California Fruit and Vegetable

Tag: California Fresh Fruit Magazine

  • Hass Avocado Board Introduces ‘BOLD’ New Class of Avocado Industry Leaders

    A new generation of leaders has graduated from the Hass Avocado Board (HAB) Board Leadership Development (BOLD) program with specialized training and real-world experience that ensures a stronger future for the industry. The robust, year-long program exposes emerging leaders from across the supply chain to experts and resources essential to forming a well-rounded understanding of the business and being considered board-ready. Newly added experiential learning opportunities, like the two-day, in-person briefing with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in D.C., exemplify how the program immerses participants into the complexities as well as opportunities to take the industry forward.

    “With the avocado industry booming at more than $7 billion in retail dollars, there is constant, dynamic change that requires leaders to have a big picture overview of all the relevant market forces influencing growth,” said John McGuigan, Director of Industry Affairs for the Hass Avocado Board. “The rising stars of BOLD Class 2 graduate with greater strategic vision, a stronger professional network and overall, more excitement and confidence to lead by serving on a board.”

    As supply strives to keep pace with avocado’s growing popularity, the strategic evolution of instruction and expansion of influential guest speakers is becoming one of the BOLD program’s signature qualities. The 2022-2023 curriculum kept its foundational deep dive into the rules of governance and financial and fiduciary responsibilities of board members at the University of California, Davis and added a trip to Washington D.C. to meet with USDA leadership. Through hands-on meetings with industry veterans, expert HAB staff and mentors with avocado board experience, participants take away from the program fresh insights and a broader perspective of what board service entails.

    Energized by their success in the program and ready to contribute more deeply within the avocado industry are the following graduates of BOLD Class 2:

    • Casey Evans Beltran, Producer/Importer, La Bonanza Avocados
    • Maureen Cottingham, Producer, Camlam Farms, Inc.
    • Caitlin Cunha, Producer/Importer, Del Rey Avocado
    • Hillary DeCarl, Producer/Importer, Del Rey Avocado
    • Elizabeth Flores, Producer/Importer, Mission Produce
    • Gwen Jackimek, Producer/Importer, Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. Inc.
    • Osvaldo Magaña, Producer, Limoneira Company
    • Carlos Ignacio Valerio Medel, Producer, Fruitval S.A. de C.V.
    • Jeff Onstot, Producer/Importer, Westfalia Fruit Marketing USA
    • Jose Daniel Pardo, Producer/Importer, Westfalia Fruit Marketing USA
    • John Patrick, Producer/Importer, Eco Farms
    • LeighAnne Thomsen, Importer, Calavo Growers

    As the first and only professional development initiative for the Hass avocado industry, BOLD inspires fresh thinking and provides participants with a network of connections and resources to facilitate innovation, thought leadership and effective problem-solving.

    As Class 2 continues on their journey to make a difference in the industry, BOLD will welcome Class 3 in April. To learn more about the program and the benefits to the avocado industry, visit HassAvocadoBoard.com/bold-program.

    About The Hass Avocado Board

    The Hass Avocado Board (HAB) exists to help make avocados America’s most popular fruit. HAB is the only avocado organization that equips the entire global industry for success by collecting, focusing, and distributing investments to maintain and expand demand for avocados in the United States. HAB provides the industry with consolidated supply and market data, conducts nutrition research, educates health professionals, and brings people together from all corners of the industry to collectively work towards growth that benefits everyone. The organization also collects and reallocates funds to California and importer associations to benefit specific countries of origin in promoting their avocado brands to customers and consumers across the United States.

  • Blueberry Council Receives Foreign Registration in China

    The U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) recently received approval from the Chinese government for its registration as a Foreign Nongovernmental Organization (FNGO).

    When USHBC initially launched its China program, we immediately began seeking this registration to comply with the “Law on Administration of Activities of Overseas Nongovernmental Organizations in the Mainland of China,” which was implemented by the Chinese government in 2017. USHBC’s registration approval comes after working with the U.S. State Department, the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Washington, D.C., and the Shanghai Public Security Bureau for more than a year-and-a-half to authenticate and submit all necessary documentation.

