Produce - General

Rural America is Facing a Mounting Labor Crisis

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 17:16:30 GMT

The American labor market is reaching a critical turning point that could tighten labor availability in rural industries and slow growth across the U.S. economy. A new quarterly report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange warns that demographic shifts and recent policy changes may start impacting businesses as soon as late 2025.

From livestock and crop operations to food processors and rural cooperatives, this labor shortage is becoming especially noticeable in the heart of America’s farmland. Many producers are already struggling to fill roles, and the challenge is expected to intensify in the coming months.

“Barring an unforeseen change in labor force participation rates or immigration policies, the pool of available workers is set to shrink sharply in the next few years,” says Rob Fox, director of CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange. “The problem will be even more serious in states with slower population growth in the Upper Midwest, Corn Belt and Central Plains.”

Demographic Pressures Mount

Fox says the warning signs have been building for years. Labor force participation has steadily declined, birth rates have dropped and immigration policy has become more restrictive.

Between 2022 and 2024, nearly 9 million immigrants arrived in the U.S., driven by global humanitarian crises and relaxed federal rules. While that influx temporarily eased labor constraints, Fox says it only masked deeper, long-term trends.

U.S. fertility rates have fallen from 2.12 children per woman in 2007 to 1.62 in 2023, meaning fewer young people are entering the workforce just as the last of the baby boomers retire. In addition, labor force participation has slipped from a peak of 67% in 2000 to 62% today. Nearly 2.5 million working-age Americans have left the labor force in the past eight months alone.

“There is no single reason people are stepping away,” Fox explains. “It’s a combination of rising caregiving responsibilities, job skill mismatches, mental health challenges and higher disability rates. These are complex issues that won’t be resolved overnight.”

Shrinking Workforce Hits Agriculture Hard

The effects are already being felt across rural America. Farms, food processors, equipment dealers and cooperatives are struggling to find and keep the workers they need to maintain daily operations. Seasonal labor has become harder to find and full-time positions, especially those requiring specialized skills or long hours, are increasingly difficult to fill.

In regions with slower population growth, such as the upper Midwest and central Plains, the challenge is even more acute. These areas often lack the population inflows that help offset workforce losses elsewhere in the country.

While labor has been tight for several years, Fox warns that conditions are poised to deteriorate further.

“What we are facing is not just a cyclical labor issue; it’s a structural one,” he says.

Border encounters have dropped sharply since August 2024, signaling a steep decline in immigration. Combined with rising political pressure to increase deportations, the agricultural labor pool could shrink even more in the months ahead.

“Immigration has long been a key pillar supporting the rural workforce,” Fox notes. “Without a steady flow of new workers, farms and agribusinesses will have to get creative, either by increasing wages, automating tasks or changing how they manage production.”

Technology Offers a Path Forward

In response, more agricultural businesses are turning to technology to help offset the labor gap.

“The key to addressing labor scarcity always lies in innovation,” Fox says. “AI and robotics are no longer limited to the factory floor. They are increasingly being used in fields, dairies and food plants.”

A recent Gallup poll found that nearly one in five workers already uses artificial intelligence in some form each week. At the same time, the cost of robotics has dropped by nearly half in the past decade, making automation more accessible for a broader range of farms and agribusinesses.

CoBank’s report notes that many farm supply customers are using new tools to increase efficiency, improve decision-making and free up time for employees to focus on higher-value responsibilities.

Planning for What Comes Next

As producers look toward 2026, a combination of labor constraints, volatile input costs and shifting policy landscapes will continue to shape decision-making. Fox thinks adaptability will be essential.

“Technology will be critical to agriculture’s future,” he says. “AI and robotics can help farmers do more with fewer workers, boosting efficiency and margins. But investment decisions must be made carefully, especially in this uncertain economic environment.”

Until clearer policies emerge on trade, labor and energy, rural America will need to prepare for continued pressure.

“This is a pivotal moment,” Fox concludes. “Farms that plan ahead, embrace innovation and stay flexible will be best positioned to succeed.”

