New Zeland

Farmers must act now to cut methane, environmentalist warns

Kiwi farmers need to start pulling their weight if there’s any hope of preventing catastrophic flooding in coastal cities, a veteran environmentalist has warned.

The founder of the Ecologic Foundation, Guy Salmon, said urgent action was needed to try to stop Antarctica’s “doomsday glacier” collapsing, and overhauling the agriculture sector was key.

Salmon was speaking from his home in the coastal Nelson suburb of Glenduan, where the city council was building a $1.4 million rock wall along the settlement’s storm-battered seafront road.

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Global dairy prices up in first global trade auction of year

The average price for commodities was US$3420 (NZ$4715) per metric tonne (MT), up from US$3317/MT in the last auction in mid-December.

Prices for whole milk powder – the most important product for New Zealand farmers – rose 3.1 percent, to US$3306/MT

Lactose prices saw the biggest jump, rising 7.4 percent to $US1099/MT, while butter was up 7.2 percent to US$4526/MT. Butter milk powder rose 6.9 percent to US$2876/MT, anhydrous milk fat was up 5.5 percent to $US4604/MT and skim milk powder edged up 4.1 percent to US$3044/MT.

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Honey exporter caned for British ad’s health claims

Britain’s advertising watchdog has ruled an ad promoting mānuka honey as a treatment for coughs breached its code.

A complaint upheld by the UK Advertising Standards Authority said a newspaper ad for New Zealand-based Mānuka Doctor should not have described the honey as a treatment for coughs and referred to its ”anti-microbial properties”.

Britain’s advertising code prohibits claims that state or imply a food can prevent, treat or cure human disease.

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Growing life’s essentials

Imagine waking up every morning to a haze of purple lavender stretching off to the distance; turning in for an evening lulled by the fragrance of 25,000 lavender plants.

For some, it’s the dream, but for the Zeestraten family of Wānaka, it is a reality – for much of the year at least.

Brothers Stef and Tim, and Tim’s wife, Jessica, own a 12-hectare lavender farm on the outskirts of Wānaka, and yes, says Stef, the fragrance can be strong “but you never get sick of being inundated with it”. Nor of the sight of it, and of the trees and mountains beyond.

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Seaweed could unlock entirely new industry in the Bay of Plenty

A state-of-the-art aquaculture facility at Waikato University is breeding seaweed to help researchers harness its full potential.

Slimy green sea lettuce is good for the environment and good for your health.

“So yeah it’s got huge potential,” says seaweed biologist Dr Marie Magnusson.

The site is specially designed for seaweed and algae cultivation before the seaweed is returned to the ocean.

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Australia

Harvest season strips back records as farmers rushed to finish line

A soggy start to the new year in Victoria’s southern grainbelt has slowed the finish of an otherwise high-speed, bin-busting winter crop harvest across much of Australia this summer.

Despite labour shortages and a nerve wracking run of early harvest storms causing sporadic delays and crop losses, the 2020-21 season will be remembered for the breakneck pace at which farmers and grain handlers worked to get it stripped and stored.

They have whipped through the job about two weeks faster than normal harvest timelines in the eastern states.

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Global sugar deficit forecast but La Nina gives Aussie growers a boost

The onset of a La Nina will prove an advantage for the Australian sugar-growing season, with forecast strong rainfall to assist cane development and, ultimately, 2021 yields, according to Rabobank’s latest Global Sugar Quarterly report.

In further good news, the specialist agribusiness bank expects limited impact on Australian sugar exports as a result of Chinese trade friction, with China accounting for only 5.6 per cent of Australian sugar exports, on average, over the past five years.

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Fruit and veg losses top $38 million as worker shortage continues

Crop losses across the country directly as a result of ongoing labour shortages have now topped $38 million.

The National Lost Crop Register was launched in mid-December to capture the true cost to industry and the national economy from a lack of seasonal workers available to harvest fresh fruits and vegetables.

A total of fifty-five growers from five separate states and territories have anonymously reported their losses to date.

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La Nina wet weather to allow sorghum seeding

La Nina driven weather patterns delivered another week of wet weather for Queensland farmers with heavy patchy falls across the state’s major cropping zones.

