery mildew.
“There does not seem to be an end to the new stream of varieties entering the market,” Loy said.
Founded in 1887, the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture is UNH’s original research center and an elemental component of New Hampshire’s land-grant university heritage and mission. We steward federal and state funding, including support from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, to provide unbiased and objective research concerning diverse aspects of sustainable agriculture and foods, aquaculture, forest management, and related wildlife, natural resources and rural community topics. We maintain the Woodman and Kingman agronomy and horticultural research farms, the Macfarlane Research Greenhouses, the Fairchild Dairy Teaching and Research Center, and the Organic Dairy Research Farm. Additional properties also provide forage, forests and woodlands in direct support to research, teaching, and outreach.
The University of New Hampshire is a flagship research university that inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top ranked programs in business, engineering, law, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. UNH’s research portfolio includes partnerships with NASA, NOAA, NSF and NIH, receiving more than $100 million in competitive external funding every year to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space.
An import and distribution facility in Mission, Texas has been opened by La Bonanza of Uruapan, Mexico, for avocados and guacamole products.
The La Bonanza, Mission, TX facility has 15,000 square feet, with 10 loading doors, 8 of them refrigerated for receiving and shipping, according to a news release. The facility can process more than 1,100 tons of product a day.
La Bonanza has packed and shipped avocados to the U.S. and Canada for 25 years, Gabriel Villasenor, president, said in the release.
“In that time, we have also added hundreds of our own hectares with plans to add more each year,” Villasenor said. “We own and maintain a fleet of 30 semis to deliver to the border and gas stations to guarantee fuel.”
The company also has a stake in a processing plant in Uruapan to offer guacamole products.
More than 90 percent of La Bonanza avocados are shipped to the U.S., Maggie Bezart-Hall, of La Bonanza’s sales and marketing, said in the release.
“The future of market growth and better supply to the U.S. and Canada is through direct sourcing of fresh and processed avocados from Mexico,” Bezart-Hall said in the release. “I joined La Bonanza because they are truly an integrated company that can offer high quality avocados from their own land and generations of partnerships with trusted family growers.”
Citrus shipper Seald Sweet International of Vero Beach, FL is expanding into avocados with a partnership with Mexican grower Valvilla Produce.
Valvilla is a third-generation company in Uruapan, Michoacan, which has over 900 acres of conventional and organic avocados.
“Our initiative is to develop and strengthen our business by offering direct programs with the growers while adding value and supporting a transparent relationship that benefits all parties” Mayda Sotomayor, managing director of Greenyard USA/Seald Sweet, said in a news release.
Seald Sweet merged with Greenyard in 1998, to form Greenyard USA.
The partnership will focus on weekly retail and program business, with year-round imports; shipments begun crossing at McAllen, TX, in August, according to the release. Shipments could potentially arrive at Greenyard Logistics USA’s Swedesboro, N.J., cold storage and repack facility.
“We want to offer retailers product according to their needs, with flexible packaging and ripening options that adapt to their customers,” Michael Walsh, commodity manager at Greenyard USA/Seald Sweet, said in the release.
Luis Valencia, Valvilla Produce president, said the two companies share values.
“At Valvilla Produce we are convinced that the biggest sources of opportunities are collaboration and partnership, and we need to expose ourselves to that in order to succeed in our businesses,” he said in the release.
A new six-acre greenhouse expansion by Wholesum Family Farms in Nogales, AZ will produce an estimate of 3.5 million pounds of organic beefsteak tomatoess.
The expansion adds to the firm’s’ existing 18-acre facility in Amado, Ariz., according to a news release, and will use sustainable greenhouse technology. First harvest is expected in November.
The expansion adds 25 year-round employees and the new production will be Fair Trade certified, according to the release.
After the expansion, all of Wholesum’s beefsteak tomatoes will be grown in the U.S., according to the release.
“This expansion is very exciting for us at Wholesum,” Ricardo Crisantes, chief commercial officer, said in the release. “It keeps with our vision of creating an impact in the organic food industry through a sustainable business model that cares about its workers.”