How to handle workplace burnout, mental health issues

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:29:42 GMT

Call it pandemic fatigue or just burnout: You could be losing motivation, experiencing emotional numbness, feel that almost all people drain your energy. Your productivity may drop even if your hours haven’t. You’re self-medicating more with alcohol, drugs, Netflix, gambling, porn or shopping.

These are signs that you may be close to burnout at work and in your personal life, said Mary Ann Baynton, a workplace mental health consultant and author of several books, including The Evolution of Workplace Mental Health in Canada and Mindful Manager. She was the speaker at the April 13 Learning Lounge event during Canadian Produce Marketing Association’s virtual Fresh Week conference April 13-16.

The session was fueled by anonymous responses to a survey about dealing with employee work stress, and Baynton also had a roundtable of about 30 workers sharing their stories of burnout.

More symptoms of burnout include becoming disproportionately irritable about little things like noise and light, you’re more cynical, untrusting and never feel rested no matter how much sleep you get.

“Burnout is mental, physical exhaustion, and it’s more likely when employees expect too much of themselves, never feel good enough, have that good girl or boy complex, feel inadequate or incompetent, feel unappreciated for their work efforts, have unreasonable demands at work or home, or are in roles that are not a good job fit,” Baynton said.

She shared some of the tips that company leaders have employed to combat pandemic fatigue, which may or may not work at everyone’s work situation.

Use all your vacation days, even if you can’t go anywhere;
Instead of meetings via the computer screen, encourage walking meetings so employees can get outside and moving;
Use the first 10 minutes of a meeting for casual conversation, like watercooler chat;
Suggest everyone take at least an hour during the day to get outside and enjoy the daylight;
Suggest to those who can that they work their 37.5 or 40 hours a week around parenting, homeschooling, caregiving and other duties;
Recognize employees for everyday successes; provide positive reinforcement; and
Have leadership talk more about what they do on their down time, so employees stop believing that working nonstop is the expectation.

“By you, as the leader, sharing ‘I’m taking some time off to do this,’ you’re saying, ‘I have balance, and I have those expectations for you too,’” Baynton said.

(Farm Journal)

Leaders need to be clear about their expectations and priorities.

“It’s amazing how often an employee works really, really hard on something and then their boss says, ‘That’s not what I wanted; that wasn’t important,’ and the employee is really, really crushed,” she said.

Employees can also “coach up,” Baynton said, to help their managers realize what they’re going through. This is not complaining and venting all your personal life stress. Keep it to how you can best serve the company while maintaining your energy.

“As a boss myself, sometimes I’m surprised by everything my employees are doing. I don’t know what they need unless they tell me,” she said.

Employees can share what work projects are on their plate and how long different projects take, so the boss can help prioritize.

Sometimes a manager will reveal he or she doesn’t need you to do a particular project at all, and other times it can be delegated to a more suitable person.

Share with your manager what you need to do your job, what you can do, and the best way to give you feedback.

Set boundaries, she said, and if you work from home, clear away or shut the door on your work to have completely work-free off hours. And while working, understand the value of frequent short breaks.

“Focus on one thing at a time. Stop pretending you can multitask. You can’t. We actually lose our ability to be focused back and forth as we get older, and when dealing with grief or burnout, that’s also impaired,” Baynton said.

“Of all of these suggestions, what’s important is not to keep doing what you were doing.”

More tips are available at https://www.workplacestrategiesformentalhealth.com/ .

Diesel Prices Jump 37% in 10 Weeks, Gas Prices Projected to Hit $6.20 by August

Tue, 24 May 2022 19:58:41 GMT

The White House is considering waiving U.S. gasoline environmental rules aimed at reducing summertime smog, hoping the waiver will combat rising pump prices, Reuters reported , citing three sources involved in the discussions.

Retailers are required to sell summer-blend gas from June 1 to Sept. 15. In the past, the U.S. government has waived those requirements regionally or nationally to deal with hurricanes or other supply issues. The Biden administration has already lifted the restriction on summer sales of E15. The waiver under consideration would apply to all grades of gasoline, the sources said.

