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Dec 2008
Volume 6, Number 12
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2008 Farm Bill
The first Farm Bill was enacted by Congress in the 1930's, as part of a New Deal effort to stabilize farm prices. Congress has enacted subsequent Farm Bills every five to seven years since then, and the scope of the program has expanded to fifteen major sections that affect agricultural policy. Before 2008, the most recent Farm Bill was in 2002. The current Farm Bill represents a broad overhaul of farm policy that benefits both producers and consumers.
The 2008 Farm Bill is officially the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008. It calls for $289 billion in public investment in agriculture, with two-thirds of the funding allocated for anti-hunger programs. 15% of the spending is for payments to growers of commodity crops, including wheat, cotton, rice, corn, and soybeans. 8% is for conservation programs, including farmland protection and environmental management.
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The Farm Bill was enacted by Congress on June 19th, 2008. It was vetoed by President Bush, and the House and Senate then overrode the veto to pass the Farm Bill into law. Subsequently, the federal agencies tasked with implementing the provisions of the new law have been developing their programs and approaches, as the provisions of the act take effect. Some changes were made to the Act in the fall, to expand eligibility for small farmers with less than ten acres in production.
In developing the legislation, Congress recognized the major challenges to farming and ranching. These included rising global food demand, spikes in food and fuel prices, and the need to balance farmland protection with industrial development. As part of the response to these challenges, the Farm Bill included increased support for local foods, new funding for conservation and farmland protection, and a change in how farm subsidies are calculated.
There are four major areas of change to focus on in the new Farm Bill:
- Providing a safety net for farmers
- Strengthening conservation and policies for environmental protection
- Promoting local and healthy foods
- Supporting renewable energy
Providing a Safety Net
An original intent of farm legislation was to provide a safety net which would protect farmers from disruption in pricing that would destroy long-term food production capacity and capabilities. Over time, the pressure has been to use tax dollars more efficiently, particularly in direct payments and subsidies to farmers.
In the new law, a program has been introduced called the Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE). The core concept of ACRE is that the safety net for farmers should only be in effect when farmers suffer a loss beyond their control. ACRE provides better protection for farmers by calculating payments based on revenue, not price. ACRE costs less to taxpayers, since farmers are only paid when they suffer a real loss in revenue, eliminating historical conditions when farmers could make record profits, and then also collect a subsidy payment. ACRE is a market-oriented solution to protecting farms and farmers, while not overly disrupting prices. This way, farmers are expected to take market conditions into account when planning production, rather than calculating based on government-set prices. Overall, ACRE results in 20% less spending in subsidy payments. Currently, ACRE is a voluntary program, so farmers can opt to stay in the traditional subsidy program, although the incentives to move to ACRE are meaningful.
Strengthening Conservation
Over half of the land in the United States is managed by farms and ranches. The use of this land has a significant impact on the environment, and farmers and ranchers are the vanguard of environmental management and conservation. In the new Farm Bill, many changes were made to improve conservation. Funding was increased for the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program, which gives local communities the ability to protect farm and ranch land. Programs to support conservation and reduce environmental impact were also expanded. As farmers build conservation efforts, there is a new low-interest loan program to help implement new practices.
Additionally, there are provisions for water protection, including extensions of existing programs supporting the Chesapeake Bay and the Great Lakes. Efforts to protect wetlands and grasslands will be continued as well.
Promoting Local & Healthy Foods
In developing the legislation, Congress recognized the need to reflect public health policy in the agricultural policy. Health experts have been advocating broad improvements to the average diet in the U.S., including greater consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains. As part of the new law, there are programs to increase production of locally-produced and healthy foods, and to expand nutrition programs.
Farmers Markets will receive new promotional and marketing support, aimed at improving sales of farm products to consumers, with additional incentives to sell to senior citizens. Schools will receive funding to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables to use for snacks. Some regulations have been changed to make it easier for farmers and ranches to grow, ship, and sell produce across a broader geographic area than before.