    By completing its FNGO registration, USHBC is now officially approved to conduct marketing activities in China. This milestone is an important step in USHBC’s China program development, and will allow us to ramp up promotional activities in the country. USHBC is excited about this next step in its China program and seeing how the market continues to develop for the industry. — U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council

  • Hass Avocado Board’s 2022 Year in Review

    Hass Avocado Board — The U.S. avocado industry faced several challenges in 2022, which kept markets, and marketers facing challenges with their customers and with consumers, that had not been seen in recent years. Despite increasing shipments from every source of supply, except one, the industry actually went backwards on supply directed to the U.S. market, and the ensuing shortage increased the pricing structure of the market in ways not seen in many years. In the end, producers certainly profited from the shortage of fruit, as grower returns were at the highest levels in history and were certainly a benefit to the producers, we all rely on. But the increased wholesale prices sent retail and foodservice prices into the stratosphere, and those pricing levels had impacts, both during the shortage, and subsequent to it. Let’s dig into the numbers.

    The big picture number, total volume in the U.S. dropped by almost 6% for 2022, compared to the volumes shipped in 2021.  Volume for the year came in at 2.677 billion pounds, compared to the historical mark hit in 2021 of 2.835 billion pounds. This shortage of volume was identified in early 2022 in the second half of the Mexican crop cycle that runs from July through June, and the recognition of the shortage sent markets skyrocketing in the early part of the year, and the pricing frenzy was on, and producers in all countries of origin scrambled to get fruit into this market. As stated above, every country of origin, with the exception of Mexico had higher volumes in 2022 vs 2021, California up almost 6%, Chile up almost 80% from the previous short year, Peru up 46% for its highest shipment total to the U.S ever at 276 million pounds. And the newest player Colombia showed the largest percentage increase at over a 450% increase from 6.6 million to 36.8 million pounds in 2022. The Mexico shortage, coming on the heels of its largest crop ever in 2021, while not a total surprise caught many off guard. Mexico shipments were down, despite the fact that Jalisco was finally granted access to the U.S. marketplace by over 12%, from 2.378 billion pounds to 2.079 billion pounds, sending the market into the high price, lower volume scenario.

    The subsequent increase at retail shelf pricing was the result, as consumers faced an average increased fruit price at retail from $1.11 in 2021 to $1.30 in 2022 – an increase of 16.8%. Retail margins shrank, foodservice operators and distributors struggled to keep pricing in restaurants stable, and the market saw wholesale prices on 25 lb. boxes of fruit it had not seen in many seasons.

    All this in a market that was still shaking off the lingering effects of COVID, and the beginnings of inflation started to be felt by consumers, not just in avocado or food pricing, but across the board in most consumer goods. The whole industry felt the impact, some good for producers, and some bad for importers, sellers, and distributors. The industry made its way through the situation, but the market, and the increased retail shelf pricing was felt long after the new crops came on, and the slower velocity at retail was certainly impacted for longer than the shortage.

    This lower total volume backed per capita consumption backwards for the year, going from 8.6 PPC in 2021, down to 8.0 PCC in 2022. 

    These will certainly be the events that will be remembered for 2022. Not the increased visibility and emphasis on Sustainability. Not the increasing body of work we have in the nutrition space, and not the growing supply from the other countries outside of Mexico. No, it will be remembered as the “short year”, and all produce commodities have to deal with what Mother Nature gives us and play the market accordingly. But we will see what 2023 will bring, and keep our eye on the consumer, and see if we can put more volume through a system this industry has cultivated for the last 20 year.

  • Establishing Residue Decline Curves for Pesticides in Blueberries

    The U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) has collaborated with Oregon State University, Michigan State University, Ag Metrics Group and Synergistic Pesticide Laboratory, LLC to establish residue decline curves for pesticides that have no established Maximum Residue Limits (MRL) and MRLs that are lower than U.S. tolerances.

    The objective was to investigate the residual level of multiple pesticides at different consequential timings after application on blueberry, thus understanding their degradation ratio and speed for better application/harvesting strategies. These findings would in turn allow for the development of low residue programs that meet the low MRL standards.

    Specifically, research entities have applied 18 insecticides and 15 fungicides on highbush blueberries for three years in five growing sites (to account for variation in climate, varietals, and pest and disease vulnerability). Research entities sent samples to Synergistic Pesticide Laboratory LLC for chemical residue extraction and analysis over the span of three years.