The Reuters report indicates the blending items are things like butane and that such a move to waive the smog rules would apply to all grades of gasoline and does not signal any impact for ethanol. “These pollutants have severe impacts on public health and would likely exacerbate the inequity in air quality that BIPOC communities already bear,” activist green groups including Friends of the Earth, National Wildlife Federation and Sierra Club, wrote to EPA Administrator Michael Regan on Monday. The “potential savings from this measure are limited, while the climate impacts are irreversible. Solutions to oil price hikes lie elsewhere.”

This comes as gas prices are at record highs — a dollar more than one year ago — and one J.P. Morgan analyst predicted prices could reach $6.20 per gallon by August.

Diesel Dilemma

U.S. average retail prices for ultra-low-sulfur diesel rose more than 37% in just 10 weeks after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, setting a new nominal record of $5.62 a gallon in the week ended May 9, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

(Farm Journal)

The Biden administration is considering a release of diesel fuel from federal reserves to address surging prices and the threat of supply outages on the East Coast. Officials have drafted an emergency declaration as prices have soared to record highs in recent weeks, White House spokeswoman Emilie Simons said on Twitter on Monday. Such a declaration would allow for the quick release of some of the 1 million barrels of diesel in the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve “if necessary,” she said. While the reserve only contains about one day’s supply, and might not substantially reduce diesel prices, it could prevent spot outages of the fuel, an official said. Diesel has outpaced gasoline prices because of refinery closings and because Russia was such a big supplier of refined fuels into Europe, causing ripple effects world-wide.

Possibility of Pumping More Oil?

If gas prices are so high, why aren’t shale drillers pumping more oil? The Wall Street Journal notes one reason: Their executives are no longer paid to. After years of losses, investors demanded changes to how bonuses are formulated, pushing for more emphasis on profitability. Now, executives who were paid to pump are rewarded more for keeping costs down and returning cash to shareholders. The focus on profitability over growth helps explain drillers’ muted response to the highest prices for oil and natural gas in more than a decade.

Possible Rebate for High Gas Prices?

Democrats float $500 rebate to combat gas prices. Americans would receive a $500 cash rebate under legislation being introduced today by Democratic Reps. Sean Casten (Ill.), Don McEachin (Va.) and Earl Blumenauer (Ore.) that would be paid for by eliminating tax subsidies for the fossil fuel industry.

The measure would eliminate 11 tax breaks for oil and gas companies, including for marginal wells and enhanced oil recovery. This bill comes after the House passed a bill last week that would give the Federal Trade Commission sharper teeth in preventing alleged gas price gouging by oil companies. The price gouging bill has hardly any chance of success in the Senate, where the Commerce Committee has a mark up on its own version of the price gouging bill Wednesday.

(Farm Journal)

Growing Less Dependent on Fossil Fuels

Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency says governments around the world need to do more to spur faster growth in electric vehicles.

“Electric-car sales continue to break records, but mineral supply constraints are looming,” the IEA said in its latest EV outlook. “Much more needs to be done to support charging infrastructure and heavy-duty vehicles.”

The agency suggested officials ease bottlenecks for battery materials, enhance support for EV purchases and take action to kickstart the market for heavy-duty electric vehicles. Such efforts may help reach their goal of a 350 million global EV fleet. As it stands now, EVs aren’t selling fast enough for the world to have a realistic chance of avoiding the worst impacts of climate change, the group said Monday.

John Phipps: As Inflation Increases Costs for Consumers, Here's What is Often Overlooked

Tue, 08 Feb 2022 13:19:30 GMT

Inflation news fills the air. Partly I think it’s due to an unprecedented run of low inflation. It’s been a dozen-plus years since we managed to creep far above 2-2.5%. Nonetheless, that was yesterday. Who cares? Nobody cares about inflation that didn’t happen.

(Farm Journal)

Meanwhile, the average inflation rate, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), is just that an average. Since the graph was made, we logged three more months of relatively high inflation to end 2021 at 7% annual increase. As I have discussed before, each of us has a personal inflation rate depending on what we consumer. Does that ever make a difference, as this chart of some selected goods in the volatile food and energy categories. In fact, using a personal CPI calculator showed our inflation rate to be an embarrassing 0.8%. Obviously, we don’t do much expensive stuff, and power tools have remained affordable.