Supporting Renewable Energy
Energy costs, both monetary and environmental, are a major concern for farmers and ranchers. In developing new farm policy, there was a new emphasis on the development and use of renewable energy sources for agricultural production. Broadly speaking, there will be over $1 billion in research and development over five years for farm-based renewable energy programs, including biofuels and other clean energy programs.
Farmers will receive new incentives to reduce use of fossil fuels, and convert to wind, solar, and biofuels. In farming regions, there will be cost-sharing programs to build biofuel refineries, in order to supply the anticipated growth in demand for this renewable, environmentally friendly source of energy.
In addition, the Farm Bill generally continues existing agricultural policies and programs that have been working, including:
- Farm credit and risk management
- Access to international markets for American farm products
- Food stamps
- Rural energy production and efficiency
- Agricultural and food research
- Forest management and sustainability
Agricultural continues to be one of America's largest, most important, and most dynamic economic sectors. The new Farm Bill ensures that agricultural production will continue to thrive, in both the short-term and the long-term.
For more information, please contact Jody Boline.
Sources: US Congress, USDA, ERS, American Farmland Trust, Wall Street Journal
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Onions
As of now, yellow onion storage ended at about 75% of capacity, which means supplies should be adequate for the duration of the storage season. This will be below last season, when storage was overflowing. However, we will monitor the storage quality to ensure that the onions have staying power, and weather conditions remain favorable.
It appears that the entire product made it into storage fairly well cured. Possible moisture in the onions due to the late growing season may cause a problem as the season progresses. Excess moisture can lead to black mold and decay if onions are not properly cured and stored. This is just a possibility with late onions, as so far everything looks good.
There is a good supply of super colossal onions in the mix. Single centers are averaging around 85-90%, so this should not be a problem.
Red onion plantings are down in the Treasure Valley area, so we expect to see Washington supplying red onions toward mid-season, as Washington seems to have good supplies. Red onion quality is good, and we expect it to remain so for a while.
Good supplies and poor economic conditions have taken their toll on the market. Look for lower, steady pricing, at least through the end of the year.
For more information, please contact your Customer Service Representative or Jeb Johnson.
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Rail Information
The December Union per mileage fuel surcharge will be .30 cents per mile for December. Please contact your CSR if you would like to know your current rail rates, as they will vary according to your shipping location.
Why are diesel fuel prices higher than gasoline prices?
Since September 2004, the price of diesel fuel has been generally higher than the price of regular gasoline all year round for several reasons. Worldwide demand for diesel fuel and other distillate fuel oils has been increasing steadily, with strong demand in China, Europe, and the United States, putting more pressure on the tight global refining capacity. In the United States, the transition to ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel has affected diesel fuel production and distribution costs. Also, the Federal excise tax on diesel fuel is 6 cents higher per gallon (24.4 cents per gallon) than the tax on gasoline.
What are the main factors that affect diesel prices?
- Cost and supply of crude oil
- Tight refining capacity and international diesel fuel demand
- Product supply/demand imbalances
- Seasonality in the demand for diesel fuel and distillates
- Transportation costs
- Regional operating costs and local competition
For more information, please contact your Customer Service Representative or Chris Doore-Taylor.
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Each month in the E-News, we will share insights into the activities of the Kingston Quality Assurance team as they visit growers, packers, and distributors. We hope this will help give you more information on our commitment to food safety and security. This month's report is from Cindi Thompson, Food Safety/Quality Assurance Supervisor.
Holiday Cooking Tips
Looking back on 2008, there have been many changes in the food industry. Some of these include passage of the mandatory COOL program, and tightening of GAP and GMP criteria.