Heavy storms associated with the tail end of ex TC Imogen resulted in falls of 30mm to 75mm across the Central Highlands with isolated falls of more than 150mm in some of the southern parts. It is a timely rain for CQ farmers where more sorghum is expected to be seeded as soon as the paddocks dry.

Southern Queensland recorded beneficial storms ranging from 50mm to 100mm. Farmers welcomed the rain but would like to have seen the rain earlier.

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A safe and happy New Year for horticulture

A common wish we have for others at this time is for a safe and happy New Year. And for 2021, this wish for safety is more important than ever.

We are an industry already keenly aware of the need to operate safely. But COVID-19 has added a level of significance to our safety not seen before.

Growers have proven their adaptability and resourcefulness by quickly putting in place a whole range of new measures and processes to manage the risk posed to their staff and themselves by COVID.

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South America

Argentina lifts ban on corn exports to a daily cap of 30.000 tons

rgentina has lifted a suspension on corn exports announced in December and will opt instead for a temporary 30,000 tons daily cap on sales abroad, its agriculture ministry said on Monday, backing off the more restrictive measure that had infuriated farmers in the South American grains powerhouse.

The world’s No. 3 supplier of corn announced on Dec. 30 a two-month halt in corn exports in a bid to control domestic food prices amid a long recession and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The agriculture ministry said in a statement in the early hours of Monday that it had struck agreements to guarantee the domestic supply of corn and cushion local prices against fluctuations in international markets, allowing it to end the full ban.

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Brazilian leading meatpackers linked to ranches that use slave labor

An investigation published this week showed six Brazilian meatpacker firms bought cattle from ranches that used slave labor. Labor experts suggested on Wednesday that the firms must clean up their supply chains.

Brazil’s JBS, one of the world’s largest meat processing firms, bought cattle from two ranches that later ended up on Brazil’s “dirty list” of companies that employed slave labor, the anti-slavery rights group Reporter Brasil said this week.

JBS said it banned the two firms once they were on the dirty list, but it was unfair to expect JBS to stop working with any ranches facing allegations of slave labor from inspectors as those companies also had the right to defend their actions.

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Soybean crush outlook diverges on recovery in Brazil, recession in Argentina

Brazil’s soybean crush volumes are expected to remain elevated in 2021 on high demand, while the outlook for Argentina’s crushing industry is precarious as Buenos Aires grapples with recession and more than $323 billion of mounting debt.

Brazilian crushers’ sales soared for most of 2020 due to high domestic and export demand, while Argentina’s crushers grappled with labor strikes, high taxes, negative margins, tight raw beans supply and logistical bottlenecks, analysts said, predicting similar trends for the two nations in 2021.

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Food Updates

Our plastic dilemma

With little knowledge of how COVID-19 transmits, consumers have returned to single-use plastics. Here, Dr Sylvain Charlebois looks at how food protection measures have been affected.

The pandemic has disrupted our lives in more ways than one; among the most noticeable is our use of plastics.

As nations went into lockdown, the western world saw regulations and bans related to single-use plastics and plastic packaging relax in a matter of days. Once high on the social and political agenda, the focus on public health completely overrode everything else, including our desire to become better environmental stewards.

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Ocean Spray offers cranberry seeds as baked goods, smoothie ingredient

BOSTON — Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. introduced Ocean Spray cranberry seeds, a new upcycled product harvested from cranberries. The cranberry seeds are available globally as an ingredient through Ocean Spray.

Cranberry seeds add natural color with a neutral flavor in a range of applications, including baked foods, smoothies, snack bars and more. They offer several health benefits, including dietary fiber for digestive support, zinc for immunity, omega-3 fatty acids for heart health and magnesium for cognitive function, according to Ocean Spray. They are non-GMO, allergen-free and have no added preservatives.

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Pre Brands patents full-view meat packaging in US

CHICAGO – Grass-fed and grass-finished beef producer Pre Brands has been granted a United States patent for a packaging system/method for displaying fresh meat.

The newly patented proprietary fresh meat packaging system/display method was introduced to the market in 2016 with the launch of Pre Brands. The US patent joins patents obtained around the world including in Australia, Canada, Japan, Great Britain, Italy, Spain, France, and Germany.