(Farm Journal)

These are percent increases, which can cloud the issue. I talked this year about how eggs are an astonishing bargain, so a 12% jump on a roughly $1 egg isn’t felt like the whopping jump in used vehicles.

(Farm Journal)

The other thing to note is how the CPI jumped from month to month. COVID is messing with all our data, and we don’t have any similar situation to for comparison. I expect some bad decisions will be made as a result. And there are citizens who finally have had their years of warning about imminent inflation finally come true. That is almost a stopped clock phenomenon, however. The wildest future I can imagine is spending winding down as the pandemic savings are exhausted. That seems to be the way Wall Street sees it as inflation expectations remain below 3% for the year in 2022 and lower in 2023. That seems to be what the bond market is telling us as well.

(Farm Journal)

While inflation is a real and present danger, some stuff remains remarkably cheap. For example, as February begins, it is time to add to my stylish collection of plaid flannel shirts on sale at the farm supply store for five bucks or less. I already replaced our bedroom TV so I could tell the actors without glasses.

How to change the face of agriculture

Mon, 23 Aug 2021 16:57:11 GMT

It’s no wonder Michael Smith wasn’t comfortable with pursuing a career in agriculture when he started college at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo.

He wasn’t aware of all opportunities in this broad field, and, as a young African American man growing up in Chicago, it wasn’t something anyone he knew was doing.

But while in college, Smith discovered the local chapter of Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences (MANRRS), and learned that he could make an impact and pursue a meaningful career in food and agricultural sciences. Now, Smith is a senior, an agriculture major and president of the school’s MANRRS chapter.

“Agriculture was a major I wasn’t real comfortable with, but when I joined MANRRS, it was like family. And it wasn’t just one ethnicity. It was black, it was white, it was a good mixing pot,” Smith said. “I appreciated that because it had the feeling of inclusion. MANRRS offers that, but people have to be open to being included.”

This is the kind of broader awareness and change advocates for minorities in agriculture are seeking.

With those goals in mind, Aug. 22-28 has been declared Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences (MANRRS) Week by Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly and by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson. The proclamations, which coincide with the KC Animal Health Corridor’s Digital Animal Health Summit beginning Aug. 24, are to help change perceptions of agricultural careers and encourage greater inclusion of minority-represented populations to build a more prosperous, creative and innovative industry.

It’s needed: The ratio of professionals in the agriculture industry is not representative of the American population.

Of the 3.4 million farmers nationwide, about 7% are minorities — including Hispanic, American Indian, African American and Asian. That ratio that has remained relatively flat in recent years, according to a 2019 Western Growers Association article .

Almost 62% of the U.S. population identify as white alone, so that means 38% of the population identifies as another race or ethnicity, either alone or in combination with white or other groups, according to the 2020 U.S. Census .

To recruit more minorities in agriculture sciences and related food industries, the young people need to be aware of these fields and what they involve, before college and during college, according to a 1997 Journal of Agricultural Education article by Zelia Wiley, assistant dean and director of diversity programs at the College of Agriculture at Kansas State University.

Minority populations need exposure to these fields of study, and then, once they gain that knowledge, their perceptions and attitudes can shift, which ultimately leads to behavior change.

“Our goal is to change the face of agriculture. We know we can do it, one day at a time,” Wiley said. “Most ethnic groups that are underserved, most have a negative view of agriculture.”

For instance, many African Americans think of slavery when they think of agriculture, so changing that perception requires a lot of outreach and education.

Today, Wiley has been a member of MANRRS for more than 30 years, is the Kansas State University MANRRS chapter advisor and president of the national society of MANRRS. In 2003, she was the first black woman hired with a doctorate degree in agriculture and extension education at Kansas State’s agriculture college.

Of course, there’s the FFA and the 4H, where all people are invited to join, “but all students don’t feel included or embraced. It’s all about having an informed choice,” she said.

Everybody is part of an ethnic group, Wiley said.

“I’m doing this for everyone. We want to get more individuals knowledgeable. The only way we can work together, is that we all have to be informed of each other. Diversity and inclusion are the way,” Wiley said.