During the holiday season, many of us cook more at home. The FDA has developed a list of Holiday Cooking Tips to help ensure food is safe, as well as delicious:
1. CLEAN: First rule of safe food preparation in the home is to keep everything clean.
2. SEPARATE: Don't give bacteria the opportunity to spread from one food to another. (Cross contamination)
3. COOK: Food is safely cooked when it reaches a high enough internal temperature to kill harmful bacteria.
4. CHILL: Refrigerate foods quickly because harmful bacteria grow rapidly at room temperature.
We all have traditional foods and activities our families follow every year. Different countries celebrate in various ways.
In Australia, Christmas is in mid summer and lunch is often a barbecue of prawns, steak and chicken with ice cream or sorbet for desert.
In the Czech Republic, traditionally the meal consists of fish soup, salads, eggs and carp. The number of people at the table must be even or the one without a partner is supposed to be dead by next Christmas.
In Finland, a traditional Christmas dinner will be a casserole of macaroni, rutabaga, carrot, and potato with ham or turkey. A mixed platter of meat or fish is also popular. After the meal it is tradition to have a sauna and then visit the graves of relatives.
In Germany, the favored meal is roast goose, accompanied by potatoes, cabbage, carrots, parsnips and pickles. The meal is usually eaten on Christmas Eve. Rural southern Germany will feast on game like wild boar and venison.
In Greenland, the Christmas meal could include Little Auks, which are seabirds that are a bit like penguins. Little Auks are prepared by being wrapped in sealskin and buried for months until decomposed.
In Italy, Christmas lunch can consists of as many as seven courses including antipasto, pasta, roast meat, salads, and sweet pudding, followed by cheese, fruit, brandy and chocolates.
In Jamaica, the traditional Christmas meal is rice, gungo peas, chicken, ox tail and curried goat.
In Norway, the meal is eaten on Christmas Eve. For coastal regions it is traditionally cod, haddock, and lutefisk. Inland, the feast is pork chops; Christmas meatloaf and special sausages. Farmers leave a bowl of gruel in barns on Christmas Eve for the magic gnome who protects their farms.
In Russia, Christmas foods include cakes, pies and meat dumplings. The mythical Babushka brings gifts to Russian kids.
In South Africa, Christmas is during the hot summer season but the traditional English-style turkey dinner is eaten on Christmas.
In Ukraine, huge meat broths are eaten on Christmas Eve. Ukrainian children await "Father Frost" to bring their presents.
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Each month, one of our associates will share one of their favorite recipes using different Kingston products. We hope you will try one or all of our family recipes, and all of the great ways to enjoy our high-quality, wholesome products.
Mike Anderson's "Not Yo' Mama's" Potato Salad
Ingredients
3 lbs Kingston Russet Burbank Potatoes, peeled and diced into ½ inch cubes
1 lb Kingston Vine Ripe Roma Tomatoes, diced into ½ inch cubes
½ Small Kingston sweet yellow onion, finely chopped
1 can artichoke hearts, sliced lengthwise into 6 - 8 wedges per heart
¼ red bell pepper, finely chopped
¼ green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 - 2 cloves of fresh garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
¾ - 1 Cup fresh Italian dressing (for best results, use a dressing with olive oil and red wine vinegar)
Salt and pepper to taste (for best results, use seasoned salt and freshly ground black pepper)
Boil the potatoes with 1 teaspoon salt until fork tender. Drain the water leaving the potatoes in the pot and refill with cold water until the potatoes are thoroughly cooled. Drain let stand. Combine all ingredients in a serving bowl, adding sufficient dressing to generously coat the potatoes, and gently toss until well mixed. Let stand for at least 1 hr to allow the flavors to combine before serving. Gently toss just before serving. Makes approximately 15 - 20 servings.
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Kingston Service Anniversaries
Join us in congratulating our team members on their many years of service.
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| Jody Boline - 22 years |
Andrea Dopp - 12 years |
Christie Sommers - 11 years |
New Baby
Robb and Kim Crockett welcomed baby Mya Layne on November 12, 2008. She was 8 pounds 11 ounces, and 22 inches long at birth. Everyone in the family is doing fine.
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