- Author: Ben Faber
From the Avocado Hass Board:
Avocado World Market Projection Up to 2030
A global study of the complex factors influencing the supply and demand of avocados around the world reveals challenges and opportunities on the horizon.
At the current pace, there will likely be a surplus by 2030 so research has been updated to evaluate ways for the industry to act now including stepping up demand creation to stay competitive.
Eric Imbert, a lead researcher from CIRAD, French Agricultural Research Center for International Development, reviews the quickly evolving trends and his three key pieces of advice for the global industry.
ERIC IMBERT
CIRAD: French Agricultural Research Center for International Development
- Author: Saoimanu Sope
The first time Chris Wong ever laid eyes on Romanesco broccoli was while he was selling it at a farmers market in Davis. Although the broccoli was marketed as locally sourced and organically grown, Wong remembers reading the label on the produce box: Holtville, California – 15 minutes from Wong's hometown, located more than 600 miles south of Davis.
Wong, CalFresh Healthy Living, UC Cooperative Extension community education supervisor for Imperial County, grew up in the community he now serves. In his role, he identifies opportunities to improve community health whether it be increasing access to healthy food, making neighborhoods more conducive for exercise, or simply educating the public.
But it was his college experience at UC Davis that catapulted his career focused on food systems and community health. Because he lived in UC Davis' Student Co-op Housing, he found himself surrounded by peers studying food science or agriculture.
“I was heavily influenced by the things they spoke about,” he said, adding that he was inspired to get involved with the local farmers market in Davis. “I started working at a farmers market, selling local, organic produce at very high prices to very privileged people in Davis, including students.”
He was troubled that the produce was transported from Imperial County – from towns like Brawley and Holtville, where Wong grew up – and yet he had never seen some of the products he was selling in Davis.
After spending a few years going back and forth between Davis and his hometown, Wong moved back home to Calexico fulltime in 2015. Eager to locate the nearest farmers market after his experience in Davis, he learned that the nearest one was in a city north of Calexico.
A grant provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture helped a Calexico based non-profit organization establish a farmers market in a neighboring community of El Centro, identified as a food desert, yet the farmers market was in a different city.
“It wasn't the same as the one in Davis. They didn't even have produce, just food and craft vendors,” he said. Wong felt motivated to make a change.
“I asked the coordinators of that farmers market if I could volunteer with them. I asked them about the process of establishing a farmers market. Then I started sending Facebook messages to city council members and other community leaders and was able to get a meeting with them,” Wong said.
A fresh start for his hometown
On Oct. 6, 2013, Wong and a few others launched the first-ever farmer's market in Calexico. Wong described opening day as “almost a failure” because of the lack of available produce. “It was really tough; we had a lot of build up for it. We had a distributor who came to provide produce, but it took a while before we got produce vendors to the site,” he said.
Even though Wong's hometown is also home to 500,000 acres of farmland, many of the farms in the Imperial Valley are commercial or industrial farms. This means that the crops have already been contracted to end up at stores like Costco before they're even planted.
“We even got the Romanesco broccoli to be sold in Calexico,” said Wong.
For six years, Calexico had a farmers market that community members benefitted from. When he wasn't securing vendors, Wong was attending community alliance meetings to promote the market and its effort to bring healthy, fresh options to the kitchen table. In 2019, the market shut down after the City of Calexico's Community Services Department Director retired and the department restructured.
Determined to succeed
During his first year at UC Davis, Wong, an anthropology major at the time, struggled as a student and felt ill-prepared to manage the intense coursework that lay ahead. “I just couldn't get the right grades or write good papers,” he said. Before the spring semester of his first year concluded, Wong was academically dismissed from UC Davis.
“There's a joke in my hometown that people say to students who go off to college,” said Wong. “Before you leave, people will say ‘see you next year' because a lot of us don't finish college and return home.”
Returning home was never an option for Wong. He was determined to stay the course, noting that he couldn't return home with student debt and no degree. To get himself back on track, Wong took summer courses at UC Davis and enrolled in remedial English classes at Sacramento City College. In total, he spent an entire school year and two summers making up for his academic shortcomings.
Wong's efforts at Sacramento City College paid off. He was able to reenroll at UC Davis and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Spanish Literature with a minor in Latin American Hemispheric Studies.
Remembering his roots
There's no doubting that the California/Mexican border holds a special place in Wong's heart. His father, of Chinese descent, and his mother met in Mexicali, where Wong's mother is from, and got married against their parents' will.
“They got married in secret and had me in secret because my Chinese grandmother did not approve of the relationship,” said Wong, describing her as “traditional.”
Growing up, Wong remained connected to his Mexican heritage but not so much his Chinese culture. Wong, along with his three younger siblings, are all fluent in Spanish but if you speak to him in Cantonese, like his paternal grandmother does, he'd only be able to make out a few words and phrases.