The Ultra-Clima concept greenhouse offers energy-efficient control of climate conditions and features infared sensors to monitor plant growth, according to the release.
“We focus on social and environmental responsibility in every aspect of our operations and this greenhouse is a reflection of those efforts,” Crisantes said in the release.
The expansion concludes the second phase of Wholesum’s growth strategy, which began with a 12-acre facility built in 2011 and a six-acre greenhouse added in 2014. Two more construction phases are planned, according to the release.
Eagle, Idaho – For eight years, the Big Idaho® Potato Truck, a 4-ton spud on wheels, has been turning heads and stopping folks in their tracks everywhere it goes. This summer, there’s another reason why people are taking a second look at the oversized vegetable. The Tater Team, the trio that travels with the Truck promoting famous Idaho® potatoes, is all women, including the driver. According to CNBC, only 6 percent of all truck drivers are female. So if you think a giant spud is a rare sighting, so is a female truck driver.
This year marks Melissa Bradford’s first year driving the Big Idaho® Potato Truck, and she’s a natural. Born and raised in Idaho, Melissa grew up harvesting spuds with her dad. She became a commercial truck driver in 2008, and in 2016 upgraded to a Class A commercial license, allowing her to operate a vehicle with a gross combination weight rating of 26,001 pounds. Melissa says seeing people’s reaction to the Truck is the highlight of her job, and she’s amazed at how many people ask her if the potato is real. Melissa is also a spokesmodel for the Duluth Trading Company.
Accompanying her are the “Tater Twins,” Jessica Coulthard and Kaylee Wells, Idahoans and best friends who have been traveling with the Big Idaho® Potato Truck for three years. They’ve trekked across the country countless times promoting the health benefits of Idaho® potatoes to millions of folks who are thrilled to see the largest spud on wheels. “The Tater Team represents the heart and soul of the Idaho® potato brand, and I’m exceptionally proud of Melissa, Kaylee, and Jessica for demonstrating its values on a daily basis,” says Frank Muir, President & CEO of the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC).
This summer, the trio will travel approximately 25,000 miles and visit about 60 cities. Some highlights of the 2019 tour include participation in the World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Hot Springs, Arkansas; a zip around the Indianapolis Speedway track; a stop at the World’s Largest Ketchup Bottle in Collinsville, Illinois; and its annual and highly anticipated appearance at the Memorial Day Parade in Washington, D.C. In many of the markets it visits, the Truck supports local charities through its “A Big Helping” program by helping them raise funds and awareness based on their specific needs. The Truck’s complete tour schedule is available at bigidahopotato.com.
The Idaho® potato brand has a long legacy of trailblazing women, and the Tater Trio aren’t the first women to represent Idaho® potatoes. In 2013, the IPC shattered the glass ceiling with the appointment of the first female Commissioner, Peggy Arnzen, a shipper from Benchmark Potato in Rexburg. The first female grower, Mary Hasenoehrl of Gross Farms in Lewiston, was appointed to the IPC in 2017. As industry leaders for many years, both Peggy and Mary have long and impressive backgrounds in farming and agriculture. Their perspective and experience have contributed to building impactful marketing programs designed to reach the IPC’s primary target audience, women ages 25-54.
About the Idaho Potato Commission
Established in 1937, the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC) is a state agency that is responsible for promoting and protecting the famous “Grown in Idaho®” seal, a federally registered trademark that assures consumers they are purchasing genuine, top-quality Idaho® potatoes. Idaho’s growing season of warm days and cool nights, ample mountain-fed irrigation and rich volcanic soil, give Idaho® potatoes their unique texture, taste and dependable performance. These ideal growing conditions are what differentiate Idaho® potatoes from potatoes grown in other states. For more information, visit www.idahopotato.com.
By Ron Sterk, Food Business News
WASHINGTON — Lower harvested area and yields pushed fresh vegetable production down 10% last year, to 35.9 billion lbs, the lowest in 19 years and the largest year-over-year drop during that time, the U.S Department of Agriculture said in its Vegetables and Pulses Outlook. In contrast, 2018 production of processing vegetables was estimated at 35.7 billion lbs, up 7% from 2017.
