Posts Tagged “feature”
According to the American Trucking Associations (ATA) our industry currently needs another 30,000 qualified drivers. The number is expected to rise to 200,000, over the next 10 years. Drivers are getting old. The average age for -hire is about 49; about 55 for less-than-truckload drivers (LTL) and private carriers. Average turnover rate is 115-120%.
Hauling more than 70% of all freight in the US, trucking is a vital component to economic growth of the country. But there is not enough capacity to handle the anticipated growth. The result is that everything slows down.
Being away from home for long stretches is a major drawback to attracting recruits to drive trucks. The age requirement, restrictive regulations and demanding work schedules are further deterrents.
Des Moines Truck Brokers (DMTB) President Jimmy DeMatteis pointed out that “The driver pool is being pinched from both ends. Baby boomer drivers are retiring. But we have also lost young people who elected to go into the work force right out of high school. They used to be allowed to drive interstate at the age of 18. Now that age has been raised to 21.
“By the time they are in the labor market for three years, young adults can be well on their way to a career in construction, retail or service. They are not interested in starting all over again from the bottom as a brand new truck driver. Raising the age limit has been a major blow to driver recruitment.”
There is a move afoot to convince insurance companies to create training standards that would allow young drivers behind the wheel. DeMatteis notes, “At the age of 18, they are allowed to go into combat and fly a plane and drive a car. With the proper training, they should also be able to drive a truck.”
Driver pay must be increased if the capacity shortage is to be addressed. In real dollars, drivers today earn less than they made in 1990.
Solving the driver shortage will undoubtedly cause an increase in the cost of shipping. It will also take innovation and a dose of reality as shippers and carriers face the problem head-on, in 2015.
Reprinted with permission from the 2015 February issue of Dashboard, which is published by Des Moines Truck Brokers.
Among the healthy foods that were considered to be trendy in 214 was kale, according to some nutrition experts. So what is expected to take center stage in 2015?
Nutritionist see increasing attention towards antioxidizing vegetables and protein-rich grains.
Surprisingly, one of the new foods in the limelight is cauliflower. Registered dietitian Alison Sacks sees cauliflower will stealing some of the spotlight from kale. Her focus is helping clients prevent and heal chronic conditions. She notes cauliflower is nutritious and very versatile.
In 2015, expect to see cauliflower grated to make a flour substitute in pizza crust, mashed (instead of mashed potatoes) and roasted.
“It’s the new, healthy ‘white food,’ ” says Sacks, referring to the trend of avoiding white foods — meaning refined carbs such as white-flour pasta and bread — because of their high sugar and gluten levels and low fiber content.
Another dietitian Sarah Waybright says Brussels sprouts — with high levels of fiber, iron and vitamins K and C — are also a looking good for 2015. Instead of steaming broccoli, she suggests roasting it instead.
Waybright also suggests using some olive oil or other fat – maybe a flavorful, anchovy-based sauce – to give them a crispier surface. Fat doesn’t just create better texture and flavor, she says, it also helps the body better absorb plant-based vitamins and other nutrients. Furthermore, it helps create a feeling of fullness that is hard to come by with veggies only.
There have been a lot of opinions expressed about the “Left Coast” and its rules, regulations and politics and what effect it may have on everything from produce truckers willing to do business in California, to produce growers shifting more of their operations to Mexico and other states.
Based on a new report from the U.S Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, as looney as our friends on the West Coast may sometimes seem, last year California still accounted for 47 percent of harvested acreage, 52 percent of production and 60 percent of value in 2014. If that’s the case, then there must have been trucks for the most part delivering those agricultural products to markets across North America.
Production of U.S. melons and 24 top vegetables was down one percent in 2014. The overall value of those crops also fell last year.
About 413 million cwt. of leading vegetables and melons were harvested in 2014. Harvested acreage, at 1.58 million acres, also was down, by three percent.
The value of the 2014 crops, at $10.9 billion, was down 5 percent from a year ago.
In terms of production, onions, head lettuce and watermelon were the top three crops, accounting for 36 percent of total production.
Tomatoes, head lettuce and onions were the most valuable, making up 29 percent of total value.
While the vast majority of produce shipments occur by truck, California produce shipments also easily lead the pack in terms of volume over other states.
An extended warm weather streak is occurring in the California and Arizona deserts, resulting in fair to good movement of vegetables. The only problem is treacherous winter weather in many northern and northeastern markets is hurting demand.
Desert vegetable shipments are taking place from the Imperial, Coachella and Pal Verde valleys of California, as well as the Yuma area in Arizona. Everything from head lettuce to romaine, as well as broccoli and cauliflower, and greens are being loaded. The primary problem might be if there are some temporary shipping gaps due to weather factors earlier in the season….Mexican asparagus volume is building at the Calexico, CA border crossing.
Carrot shipments from the Bakersfield area are averaging over 300 truck loads per week.
While strawberry loadings out of the Oxnard district are light, there is better volume with celery.
California citrus shipments ranging from oranges to tangerines and mandarins are available from shippers in Central and Southern California.