Wong's father grew up speaking Chinese in his home in Mexicali. When he would attend school in Calexico, however, most students spoke Spanish. The constant shift in language confused Wong's father, causing him to flunk the third grade. To ensure his children didn't experience the same challenges, Wong's father purposefully withheld from teaching Wong or his siblings Cantonese.
Wong's ability to speak Spanish, the language of the community he serves, has empowered him to connect with residents on a deeper level. Of the many things that Wong has accomplished, he is most proud to be giving back to the community that raised him. In 2017, he joined UC ANR as a UC Cooperative Extension community education specialist for Imperial County before becoming a community education supervisor in 2022.
Despite the setbacks that could have easily derailed Wong, he remains steadfast and is always looking for ways to improve his community's health. “I'm eternally grateful for the opportunity to serve my home community as a representative of the UC,” Wong said. “Visiting my old classrooms and teachers to provide their current students with quality educational experiences I may not have had growing up, brings me the utmost joy.”
- Author: Konrad Mathesius
“Commodity prices are in the tank.”
“Wheat prices these days don't look so good.”
“Diesel's worth the price of gold, it's the cheapest grain he's ever sold.”
Two quotes from growers I've spoken with, one from a country singer, all relevant points.
Growers looking to diversify their rotations as a way to weather the ebb and flow of the market might consider several alternative crops. Garbanzo beans might fit the bill.
Because of the Central Valley's mild winter, garbanzos can be grown in winter as an alternative to wheat. As a legume, garbanzos can partner with nitrogen-fixing bacteria to produce some of their nitrogen requirement. This is helpful in years like 2016-2017 where frequent rains make it difficult to get into fields for side-dressing applications of N.
When deciding where to plant with garbanzos, there are several things that growers should consider. High-boron soils or wells such as those in certain parts of Yolo county can stunt root growth. Otherwise, heavy rainfall can be problematic for garbanzos particularly on clay soils. Prolonged moisture can make them susceptible to root diseases such as fusarium wilt that often lead to a later collapse under heat stress. As such, bedding for drainage is a must. Exposure to damp conditions for a long period of time can also lead to ascochyta outbreaks.
As with many crops that humans have selected over the years to put arguably silly amounts of work and energy into an oversized food item, garbanzos do not compete well with weeds. This includes the more enthusiastic volunteers. Avoid planting garbanzos after sunflower or safflower, hoeing costs will quickly eat up any potential post-harvest profits. Garbanzos are easier to manage after corn and wheat because volunteers that are not controlled with a pre-plant herbicide can be controlled with herbicides specific to grasses such as Sethoxydim (Poast) or Clethodim (Select Max). Tomatoes are rarely a problem for garbanzos to follow.
With 9,000 acres, garbanzos were the most widely-planted bean crop in our state in 2014. Particularly brutal drought conditions in the winter of 2014-2015 may have played a role in reducing yields to a 2nd place position with 7,200 acres harvested. Garbanzos are currently the best-paying of the pulses coming in at about 42 cents a pound in California relative to black-eyes and kidneys at around 40 cents a pound. Add to that the fact that they need to be grown in the winter, yield roughly 1.5 tons/ acre, and are adept at mining the soil for deep water, and it becomes clear what some of the reasons for the expanded acreage might be.
Even with the growth over recent years, the market for garbanzos in California is, as expected, relatively segmented and not as widely developed as more mainstream crops such as wheat and alfalfa. There are several confirmed processors and contractors of garbanzos that growers should get familiar with if they are thinking about growing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valley.
Cal-Bean and Grain is a cooperative located in Pixley (Tulare County) that cleans and processes garbanzos after harvest. Chad van der Feer is the general manager.
Contact: Chad, 559.757.3581
Email: chad at calbean.com
Dompe Warehouse processes garbanzos for David Kirsten in Crow's Landing (Stanislaus County). David manages contracts through Kirsten Company LLC. David is seeking additional contracts as of this posting.
Contact: David Kirsten, 209.747.1100; Dompe Warehouse, 209.837.4725
Email: dave at kirsten.com
Rhodes-Stockton Bean Co. located in Tracy is a co-op/ processor that works closely with Cal Bean and Pea's Joel Parreira. For growers farther north, they have a separate warehouse in Meridian (Tarke Warehouse). They are seeking additional members/ contracts as of this posting.
Contact: Rhodes Stockton, 209.835.1284; Cal Bean and Pea, 559.685.9491
Email: ken at beanplant.com
Sutter Basin Co-op is based in Knight's Landing (Yolo County). They work with Steve Benson of Northwest Trading but are currently not seeking additional members/ contracts.