    As a result of this research study, several insecticides and fungicides can be applied to blueberries for export markets that could not have been used previously. Read the full report and in-depth findings on each pesticide here. — By the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council

  • New Appointments to U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced the appointment of 28 members and alternate members to serve on the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC). Members and alternates will serve a three-year term ending Dec. 31, 2025. Four of the appointments are the exporter members and alternates whose terms will expire Dec. 31, 2024, to remain in the council’s nomination rotation.

    The 21-member council is composed of 12 producers, four importers, four exporters and one public member. Each member seat has a corresponding alternate seat. Members and alternates can serve up to two consecutive three-year terms.

    “The USHBC has an ambitious vision for the future of blueberries,” said USHBC President Kasey Cronquist, also president of the North American Blueberry Council (NABC). “With these newly appointed members of the council, we’ll be working together to inspire all the possibilities yet ahead for blueberries, while helping to ensure the future success and profitable returns back to our growers.”

    The newly appointed USHBC members are:

    California Producer: Doug LaCroix

    Florida Producer: Brittany Lee (formerly Florida Alternate)

    Georgia Producer: Tiffany Crosby

    Michigan Producer: Dennis Vander Kooi

    North Carolina Producer: Jimmy Horrell

    Importer #3: Ryan Lockman (formerly Importer #3 Alternate)

    Importer #4: Joe Barsi (formerly Importer #4 Alternate)

    Exporter #2 (CA): Mark Adams

    Exporter #3 (PE): Daniel Bustamante

    Exporter #4 (MX): Jose Luis Bustamante

    Newly appointed alternates are:

    California Producer: Bill Steed (formerly California Member)

    Florida Producer: Michael Hill

    Georgia Producer: Tammy Brannen

    Michigan Producer: George Fritz Jr. (formerly Michigan Member)

    New Jersey Producer: Chelsea Consalo

    North Carolina Producer: Kristen Johnson-Brinkley

    Oregon: Ellie Norris

    Washington Producer: Leif Olsen

    Importer #3: Andrew Maiman

    Importer #4: Bo Slack

    Exporter #2 (CA): Ray Biln (formerly Exporter #2 Alternate)

    Exporter #3 (PE): Jose Antonio Castro

    Exporter #4 (MX): Jose Guillermo Romo

    USHBC members who were reappointed are:

    New Jersey Producer: Paul Macrie III

    Oregon Producer: Doug Krahmer

    Washington Producer: Bryan Sakuma

    Importer #2: JC Clinard

    Reappointed alternates are: 

    Importer #2: Guy Cotton (formerly Handler member)

    Since 1966, Congress has authorized industry-funded research and promotion boards to provide a framework for agricultural industries to pool resources and combine efforts to develop new markets, strengthen existing markets and conduct important research and promotion activities. The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) provides oversight to 22 boards. The oversight ensures fiscal accountability and program integrity and is paid for by industry assessments.

    About the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council

    Established in 2000, The U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) is a federal agriculture research and promotion program with independent oversight from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). USHBC represents blueberry growers and packers in North and South America who market their blueberries in the United States and overseas, and works to promote the growth and well-being of the entire blueberry industry. USHBC was established by blueberry growers and currently has 2,500 growers, packers and importers. USHBC is committed to providing blueberries that are grown, harvested, packed and shipped in clean, safe environments. Learn more at ushbc.org.

  • READ – April 2023 Issue

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  • New Farm Bill May Incentivize On-Farm Ag Tech Innovations

    Just as the previous Farm Bill has supported farmers with cost-share programs like EQIP to improve their sustainability, the specialty crop sector of ag is pushing for the coming Farm Bill to support on-farm ag tech innovations in a similar way.  Watch this brief interview with California Fresh Fruit Association President Ian LeMay to learn more.

    Please thank this video’s sponsor Ranch Systems for their industry support.

  • Distinguishing Between Previous Recessions and Today’s Economic Circumstances

    As inflation and fluctuating global economics raise concern for Americans and California farmers, watch this brief interview with world-renowned economic forecaster Marci Rossell.  Dr. Rossell recently addressed pistachio growers, processors and marketers at the annual Conference of American Pistachio Growers and shared some enlightening insights regarding the difference in today’s economic dynamics from the recessions of the past.

    Special Thanks to American Pistachio Growers for sponsoring this video.