California avocado shipments have recently got underway and the forecast calls for loadings to total 327 million pounds during the 2014-15 season, about 10 percent greater than this past season. Volumes are expected to build into March with ‘promotable’ volume beginning in April.
Overall, this is perhaps the lightest volume time of the year for California produce shipments, which too often results in multiple pick ups to fill the trailer.
California desert shipments – grossing about $4400 to Chicago, $6500 to New York City.
Here’s a glimpse of produce shipments from Mexico crossing the border at McAllen, Tx, plus some domestic items coming out of the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
Sweet onion shipments from Mexico and Texas are expected to start later than normal this year. By contrast, in the Northwest storage onion shipments could last longer than normal simply because there is such a big volume.
Mexican sweet onions shipments are expected to start crossing the border into South Texas in good volume by the middle of March, which would be three to four weeks later than normal. South Texas sweet onions also are behind schedule and should get underway around mid to late March…..Meanwhile, imports of sweet onions from Peru are expected to wrap up by the end of February.
Meanwhile, there’s dozens of other items crossing the border from Mexico into the Lower Rio Grand Valley. Mexican avocado shipments are averaging over 500 truck loads per week. There also are lesser amounts of produce shipments ranging from Mexican strawberries and limes to tropical fruits and vegetables.
While much of the Texas produce growing over the past couple of decades has shifted to south of the border, South Texas growing operations are still in business.
Texas grapefruit shipments are averaging around 200 trucks loads weekly, with Texas oranges amounting to roughly one-half this amount…..The Lower Rio Grande Valley, as well as the Winter Garden District, which is closer to San Antonio, are shipping cabbage in light, but increasing volume.
South Texas produce shipments – grossing about $2800 to Chicago and $4700 to New York City.
Apple shipments continue to be one of the best bets for produce haulers this time of the year, but with the huge amount of product remaining in storage could present some problems when it comes to claims.
About 3 million boxes of apples are being shipped weekly, mostly from Washington state, but so much fruit remains, there are rumblings of how well some apples are holding up in storage. One problem cited is with shrinkage, particularly with the Honeycrisp variety, as well as with the smaller sized fruit sold in club stores in larger sized bags. Additionally, there have been reports of problems with some Fuji apples. Some are lacking full color, but more importantly is the problem of the fruit showing decay.
It is reported some of the poorest quality apples are being dumped, along with some sizes and grades that marketers are unable to sell. Still, just use extra caution when picking up a load.
As of February 1st, there were about 95 million bushels of domestic apples for the fresh market remaining to be shipped. That is a whopping 24 percent more than a year ago. The total for February also is an astounding 35 percent greater than the five-year average.
Washington state apples account for about 84 million of the 95 million bushels of the fruit still in storage. Michigan apples accounts for about 3.9 million, while New York apple shippers have 3.8 million and Pennsylvania about 1 million bushels.
There also are concerns among some shippers with the arrival of March when southern hemisphere apples begin arriving, will it hurt sales and shipments. Imported apples often cost more, but that could become secondary to apple buyers (such as retailers) if the domestic fruit is coming out of storages with quality issues.
Western Michigan apples – grossing about $3500 to Dallas.
Hudson Valley, New York apples – grossing about $2600 to Atlanta.
Yakima Valley, Washington apples – grossing about $4300 to Chicago.
by Staff Reporter, University of Montreal
Canadian men’s eating habits are associated with the availability of healthy food sources in their residential neighborhood but women’s are not, according to researchers at the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHUM hospital.
“We found that, for men only, intake of fruit and vegetables was positively associated with the proportion of healthy food outlets around home,” explained Christelle M. Clary of the university’s department of social and preventative medicine, who led the study. Why men Canadian men’s eating habits are associated with the availability of healthy food sources in their residential neighborhood but women’s are not, according to researchers at the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHUM hospital.
“We found that, for men only, intake of fruit and vegetables was positively associated with the proportion of healthy food outlets around home,” explained Christelle M. Clary of the university’s department of social and preventative medicine, who led the study. Why men and not women? “This may be because women, who are in general more nutritionally knowledgeable, may engage in different food shopping strategies than men, and rely on other aspects of the food environment than the proportion of food stores locally available,” suggested Professor Yan Kestens, who directed the study.
The study was based on data from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), and looked at the eating habits of 49,403 Canadians living in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Ottawa (including Gatineau, Quebec). The food outlets of each city were mapped using a database containing information on the type and location of all food businesses. For the purpose of this study, supermarkets, grocery stores, fruit and vegetable stores and natural food stores were considered as potential sources of “healthy foods” (especially fruits and vegetables), while convenience stores and fast-food restaurants were considered less healthy food sources.
By Hass Avocado Board
IRVINE, Calif. – A moderate fat diet that includes one fresh avocado daily showed greater improvement in certain blood lipid markers when compared to an energy matched moderate fat diet without avocado or a low fat diet without avocado, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Elevated cholesterol in the blood can increase risk factors for cardiovascular disease, the number one cause of death in the United States. A heart healthy diet can play an important role in keeping your cholesterol levels within a normal range. For example, the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends limiting saturated fat and replacing it with unsaturated fats and increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables.