Contact: 530.735.6295
Additional warehouses and dealers can be found at: http://www.calbeans.org/bean-board/, although those not listed above may not process garbanzos (based on information available at the time of writing this).
While growing garbanzos is not the same as growing wheat, it is a sound choice for growers looking to diversify amid some painful commodity prices.
Growers considering planting garbanzos should keep an eye out for the upcoming UC ANR Garbanzo Production Handbook. Speak to the UCCE Agronomy Advisors in your local counties for more information in the meantime.
Growers with garbanzos in the ground should also feel free to reach out to advisors if they see disease or stress cropping up in their acreage. Heavy rains this year will likely reveal some insight into how resistant current varieties are being impacted by water logging.
- Author: Konrad Mathesius
Fluctuations in commodity prices mean that wheat can be a darling or a demon. When prices are high, wheat can command more acres pushing up the prices for canning tomatoes. When prices are low, growers are inclined to look at wheat's value in terms of metrics other than just yield, such as its role in the mitigation of disease pressure in tomatoes or the benefits associated with maintaining a cover crop in the winter. When wheat prices drop low enough, farmers begin looking for other options. Recently, the combination of wheat prices at a 15-year low and the rise of craft brewing culture in the American west has generated inquiries into the possibility of growing malting barley.
In the last decade alone, the number of breweries in the U.S. has nearly tripled from 1,460 in 2006 to 4,269 in 2016[1]. California's brewing industry is no exception. This year's Beer Week in Sacramento boasted brews from 57 different local breweries. Much of this recent growth in breweries is concurrent with a rise in demand for locally-sourced products. The virtual non-existence of local malting facilities is somewhat puzzling when one considers the volume and enthusiasm for craft breweries springing up in the state, not to mention the existence of the Chico-based power house, Sierra Nevada Brewing.
While much of the demand for craft beer is still somewhat of a niche market, the competition among craft brewers to generate a unique product out of a 5,000-year-old beverage has inspired some demand for local inputs, beginning mainly with hops. Several breweries and growers have begun producing their own: Ruhstaller's hop fields are visible for a brief second at 65mph on the I-80 corridor, and while California doesn't even have an official Corn Growers association, there is a newly-revived California Hop Grower's Association.
The existence of hops in California is nothing entirely novel. Both barley and hops do fairly well in California and as such have a historical precedent in the State (towns with names such as ‘hop land' aren't just a coincidence); however, malting barley production can be challenging on account of California's irregular rainfall patterns. Because the protein content in malting barley should be below 12.5% for the best results in the brewing process, and given California's seeming penchant for either deluge or drought, nutrient and irrigation timing/ management becomes a critical matter addressed by both luck and skill: applying too much nitrogen can lead to prohibitively high protein content, too little will lead to insufficient yields, and the excess/ absence of rain can either flush out any applied nitrogen or stress crops to the point of producing poor yields or practical failure.
Unfortunately, both the hop and barley industries tapered off following more centralized mass production operations in the Pacific northwest, Canada, and the mid-west. Whether this was due to competition for space from higher-valued commodities, the growing conditions, or the rise in other production areas further north is difficult to ascertain. Most likely it was a combination of these and other factors. Despite the recent uptick in interest for hops. Malting barley production is limited by access to maltsters.
A maltster, the trade name for ‘one who malts', is responsible for basically fooling the barley grain into thinking that it's found itself a decent place to germinate. This initiates a series of chemical reactions in the grain that make starches more accessible to enzymes during the mash phase of brewing. Long-chain starches and sugars are then converted into more accessible forms of sugars for yeast, the workhorse in the fermentation of ales and lagers. This required step in the journey from seed to beverage has historically created a bottleneck between California's would-be barley growers and the brewing locales that specialize in creating a certain widely-enjoyed beverage.
Despite the vast amount of farmland in the surrounding region and Sacramento's much-touted title as the Farm-to-Fork Capital, California's malting barley has largely been Washingtonian, Idahoan, and Canadian barley processed by maltsters throughout the American northwest and then shipped to California by rail. Recently however, that has begun to change, and while the industry is not yet awash with eager maltsters ready to work on deals with California's skilled growers, some nascent options are available.
Lance Jergensen of Rebel Malting specializes in custom malts. His Reno location on the other side of the Sierra Nevada is relatively convenient for some small brewers and growers in the Central Valley. The malt is processed in small batches and shipped out to distilleries and brewers in the area.
Eckert Malting of Chico, CA specializes in rice malting. Rice malt is occasionally used as adjuncts to a barley grain bill in brewing, as is the case with Budweiser's traditional recipe, but can also be used with other ingredients such as corn or sorghum to produce gluten-free beers.