The MANRRS chapters hold outreach events, fundraisers, take students on farm tours and hold trainings in professional etiquette, such as in interviews, Zoom calls and on social media. The organization also connects students with large agriculture companies, serving as an empowering networking resource.

To succeed at retaining young professionals in agriculture, employers need to make people like Smith feel like part of the team, offer chances for them to have a voice, and provide motivation for what they’re doing, he said.

Many students — especially those who are the first generation in their family to go to university — don’t know what to do when they get there, Smith said.

“MANRRS helped me find where I needed to go and helped put me in the direction that, even though it was scary and it was unknown, I was willing to take a chance,” he said. “How are we ever going to integrate, how are we ever going to be one, if we don’t try?”

#FarmON Concert is Tonight: Watch Live at 7 Central

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:56:56 GMT

Lee Brice, Martina McBride, Rodney Atkins and Justin Moore along with a host of other country stars will take the virtual stage at 7 p.m. Central for the #FarmOn virtual concert to benefit the 4-H FOURWARD Fund.

Watch live in the player below:

The concert will raise donations for the 4-H FOURWARD Fund to ensure young people across all communities, with or without internet access, continue to have access to the necessary resources and meaningful learning opportunities to help them thrive. The event will feature images of 4-H members working on their project in a year when many livestock shows and 4-H fairs were cut back or cancelled due to the pandemic.

The #FarmON concert is the final event of Farm Journal Field Days, the New American Farm Show, a three day farm show that combined live, in-person and virtual events hosted on farms in Iowa and Ohio.

US--Election 2020-Rural Democrats

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:22:37 GMT

2020 Democrats try to make inroads in rural America 2020 Democrats try to make inroads in rural America By BILL BARROWAssociated Press The Associated Press DENMARK, S.C. DENMARK, S.C. (AP) — Deanna Miller Berry doesn’t often see presidential candidates. So when New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker recently came to Bamberg County, South Carolina, she was primed to unload about a contaminated water system.

“What is your plan to fix it?” Berry asked, her eyes narrowed.

Booker, former mayor of Newark, the largest city in the most densely populated state, assured Berry he cares about the 3,000 residents of Denmark, South Carolina. “This is a time in America where too many people are feeling left out, left behind, not included,” he said, promising “a massive infrastructure investment” targeting “forgotten” places.

The exchange highlights the effort by Democratic presidential candidates to make inroads in rural America. With the first contests unfolding next year in South Carolina, Iowa and New Hampshire, small-town voters will play a critical role in choosing the next Democratic nominee. And the early attention could help the eventual nominee be more conversant on rural issues and compete for votes in places that gave President Donald Trump his most intense support in 2016.

“Organizing in every precinct is the key to winning both the caucus and the general election in Iowa,” Iowa Democratic Chairman Troy Price said.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders lamented rural decline during an Iowa swing this weekend.

“All over America, we have tragically seen more and more young people leave the small towns they grew up in, the small towns they love, because there are no decent-paying jobs in those towns — we intend to change that,” Sanders said, drawing cheers at the Iowa State Fairgrounds.

At the same time, California Sen. Kamala Harris was in small-town South Carolina advocating more spending on telemedicine, broadband internet and infrastructure. Booker used his two-day rural swing last month to talk health care, housing, infrastructure and criminal justice, among other issues. New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand was the first candidate who ventured to rural northern New Hampshire. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar has already visited a tiny town in Wisconsin, which will be a general election battleground.

Several candidates plan to attend a March 30 rural issues forum at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa — population 10,600.

The approach matters most immediately because the delegates necessary to become the nominee are awarded in part from primary and caucus results in individual congressional districts, even the most rural and Republican-leaning. But investing there also could narrow Republicans’ general election margins, by increasing turnout among Democratic-friendly constituencies like rural black and Latino voters or peeling off white voters or both.

That could flip states like Iowa, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina — even Florida — that propelled Trump to an Electoral College majority. Besides helping win the presidency, rural gains would be necessary for Democrats to have the muscle on Capitol Hill to enact the kinds of sweeping policy changes they are advocating on many fronts.

“So much of this is about the margins,” Iowa’s Price said.

Beyond the politics, candidates say rural outreach is required of anyone who wants to govern a diverse nation.