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Sourcing ‘clean’ plant-based ingredients

As consumers demand more from their plant-based products, Oliver Amdrup outlines the difficulties companies face in sourcing pure and natural plant-based ingredients.

Driven by a desire to feel more healthy and for simple, clean products that demand less of our natural resources, consumers are increasingly shifting their diet preferences towards plant-based. Recent surveys conducted by Userneeds and Puori show that up to 43 percent of consumers have changed their eating habits to be more plant-based over the last 12 months.

As a supplement brand devoted to natural and certified pure products, Puori also aspires to fulfill those marked rising demands.

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Scientists develop method to test for fruity thiols in beer

Scientists believe they have found an accurate way to measure a compound in beer that could be the key to understanding its often fruity flavour profile.

Scientists from the Research Institute for Beer and Beverage Analysis in Berlin have released research which could help brewers identify a key compound that contributes to the fruity profiles of some of the world’s most popular beers.

Hoppy beers such as pale ales are becoming increasingly popular, buoyed by the craft beer craze that shows no signs of slowing down. The fruity aromas and flavours that make some of these beers so popular partially stems from compounds called thiols.

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Cacao powder is harvested from a large pod of cacao fruit containing around 60 beans in a pulp. The process continues when the beans are dried, fermented, crushed, fat removal, and grounded into a fine powder. The powder does not consist of any sugar, milk, or fats.  The process may proceed further to sweetening or flavoring, but it can also be packed from hereon.

Consumer Benefits

Cacao powder is mainly used in large quantities in the confectionery division. However, it is now a hit in the pharmaceutical industry because of its components. Cacao powder contains minerals like calcium, copper, potassium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium, zinc, and vital vitamins, which are beneficial to the body.

It has been proven that cacao powder lowers blood pressure, lowers bad cholesterol, and prevents stroke. Additionally, cacao powder acts as an antidepressant increasing the serotonin and endorphin levels of the body that is responsible for mood levels. Moreover, the powder has a high amount of an antioxidant called polyphenols to fight cancer. It is also an immune system booster, which increases the oxygen levels of the brain, preventing it from dementia. Research shows that cacao beverages combat hypertension, coronary artery disease, hyperlipidemia, and relaxation of vascular muscle cells.

Cacao powder has also been in the cosmetic industry for years. The powder is usually added in the soap-making process giving the natural brown color.

Estimated Market Growth

The cacao powder market is anticipated to increase its value from USD 2.54 Billion in 2019 to USD 3.06 Billion by 2027. Forecasts show that the Asia Pacific may have the fastest growth rate of 3.5% in the period 2020-2027. The region is followed by Europe, which is likely to have an increase of 2.2% growth rate; while North America is estimated to have a growth of 2% in the same year bracket. The growth rate is based on the food and beverage industry’s increasing demand and the consumers changing food habits to a healthy lifestyle.

Both online and offline market channels are anticipated to drastically change in the forecast period. The online distribution channel may reach a 4.8% growth rate and a 2.14% growth rate for offline distribution channels by 2027. The age of the internet and smart devices helps manufacturers and producers to market the products at a lower cost giving the consumers, customers, or clients a fair review of the products and services.

Cacao powder is not only famous in the food and beverages sector but also the pharmaceutical field. The industry contributed to the drastic increase in the consumption of cacao powder. Cacao powder helps in the functioning of platelets and blood vessels, resulting in normal blood pressure.

In 2019, North America yields the highest share of consumption in bakery and confectioneries such as chocolates and cookies used on various occasions. The numbers are expected to grow at a rate of 2% in the forecast period. The European market, especially the UK, Spain, and Germany, is expected to grow at 2.2% in the forecast period.

Cacao Powder Quality Control

While the demand for cacao powder increases, consumers and health administration also increase their demands on high-quality control analysis before and during the commercialization process. There are now new advances to control cacao’s quality and authenticity, such as the chromatographic analysis that determines metabolites and other contaminants. The most common method, which is still being used by most of the manufacturers, is spectroscopy, which is applied in the post-harvest stage to evaluate various biochemical parameters and to assess the authenticity of cacao beans and its by-products.