Exclusive barley malting has been somewhat slower to return to California; but after clearing several initial hurdles, Admiral Maltings appears to be leading the charge in Alameda. Ron Silberstein of Thirsty Bear Brewing sees Admiral Maltings approach as walking before running. Annually they are only looking to malt about 1,500 tons and potentially increasing to around 1,800 tons within a few years. This is a relatively small percentage of the market compared to some of the other production facilities around the country, where a mid-sized maltster might produce something on the order of 25,000-30,000 tons annually, not to mention the Rahr malting behemoth at Shakopee Minnesota with an annual capacity of 390,000 to 460,000 tons.
From the grower point of view, finding contracts with maltsters or even brewers might be a challenge. Admiral Maltings contracts with growers through the National Farmers Organization in Corning, CA, which operates as a sort of co-op for numerous commodities as a way for growers to maintain competitive bargaining power. Given the untested state of the market in California, and with only one real route through the malting pipeline to craft brewers, this comes as no surprise.
Limitations for Admiral Maltings come up in the form of storage. Growers with a storage capacity between 100 and 200 tons may be able to work with Admiral Maltings. No-till malting barley should fetch prices in the mid-twenties (cents) per pound, while organic malting barley will sell for somewhere in the mid-thirties per pound. Granted, these prices are for a niche market with low capacity and high expectations on quality (a general overview of small grain production by UCCE can be found here), but when wheat is worth 10 cents a pound[2], there is little doubt that those prices are substantially more attractive. Growers that are interested should reach out to Admiral Maltings by contacting Ron Silberstein, marketing director for Thirsty Bear Brewing Company and visionary/ coordinator for Admiral Maltings.
Some larger companies have investigated the California market but nothing seems to have come to fruition yet. Startup costs for a large-scale malting facility are, as one might guess, somewhat substantial. But California's robust brewing scene, diverse soils, and enthusiasm for locally-sourced low-carbon-footprint products may yet swing the situation in their favor.
Brewers may be able to take the lead in creating a market for local malt by specifically requesting malt grown in California. The transportation costs to move California barley out of state and back into California seem prohibitive, and indeed, shipping malt into California is essentially importing water into the state. But malt is grown as a winter crop and can play a role in rotations for growers as a way to reduce disease pressure and offer alternatives to wheat; furthermore, malt is not typically a major expense for most brewers. Costs for raw material typically pale in comparison relative to the cost of bottling, labeling, advertisement, and personnel[3]; a unique approach to truly local brewing may provide a burgeoning brewery with a competitive edge.
Malting barley's return to California seems uncertain on a large-scale, but momentum appears to be growing and in time the industry may facilitate the cultivation of a profitable alternative crop for growers.
[1] Brewersassociation.org /statistics/number-of-breweries/
[2] $4.62 a bushel (42 lbs.) as of March 6th, 2017 via Macrotrends.net
[3] Bamforth, C. (2009). Beer: tap into the art and science of brewing. New York, Oxford University Press.
- Author: latinpost.com by Staff writer
Houston Chronicle wrote that the new study, dubbed “The Hispanic Millennial Study,” was unveiled in Houston, which cited several differences between Latinos born in the U.S. and those born abroad. For example, Latinos living in the U.S. had described health as a state of happiness, while the foreign-born Latinos defined the term as the absence of illness.
Hispanic millennials are the second largest Hispanic group residing in the U.S. The Hispanic Millennial Project is a joint study formed by ThinkNow Research and Sensis, which provided more insight on the group. The study showed that Latino millennials shop independently and tend to spend more money on groceries compared to other groups.
Based on the report, 66 percent of Hispanic millennials stated that their culture and background affect their purchasing habits to some extent, 85 percent believe that chicken is healthy, while 57 percent believe that sugar is healthy. 80 percent of Hispanic millennials use recipes, 74 percent do most or all of the grocery shopping for the home and 39 percent rarely or never use coupons. Hispanic millennials spend about $149 per week on groceries. 63 percent like to consume tequila and vodka, 51 percent prefer beer, while 38 percent prefer wine.
The report also showed that 56 percent of Hispanic millennials use both food and drinks to connect to their cultural roots. Hispanic millennials born abroad consume mass market food with the purpose of getting in touch with mainstream culture. Hispanics are not very fond of doing research and availing of coupons. Many who consume large amounts of beer also state that their habit is influenced by friends and culture. Latinos that earn well are less likely to pick foods that relate to their cultural heritage.
Hispanic millennials are also affected by health and finances. They are more likely than other groups to indicate when they are on a diet to shed weight, although they are not as cautious about their diet as before. They also find whole foods important, although they do not believe that processed food pose risks. 81 percent like home-cooked dishes, although 62 percent prefer eating out.
Overall, Hispanic millennials refer to themselves as “foodies.”
Source:Published originally on LatinPost.com. Hispanic Millennials in the US Have Different Health Attitudes from Those in Latin America, by Staff Writer, January29, 2016.