Sustainable Agriculture : buying local

KCC Farmer's Market - 5 years and still going strong!

VincentD — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 21:58:00 GMT

KCC Farmer's Market The Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation Saturday Farmer's Market at Kapiolani Community College will celebrate its 5-year anniversary with a visit by and a proclamation from Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle on Saturday, November 7, 2008...(read more)

Slow Food Nation: Are you ready for the "Woodstock for Foodies".

VincentD — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 01:06:00 GMT

Are you ready for Slow Food Nation '08? This weekend, in San Francisco, will be the largest celebration of food in America. Come celebrate at the Taste Pavillions; not a double cheeseburger in sight!. A "Woodstock for Foodies" say some ...(read more)

Hawaii Ag Conference Keynote Speaker

VincentD — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 21:18:00 GMT

The Hawaii Agriculture Conference , on September 4-5, 2008 at the Hawaii Convention Center will be featuring Paul Roberts as the key note speaker at the conference. Mr. Roberts' new book, The End of Food is reviewed by the New York Times on July 25...(read more)

Are local tomatoes safe? Are tomatoes from the farmer's market safe?

VincentD — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 22:20:00 GMT

“Buy Fresh Buy Local” but is it safer? Are local tomatoes safer? As a consumer of red, raw tomatoes, these are questions on my mind. As of June 12, 2008, the AP is now reporting that the FDA is saying that the outbreak of illness from eating Salmonella...(read more)

Do Food Miles Matter?

VincentD — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:13:00 GMT

Do food miles matter? Well, if you are concerned about the impact on greenhouse gases, then maybe not. A recent paper from Christopher L. Weber and H. Scott Matthews in the journal, Environmental Science and Technology ( Environ. Sci. Technol. 2008. 42...(read more)

Why the Farm Bill is important to Hawaii

VincentD — Thu, 15 May 2008 00:21:00 GMT

We’re almost “home and dry” with the Farm Bill. Today, Wednesday, May 14, 2008, the House of Representatives passed the Farm Bill Conference Report 318-106, a “veto-proof” majority. The Senate is currently debating the Farm Bill Conference Report with...(read more)

Travel Funding Support Available to National SARE Conference, March 25-27, 2008

VincentD — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 00:46:00 GMT

SARE's 20th Anniversary Conference : The New American Farm: Advancing the frontier of sustainable agriculture Date: March 25-27, 2008 Location: Kansas City, Missouri Facility: The award winning Westin Crown Center Registration: Send your name and...(read more)

Images of a Sustainable Food Revolution

VincentD — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 03:45:00 GMT

How many of you have been to Iowa? For me, hundreds of times; having grown up in Illinois, Iowa is our next door neighbor. Iowa is also symbolic of modern agriculture but it's also becoming symbolic of changes in American agriculture. Check out Tom...(read more)

Do you know where your food comes from??

VincentD — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 05:46:00 GMT

Grist , the Environmental News and Commentary web site has launched a new series articles about food, farming and agriculture. Sow What? is your opportunity to think about where your food comes from, how it got there and what were the environmental consequences...(read more)

Waimanalo Plant Science Field Day, part two...

VincentD — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 22:39:00 GMT

If you missed the Waimanalo Plant Science Field Day at CTAHR's Waimanalo Experiment Station on Saturday, September 22, 2007, you missed a wonderful opportunity to see the diversity of work that CTAHR is doing in the plant sciences. Field trials of...(read more)

Organic Agriculture: Point - CounterPoint

VincentD — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 18:48:00 GMT

Paul Achitoff's Gathering Place commentary in the September 11, 2007, Honolulu Star-Bulletin about organic agriculture raises several issues. It's just too bad that the article is so full of "red herrings" and ad hominen attacks, it's...(read more)

Waimanalo Plant Science Field Day

VincentD — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 17:56:00 GMT

WAIMANALO PLANT SCIENCE FIELD DAY Saturday, Sept. 22, 2007; 9-12 pm Waimanalo Research Station, CTAHR, University of Hawaii 41-698 Ahiki St., Waimanalo, Oahu (mauka of Waimanalo Park, Hihimanu St.) Please join us for our 19 th Field Day, celebrating the...(read more)

September is "Fruits and Veggies -- More Matters" month

VincentD — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 20:57:00 GMT

September is "Fruits and Veggies -- More Matters" Month. It used to be "5-a-day" but we're not counting anymore -- what matters most is eating MORE fruits and MORE vegetables. September traditionally represents the time when the...(read more)

Do you know where your garlic comes from?

