Sustainable Agriculture : fresh

Proposed Rule Change for Export of Hawaiian Fruits and Vegetables

VincentD — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 01:23:00 GMT

USDA APHIS is proposing new regulations regarding the export of Hawaiian fruits and vegetables to the U.S. mainland. This is a proposed rule and the comment period is open until August 18, 2008 . To read the Federal register description of the proposed...(read more)

Is Increased Agricultural Productivity a good thing?

VincentD — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 20:53:00 GMT

It's tough being a Gemini. When I'm faced with two opinions about things, I can see both sides of things and often am challenged about which is the better choice. What follows is an example of how confusing things can become. USDA Economic Research...(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?

Buying "Fresh" and Buying Local

VincentD — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 17:31:00 GMT

It's all about "food miles" isn't it? Food miles are the distance food travels from where it is grown to where it is ultimately purchased or consumed by us. Being out in the middle of the Pacific automatically adds an enormous transportation cost to our food. For processed foods, each of the individual ingredients may have traveled thousands of miles to the processor, only to be assembled, packaged and shipped to Hawaii. The "cost" may be more than the additional monetary costs that cover packaging and shipping, it also comes as a freshness cost. Dr. Marion Nestle, in her 2006 book "What to Eat," contends that most of us have forgotten what "fresh" really tastes like. That what we eat as "fresh" produce, may have been picked weeks ago and traveled long distances to reach our grocery store shelves. Let me be clear and not wanting to risk running afoul with the "Five-A-Day" and "More Matters" nutrition crowd, eating "fresh" fruits and vegetables, regardless of where they come from is better than fried foods and loco moco. More recently, the case for eating closer to home has been made by Barbara Kingsolver in her book "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle." Currently on the NY Times Best Seller List, Ms. Kingsolver's book narrates the story about the year she and her family resolved to buy local, within 100 miles of their Virginia farm, or grow their own foods. The family shopped at their local farmer's market, or made arrangements with other local growers, or grew it and processed themselves. In the winter, they ate from the bounty of their harvest, either canned or frozen from the previous season. Their family marveled at the freshness of their home- or locally-grown fruits and vegetables. But that freshness came with a price -- you couldn't eat fresh tomatoes in January in Virginia. In Hawaii, we are blessed (and some might argue, cursed) by our year long growing season. We can grow many crops year round. All the more reason to shorten the fuel miles and eat "closer" to home. But where to shop? Our farmer's markets provide us with opportunities to buy fresh and buy local. You can cut out all but a few of the food miles. True, it may cost a bit more but the money stays local and you can pretty much guarantee that the produce hasn't accumulated frequent flier miles. The Hawaii Farm Bureau sponsors three farmer's markets on Oahu - Kapiolani Community College on Saturdays; Kailua Parking Garage on Thursday nights (5:30 - 7:30 pm); and on Sundays at the Mililani High School. Farm Bureau also sponsors farmer's markets at Keauhou and coming soon to Hilo. A comprehensive listing of all the farmer's markets can be found here: http://www.hawaiiag.org/Markets/WelcometoMarkets.html. You can also buy local by looking for the Hawaii Seal of Quality on products throughout the state. The advantages of buying local is that it keeps the funds in the state, supports farmers directly and it helps me remember what "fresh" tastes like. June 4, 2007