  • California Farmland to Serve State in Recharging Groundwater Supply

    The Governor of California recently issued an Executive Order allowing local water districts to utilize floodwater for groundwater recharge purposes, a record amount of which will take place on California farmland.  This is desperately needed and welcomed by farmers and other water users all over the state that have suffered decades of drought conditions.  Watch this brief interview with Adam Borchard from the California Fresh Fruit Association for more insight on what the announcement entails.

    Please thank this video’s sponsor Ranch Systems for their industry support.

  • CA State Fair 2023 Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition Winners

    The California State Fair is pleased to announce the 2023 winners of the eighth annual California Commercial Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition. A panel of 12 experienced sensory analyst judges gathered at the Cal Expo Fairgrounds in Sacramento on March 8 to swirl, sniff, sip, and analyze samples of olive oil from producers all over California. The annual competition celebrates the olive-growing and olive oil producing industries in California, and is open only to Extra Virgin and Flavored Olive Oils made from 100% olives which are grown, milled and packaged in California.

    This year 540 shining new bottles of extra virgin and flavored olive oils lined the cellar shelves at Cal Expo. Each of the 134 entries arrived with hope from their Producers that their care, expertise and hard work would result in a coveted Best of Show Golden Bear Trophy.

    California State Fair Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition Head Judge Nancy Ash, an advocate for California’s olive oil industry since 1996, is the President of Strictly Olive Oil LLC. Ash enlisted the talents of an exceptional group of skilled and experienced judges, some with over 20 years of experience in the industry. Ash commented on the judging event, “The California State Fair Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition is one of my favorite events of the year! It is an honor to work with this group of exceptional tasters. It is educational for us to taste the varied flavors produced from the many different varieties of olives grown in our great state. I appreciate that this competition supports California Agriculture, and the hardworking farmers and producers that contribute to our state’s olive oil industry.”

    Head Judge Nancy Ash

    The 2023 Best of Show Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a Coratina Olive Oil, by Olive Truck of San Francisco, CA. Olive Truck’s Coratina also won one of only 2 Double Gold Medals awarded this year. This is the second Best of Show award in a row for Sam Bayraktar, owner of Olive Truck. In 2022, he won the award for his Tuscan Blend. According to Bayraktar, “California has a number of olive oil producers that are working hard to put California on the world olive oil map by producing exceptional olive oils. I’m deeply happy to be a part of this effort. I am honored and grateful to have been named Best of Show at the California State Fair for the second year in a row.”

    The 2023 Best of Show Flavored Olive Oil is a Basil, co-milled, flavored oil by Sciabica’s California Olive Oil, of Modesto, CA. “My Family is honored to be awarded Best of Show! For me, the California State Fair Competition is the major league for California Olive Oil Producers,” said Jon Sciabica, owner of Sciabica’s California Olive Oil. “Winning here truly validates the hard work of our entire team!”

    This competition honors Olive Oil producers at all production levels. The Best California Extra Virgin Olive Oil by a Micro-producer Award (Less than 500 gallons annually) was awarded to a Picual by Rio Bravo Ranch of Bakersfield, CA. The Best of California Extra Virgin Olive Oil by an Artisan Producer Award (between 500 and 5,000 gallons annually) was awarded to a Coratina by Olive Truck of San Francisco, CA. The Best of California Extra Virgin Olive Oil by a Large Producer Award (more than 5,000 gallons annually), went to a Taggiasca by Séka Hills of Brooks, CA.

    During the 2023 California State Fair, July 14 – 30, fair guests will enjoy an exhibit featuring award-winning flavored and extra virgin olive oils, with free tastings, and the opportunity to purchase olive oil directly from award-winning California producers.

    A complete listing of award-winning California Olive Oils and competition information can be found on the California State Fair website at CalExpoStateFair.com/California-Commercial-Extra-Virgin-Olive-Oil

    Olive oil being poured

     

    About the California State Fair

    The California State Fair is an international award-winning fair, receiving top honors at the International Association of Fairs and Expositions out of more than 1,100 fairs world-wide. The California State Fair is dedicated as a place to celebrate the best the state has to offer in agriculture, technology, and the diversity of its people, traditions, and trends that shape the Golden State’s future. The 2023 State Fair will include a comprehensive set of competitions, including California’s best commercial wines, cheeses, craft beers, cannabis, olive oils, and fine arts, among others.