The research, “The Effect of a Moderate Fat Diet With and Without Avocados on Lipoprotein Particle Number, Size and Subclasses in Overweight and Obese Adults – A Randomized, Controlled Trial,” conducted at Pennsylvania State University,evaluated whether incorporating one fresh avocado into the diet daily for five weeks could reduce bad cholesterol levels more than a diet that incorporated monounsaturated fat from vegetable oils high in oleic acid as a substitute for one fresh avocado. The diets were matched for calories and macronutrients, but not for fiber, phytosterols, or other bioactives.
The researchers found that only the avocado diet significantly improved the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL, or “good” cholesterol (TC-HDL/C) and the ratio of LDL, or “bad” cholesterol, to HDL-cholesterol (LDL-C/HDL-C). The low fat diet did not reduce these ratios, and the reduction with the avocado diet was significantly greater than with the moderate fat diet. Additionally, the avocado diet achieved the greatest reduction in LDL-cholesterol compared to the low fat diet and moderate fat diet without avocados.
The study offers several possible explanations as to why the moderate fat diet with avocado had a more beneficial effect on certain biomarkers than the moderate fat diet without avocado, one of which may be the unique combination of vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytosterols, and other dietary bioactives that avocados provide that were not present in the other two diets. One fact worth noting is that the diet that included avocado provided 35 percent more fiber than the diets without avocado. Furthermore, these results are based on the consumption of one whole avocado each day. Additional research is needed to determine whether the results could be replicated with consumption of the recommended serving size of 1/5 of an avocado per day.
“The results of this study suggest that the monounsaturated fat, fiber, phytosterols and other dietary bioactives in avocados may provide greater benefits to cardiovascular disease risk factors compared to a calorie matched low fat diet,” said Penny Kris-Etherton, Ph.D., RD, lead author of the study who is an expert in cardiovascular nutrition and Distinguished Professor at the Pennsylvania State University. “Furthermore, using novel advanced lipid testing methods, this study demonstrated that consumption of one avocado a day may affect atherogenic lipoprotein particle numbers (APL).”
While the conclusions drawn are from a single study that cannot be generalized to all populations, the study does provide further insights on the monounsaturated fat, fiber, phytosterols and other bioactives in avocados that may have a positive effect on CVD biomarkers such as LDL cholesterol in healthy overweight and obese adults. “Avocados, which contain naturally good fats, are a versatile, cholesterol-free and nutrient-dense fruit that can fit into a full range of healthy eating plans. Now we’re adding to the body of evidence suggesting a relationship between avocados and heart health,” said Emiliano Escobedo, executive director of the Hass Avocado Board, which underwrote the study.
Here is a glimpse of imports arriving at American ports in the weeks ahead ranging from blueberries to apples and pears.
Chilean blueberries will be arriving is good volume through March. In early February about 48,000 tons had been shipped to North America, which accounted for about 65 percent of Chile’s total blueberry exports this season to date.
Pear exports from both Chile and Argentina to the U.S. should increase this season, however, a huge Washington apple crop is expected to limit Chilean apple exports to here.
The first Chilean bartlett pear shipments arrived in Long Beach, CA the week of January 26th. Moderate volumes should be arriving within the next week, with higher volumes by February 20th. Peak volume arrivals should occur throughout March before starting to taper off in April. What is not known is whether West Coast labor problems could result in some fruit being diverted to East Coast ports.
Regardless, pear volumes should be up over last season, when Chilean fruit was hit hard by freezes, but comparable to a normal year.
In addition to Chilean pears, Argentina bartlett pears should begin arriving about two weeks after Chile, with peak volumes starting the first week of March.
Chilean Apples
Chilean galas should start to arrive in the U.S. in mid- to late March, but how many will come this season remains a question, mostly due the big Washington crop.
Southern California imported fruit – grossing about $4300 to Chicago.
Nogales Produce Shipments
As the Midwest and Northeast endured one blizzard after another in late January and early February, it was 90 degrees in the vegetable fields of Culiacan, Mexico. As a result, shipments may not been as brisk as normal, but shipments still are heavy.
Eggplant loadings should increase leading up to Ash Wednesday (February 18), as retailers double their eggplant orders for Catholics to find a meaty item to replace meat in their diets, particularly in markets such as Chicago, Philadelphia and Boston, which use a lot of eggplant during Lent.
Besides eggplant, this is a peak shipping period for Mexican items ranging from bell peppers to broccoli, cucumbers, green beans, watermelons, tomatoes and squash.
Concerning spring Mexican grape shipments, it is still early, but initial reports note excellent weather and growing conditions. Initial harvest is expected around May 1st, with crossings at Nogales starting soon afterwards.
Here’s a list of some of the Nogales produce shippers: Bay Area Produce, Big Chuy Distributors, Calavo, Crown Jewels Produce, Delta Fresh Produce, Fresh Farms, Franks Distributing, Lisa Inc., Pacific Tomato Growers, P.D.G. Produce, Tepeyac Produce and Weis-Buy Farms.
Mexican vegetables crossing the border at Nogales – grossing about $1300 to L.A.; $3200 to Chicago; and $5400 to New York City.