“Folks want to be seen,” Harris said. “They want their issues to be heard. ... They could care less about half the stuff that gets covered on cable news networks.”

In Wisconsin, Klobuchar said, it’s “about knowing the issues that matter to people whether they’re Democrats, Republicans and independents — and in rural areas it’s not just about the farm bill.”

The 2018 midterms demonstrated Democrats’ tough realities beyond metro areas, but still offered some bright spots.

AP VoteCast, a national survey of more than 115,000 voters, found rural and small-town residents cast 35 percent of midterm ballots; 56 percent of those voted for Republican House candidates, compared to 41 percent for Democrats. The advantage was wider among small-town and rural whites: 30 percent of the electorate, tilting 63-35 for Republicans. Correspondingly, Democrats’ net 40-seat gain in the House was driven mostly by previously GOP-leaning suburban districts, while Democratic nominees fell short in more rural areas.

There’s no consensus on whether rural success for Democrats is about policy or personality or some combination. Some winners establish a personal brand at odds with the national party — West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin defending the coal industry, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown opposing much of U.S. trade policy, Montana Sen. Jon Tester playing up his rancher credentials.

But that won’t necessarily work for a presidential candidate looking to become the face of a party with a decidedly liberal base. None of the declared candidates deviates from Democratic orthodoxy supporting abortion rights and LGBTQ civil rights and opposing Trump’s hard line on immigration — all positions that run afoul of rural and small-town voters who collectively are more culturally conservative than urban dwellers.

Sanders struggled with that balance in 2016 when Hillary Clinton hammered him for some Senate votes against gun measures that most Democrats backed. Sanders noted that many Vermonters, as in the rest of rural America, view guns differently than most big-city residents, but Clinton successfully used the issue against Sanders, particularly with black women.

Would-be Democratic presidents are left to mix economic arguments with biography.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee grew up in Seattle, but he often mentions that he spent his early adult years in central Washington. He touts his signature issue — combating climate change — as a boon for the “heartland” economy by growing the clean-energy industry.

Klobuchar, a Twin Cities-area native, points to her work on the Senate Agriculture Committee and notes she’s won every congressional district in Minnesota during her Senate career. Sanders, who still speaks with his native Brooklyn inflection, drew roars in Iowa when mentioned using antitrust law to limit corporate power.

Harris notes that California — caricatured in Middle America as a bastion of coastal liberalism — has the nation’s biggest agricultural output. And in South Carolina, she said she heard a lot about jobs and state Republicans’ refusal to expand Medicaid insurance.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren notes that long before her Harvard law career, she was a child in Norman, Oklahoma, where her family’s working-class struggles shaped her liberal approach to consumer, labor and finance law.

After hearing Booker, Kenneth Belton, a 63-year-old resident of struggling Fairfield County, South Carolina, said a president doesn’t have to come from his walk of life. Belton just wants the person in the Oval Office to understand him — and then to help.

“It just feels like they’ve been ignoring us,” he said.

Berry, the clean water activist, agreed, crediting Booker and others for what she describes as first steps.

“I’ve heard enough to be inspired,” she said, pausing before adding, “enough to want to hear more.”

___

Associated Press writers Sara Burnett in Chicago, Alexandra Jaffe in Des Moines, Iowa, Meg Kinnard in North Charleston, South Carolina, and Hannah Fingerhut in Washington contributed to this report.

___

Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP.

Book review: Feeding the People (with potatoes)

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 06:47:27 GMT

Potatoes aren’t mentioned in the Bible but that omission didn’t hold back the popularity of the root vegetable when European explorers brought it back from the Americas.

Potatoes are the red-letter gospel truth for millions of global consumers, and Rebbeca Earle chronicles the rise of the potato in the book Feeding the People; The Politics of the Potato .

The readable and exhaustively sourced book has won strong reviews in goodreads.com and The Telegraph and The New York Times .

I received a copy of the book to review recently.

The book unwinds the centuries-long rising appreciation of the potato in our modern world, from near total obscurity in garden plots to a basic foodstuff for entire nations. Over time, governments had a real interest in helping their subjects have accessible food, and potatoes were front and center in that.