 

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New Zeland

NZ-grown papaya tested as possible dengue treatment

New Zealand-grown papaya is being studied to find out if an extract from its leaves could be an effective treatment for dengue fever.

The first extracts from the leaves of the fruit grown at a Northland research orchard are now part of a clinical study at universities in the UK and in Asia.

The project is spearheaded by Queenstown based company Fuller Young International.

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LIC delivers world-leading genetic wealth to New Zealand dairy farmers

Thanks to the foresight of the LIC board and its farmer shareholders, three decades of research and investment focusing on increasing the rate of genetic improvement in New Zealand dairy animals is paying off resulting in markedly increased productivity and health traits for dairy cows, and better returns for dairy farmers.

LIC Board Chair Murray King says the investment of more than $78 million over the past 26 years has built substantial genetic wealth for the New Zealand dairy industry.

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Farming company adapts sanitation technology to fight the spread of COVID-19

Palmerston North’s Saflex Pumps primarily uses a spray technology to keep the teats of dairy cows clean before milking to reduce mastitis.

But co-founder Mark Bell Booth said the same technology – along with an automated fly spray – inspired the design of a new system which can sanitise indoor areas to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

A dry fog machine pumped sanitiser in microns smaller than the size of a human hair into a closed room, he said.

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New Zealand-made cheeses could face renaming under new EU rules

This creamy cheese has been in development at Whitestone for the last two years, using a unique mould strain found in North Otago.

“When we talk about it, it’s like that style of a gorgonzola, but we’re calling it Oamaru blue because it’s here from Oamaru,” says Simon Berry, managing director of Whitestone Cheese and spokesperson for New Zealand Specialist Cheesemakers Association.

Developing unique varieties is set to become more important. The European Union wants to ban other countries from using ‘their’ cheese names in local products.

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Scale of hardship for orchardists still emerging after Boxing Day hail

Motueka orchardists hit by a freak hail storm on Boxing Day are still figuring out the scope of the financial damage it caused.

The hail caused massive damage to orchards in and around Motueka, in some cases completely wiping out some fruit growers’ crops.

In the aftermath, MP for West Coast-Tasman and Minister of Agriculture Damien O’Connor has been in Motueka to inspect the damage first-hand.

The platform is a secure space where buyers and sellers can trade seamlessly, while also improving access for smaller growers to international markets, chief executive Alex Guilleux said.

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Australia

Favourable farmgate fertiliser prices “here to stay”

Plentiful global fertiliser supplies along with a stable currency outlook are giving Australian farmers confidence affordable fertiliser prices will continue in the year ahead.

Agribusiness specialist Rabobank has released its latest semi-annual Global Fertiliser Outlook which notes that while global fertiliser prices have stepped back from 10-year lows during the second half of 2020, this newly-found price strength was expected to tail off during the second half of this year.

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Industry positive about the pulse market

PULSES are on a comeback across Western Australia as the industry moves to put past market shocks and agronomic challenges behind it.

From the dizzying heights of 1999 where 2.1 million hectares of pulses were produced in WA, this dropped to 600,000ha in 2010 and 340,000 this year, according to the Grains Industry Association of WA.

Anthracnose and Ascochyta blight in chickpeas was largely responsible for the downturn.

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Lots of work needed to digest big crop

Organisation (WTO) over its imposition of anti-dumping and countervailing duties of more than 80 per cent on Australian barley is unlikely to yield any quick result, with growers heading into 2021 with a ‘business as usual’ approach.

The choice to take the matter to the WTO was announced by Federal Trade Minister Simon Birmingham after extensive consultation with the grains industry.

“While Australia respects China’s right, as with any nation, to undertake domestic investigations into anti-dumping matters, we do not agree with China’s decision to impose anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Australian barley,” Mr Birmingham said.

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Lack of premiums irks growers

2020 finished with a flourish. The end of year rally pushed Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures to contract highs, and to multi-year highs not seen since 2014.

The Australian dollar also surged to be above 77 US cents at year’s end. While that capped the prices in $A terms, it was enough to push the $A value of March CBOT futures back above $A305 a tonne, and to its best level since November 11.

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Sorghum sinks with improved weather

Good December rain and continued storms in the first week of 2021 have seen sorghum prices tumble.