VincentD — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 01:29:00 GMT

Gilroy, California - right? Home of the Gilroy Garlic Festival? OK, the central valley of California? Have you considered China? According to the UN FAO, the value of China's exports of garlic has increased from $145 M in 2000, to $482 M in 2005. To put it in perspective, the 2005 farm gate value of Hawaii agriculture (all of Hawaii agriculture) was $565 M. The U.S. became a net importer of garlic in 1998, according to a 2006 UC-Davis report on garlic. Seventy-six percent of the imported garlic is fresh product and most comes from China. Over the same period, the value of California garlic has declined from a peak of $200 M in 1999 to $136 M in 2005 (source USDA Economic Research Service). Demand for garlic has not declined, in fact, has increased. Per capita consumption of garlic has risen from 1.3 pounds in 1990 to 2.6 pounds in 2004.

So despite all the talk about the importance of buying locally produced fruits and vegetables, according to Grist Magazine, the globalization of our food supply grows stronger and by comparison produce farming in the U.S. weakens. In their article, posted August 30, 2007, globalization is smothering U.S. fruits and vegetable farms. Why so? Aren't American consumers being encouraged to consume more fruits and vegetables? Of course, but most consumers don't buy produce from where it comes from -- they buy on price. And Chinese garlic is cheaper than California garlic. But Chinese garlic has to travel so much farther to get here? But American costs are much higher. And consider the recent crackdown on undocumented workers, many of whom worked in American fields, some estimates have it at 70% of U.S. farmworkers are undocumented.

So one factor affecting the cost is the lack of workers to harvest the crops in the fields.
With all the unfortunate recalls of produce and concerns about the food safety -- there is growing demand from politicians and others to increase the FDA or USDA oversight on farms, to prevent contamination of our produce. Another cost that will eventually be passed onto consumers.

But it's much more than costs - the cheaper Chinese garlic is just one part of the equation. American consumers want year round asparagus or grapes or oranges or blueberries. And it has to come from somewhere! China or Chile or Argentina or Brazil or Australia or New Zealand, take your pick. In the same trip to Costco, I've seen grapes from Chile, bell peppers from Holland and tomatoes from Mexico.

It's an interesting challenge. Globalization of our food supply has now provided us with year round produce and in many cases, of excellent quality. The post harvest treatments and the innovations in packaging and shipping, make this all possible. Look carefully when you buy your produce in the grocery store or at Costco or Sam's. Where from? I buy about 90% of my produce at Hawaii farmer's markets (we still can't grow peaches). I know where it comes from. Yes, I pay more but I try to support our local farmers.

U.S. Garlic Imports, from the UC Davis report on Garlic, original source USDA Foreign Ag Service:

Food safety and produce

VincentD — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 02:24:00 GMT

Is produce the safest fresh food group? That's the question posed by the Barfblog today. The Ontario (Canada) Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, estimates that 41% of foodborne illness in Ontario can be attributed to produce. A 2005 study in Emerging Infectious Diseases 11(4):603-609 indicates that 38 of 183 foodborne outbreaks (21%) were directly related to produce. Thirty-four percent (34%) of the produce-related outbreaks were from lettuce; 18% from apple cider or apple juice; 16% from salad and 11% each for melons and cole slaw. Dr. Michael Doyle of the University of Georgia Center for Food Safety told a recent meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists in Chicago that in the 25 years preceding 1997, there were 190 outbreaks of foodborne illness associated with fresh produce. In the five years that followed, the number jumps to 249. The Marler Blog, of the Marler-Clark law firm provides commentary on the resurgence of E. coli outbreaks in the last few years and cites an article written by Bill Hord of the Omaha World-Harold entitled "E.coli vexes despite safety effort." The article shows an upward trend since 2004 of E.coli illness. The Marler Blog has also taken notice of the E. coli contamination of lettuce from Kauai in a recent posting.

While we should all continue to eat fresh produce and strive for our 5-a-days, it begs the question that shouldn't we be also examining how to avoid or reduce or mitigate the potential contamination of our fruits and vegetables? If you've ever had a serious food borne illness, you know it's not just the "runs." It can be very serious especially in children and senior citizens. If we are to continue to support the Buy Fresh, Buy Local industry in Hawaii, shouldn't we also be working with our farmers to make sure that the local produce is as safe as possible?