“From the late seventeenth century political theorists had begun to identify food as an important component in building a strong state,” the author writes.

At the same time, growers deserve much of the credit for the spud’s rise, the author said.

“The potato’s history reminds us not to overlook the contributions of small-scale agriculture to the larger history of innovation and change,” he said.

While potatoes were new to Europe 500 years ago, wild potatoes were being eating “from Chile to Utah” 12,000 years ago, Earle writes.

The book’s acknowledgments, notes and bibliography and index together total more than 85 pages. A few of the intriguing index listings deal with Nazi food policy, Ireland’s Great Famine and America’s best gift (the potato, of course!), potatoes “incite lust” and “lazy potato blood.”

Another delightful part of the book is the smattering of potato recipes “through the years,” such as a recipe for truffles (an early name for potatoes) from a 1604 European cookbook.

In her conclusion, Earle said the book helps explain “the genealogy of our conviction that eating is at once a personal matter, and a legitimate arena for governmental intervention.”

We can see that tension today in the government’s dietary guidelines. It is in the interest of our nation if we would all eat five (or ten) fruits and vegetables a day. but most of us do not.

If we only would. We have no one to blame but ourselves. And the billions spent advertising junk food.

“Just as William Buchanan had insisted in 1797 that potatoes would end poverty for everyone except ‘the profligate’, so the language of personal responsibility and choice implies that those who fail to thrive have only themselves to blame,” Earle writes.

Buy the book for its fascinating record of the potato’s journey, but don’t overlook it’s revealing insight that governmental efforts to shape a stronger society through better eating have been with us for generations.

The Packer’s Fresh Talk

The Packer’s Potato Coverage

Vancouver raises the bar for CPMA

Wed, 11 Nov 2020 02:08:10 GMT

VANCOUVER — With sunny skies, snow-capped peaks and moderate temperatures, Vancouver exceeded expectations as a host city for the Canadian Produce Marketing Association convention and trade show.

The event, April 24-26, itself did the same, said organizers and exhibitors.

With agriculture consultant Rob Saik calling to question the case against genetically modified foods and Rabobank analyst Roland Fumasi speaking about possible fallout if North American Free Trade Act negotiations fail, CPMA President Ron Lemaire said the speakers provided an “edgier” approach. Other speakers spoke about market opportunities by moving away from commodity-based promotions to branded promotions.

“I’m really happy with how the flow (of speakers) went and the information behind it,” Lemaire said.

Close to 300 exhibitors were at the event. Attendance numbers were not finalized, but Lemaire said he believed 3,500-4,000 people were at the show. The show rotates between Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal. While CPMA conventions in Toronto and Montreal may draw several hundred more attendees, Lemaire said Vancouver showed growth over previous shows there.

“We will not grow for the sake of growth; the intent is to make sure we have a quality event with the right people and the right business connections,” he said.

Showing up

Exhibitors said the show delivered.

“It is my first time at CPMA and I really enjoyed it,” said Jason Varni, customer success manager and senior systems engineer for iTrade Network, Dublin, Calif. “It is just great to see the big representation of companies that are Canadian, which I don’t necessarily see at the Produce Marketing Association expo or (other) U.S. shows.”

Expo show traffic was good, exhibitors said.

“The show was very well attended, and all the major Canadian retailers were here,” said Rich Tiveron, salesman at Kingsville, Ontario-based Mastronardi Produce. “We had a good opportunity to go over new innovations and talk (about) the programs we have with Canadian national retailers and it is obviously important for us to have that face time.”
Tiveron said the perfect weather in the city was another plus.

“It’s been a very successful show and Vancouver is also a great city to have it in,” Tiveron said.

“(The trade show) has been steady, with a lot of wholesalers, some retailers and some foodservice,” said Nick Chappell, retail sales director at California Giant Berry Farms, Watsonville, Calif. “It has been a good mix.”

Murray Driediger, president and CEO of BC Fresh, was presented the 2018 Canadian Produce Person of the Year award by The Packer’s publisher Shannon Shuman at the closing banquet April 26.

Next year’s show is set for April 2-4 in Montreal.