The four largest fresh crops — onions, head lettuce, romaine lettuce and tomatoes — accounted for 46% of total fresh production and 70% of the decline, the U.S.D.A. said. Planted area of onions, head lettuce and romaine lettuce was the lowest in 17 years. In contrast, fresh-market production of carrots, snap beans, cauliflower, celery, cucumbers, garlic, spinach and artichokes increased.
Fresh vegetable prices declined about 5% in 2018 “in spite of lower domestic supply and slightly rising exports, which should put upward pressure on the price,” the U.S.D.A. said.
“Two foodborne illness outbreaks occurred in 2018, substantially slowing the market for fresh leafy greens,” the U.S.D.A. said. The four largest price drops were 31% for romaine lettuce, 16% for head lettuce, 15% for leaf lettuce and 14% for spinach.
Production of most processing vegetables declined in 2018, but the total was skewed by a 17% increase in tomatoes (technically a fruit), to 25.6 billion lbs, which accounted for 75% of processing vegetable production. Tomato production fell sharply in 2017 due to drought in California and high carry-in stocks from 2016, the U.S.D.A. said.
Per capita availability of fresh vegetables also declined while that of processing vegetables increased in 2018. But the gap between fresh and processed vegetable availability has widened significantly since the 1980s, with considerably more processed vegetables available relative to fresh market produce prior to the 1980s.
Prices for processed vegetables increased about 11% from 2017 but were down 6% from 2016, the U.S.D.A. said, “despite increased domestic supply and slowing export volume, which should put downward pressure on the price.”
Per capita (domestic production and imports) availability of fresh vegetables (excluding mushrooms, potatoes and sweet potatoes) was 144.8 lbs in 2018, down 8% from a year earlier, and totaled 183.8 lbs when all items were included, down 9%, the U.S.D.A. said. It was the largest annual decline on record. Of the 24 fresh items included in the total per capita availability list, 15 declined, 8 increased and 1 (mushrooms) was unchanged. The largest declines were sweet potatoes (31%), squash (22%) and head lettuce, romaine/leaf lettuce and bulb onions (19% each). The largest increase was carrots (16%).
Processing vegetable per capita availability (domestic production and imports) was 112.8 lbs, up 8% from 2017, including canning vegetables at 89.96 lbs, up 8%, and freezing vegetables at 22.88 lbs, up 7%. The total jumps to 198.5 lbs per capita, up 5% for the year, when mushrooms, onions (for dehydrating) and potatoes for processing are added.
Total U.S. vegetable imports were a record 23.3 billion lbs in 2018, the highest in about three decades, the U.S.D.A. said. Exports were 11.4 billion lbs. The value of imports was $13.9 billion in 2018 compared with the value of exports at $6.5 billion.
“The United States has experienced an increasing trade volume deficit in total vegetables since 2001,” the U.S.D.A. said. “Based on early trade data, 2019 seems poised to fall behind 2018 vegetable trade levels for imports.”
The U.S.D.A. forecast fresh market vegetable production at 38.5 billion lbs in 2019, up 7% from 2018, and processing vegetable production at 35.4 billion lbs, down 0.8%.
Mission Produce Inc. of Oxnard, CA has announced plans to ramp up its Columbian avocado production within the next two years. The announcement was made prior to the World Avocado Congress, held in Medellin, Columbia in late September.
The company partnered in 2017 with Cartama, one of the country’s largest avocadoo growers, according to a news release.
“Colombia will provide us with an added source of year-round, high-quality fruit,” Mission Produce president and CEO Steve Barnard said in the release. “We will also continue partnering with Cartama to support volume and growth. We are replicating our vertically-integrated, cutting-edge business model in this country.”
The goal is to plant 1,000-1,500 hectares (about 2,500-3,700 acres) of avocado trees in Colombia to supply domestic and international markets, including the U.S. and Europe, Barnard said.
Colombia’s location makes it ideal for producing avocados because of its growing conditions, market accessibility and logistical abilities.
“Colombia is unique in that it offers a year-round supply of fruit. Our country will act as strong source for global avocados in the coming years,” Cartama CEO Ricardo Uribe said in the release.