Delivered Darling Downs sorghum prices climbed above $330 a tonne in early December as dry weather threatened summer crop production but has since plunged $40 as the season has improved.

Parts of the Darling Downs received upwards of 100 millimetres of rain during December with more storms expected later this week.

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South America

Argentina suspends corn export sales until March; farmers’ surprised and furious

Argentina will suspend sales of corn for export until Feb. 28, the agriculture ministry said on Wednesday, announcing the surprise move as part of the government’s effort to ensure ample domestic food supplies.

The move by the world’s No. 3 corn supplier was a sign of tightening global food supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This decision is based on the need to ensure the supply of grain for the sectors that use it as a raw material for the production of animal protein such as pork, chicken, eggs, milk and cattle, where corn represents a significant component of production costs,” the statement said.

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China Approved 10 Fruits for Import in 2020 Amid Slowing Import Growth

According to an announcement from China’s General Administration of Customs, China granted import permission for 10 new fruit items in 2020, representing a slight decrease from the previous year. The approved fruit items include Argentinian and Chilean citrus; Brazilian melons; Cambodian mangos; Dominican avocados; Indonesian dragon fruit; U.S. avocados, blueberries and nectarines; and Zambian blueberries. However, owing to the global COVID-19 pandemic, both the rate of approval for new fruit imports and the number of fruit imports in general have been declining. According to data from China Customs, imports of fresh fruits, dried fruits and nuts between January and October of 2020 totaled 5.51 million metric tons, a year-on-year decrease of 10.5%.

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Argentina causing grain market turmoil

The crippling strike by Argentina’s port-side oilseed workers was finally resolved midway through last week, allowing production at the country’s soybean crush facilities to return to normal and a resumption of port loading operations along the Parana River.

The soybean crush facilities in Argentina’s main grains hub of Rosario lay idol for 20 days and exports were paralysed after the unions representing oilseed workers and grain inspectors called a strike on December 9.

They were demanding better wages to compensate their members for the country’s high inflation rate, particularly for those who continued to work through the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Why the South American soybean crop is more important than you think

Harvest will soon begin on Brazil’s soybean crop. There are big dynamics at play in South America this year that will likely impact U.S. soy growers.

Brazilian soybean stocks continue to be scarce after exporting the majority of its supplies to China earlier last year. China only bought 100.7 million bushels of Brazilian soybeans in November 2020, down 29% from the previous year.

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Food Updates

Growers seek new ways to combat seed set

Growing scrutiny around the use of glyphosate in farming systems has prompted a leading agronomist to encourage growers to look at alternative ways of reducing seed set prior to harvest.

Paul McIntosh is WeedSmart’s northern extension officer and said there are currently five herbicides registered for late season use in a variety of crops.

“Glyphosate and diquat (or Reglone) are registered for use in wheat and barley in some states, canola, chickpea, lentil, faba bean, field pea, mungbean and soybean,” he said.

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Lab-grown meat officially on the menu

Lab grown meat has been sold in a restaurant for the first time in Singapore, after it was approved in a world first last month.

Cultured meat company Eat Just has announced that it will become the world’s first company to have its lab-grown meat served in a restaurant.

Eat Just is a food technology company that produces meat and egg substitutes, and recently became the first company to gain approval to sell its lab-grown chicken product, GOOD Meat Cultured Chicken, in Singapore. Incidentally, Singapore became the world’s first government to approve lab-grown meat for public consumption back in early December 2020.

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The making of a superfood? The key relationship at the heart of kefir

Research teams from around the world have been investigating how kefir is made and how can it be made more appealing for consumers.

New research from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and Cambridge University’s Patil group and collaborators, published in Nature Microbiology, has revealed the complex microbiological relationship central to the production of kefir.

Kefir is one of the world’s oldest fermented food products and considered by the research team to be a ‘superfood‘ with many purported health benefits, including improved digestion and lower blood pressure and blood glucose levels.

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Poultry to be culled in Northern Ireland after bird flu is detected

More than 30,000 birds are to be culled and a strict control zone set up following a suspected outbreak of bird flu in County Antrim.

Strict disease control measures have been rolled out in parts of Northern Ireland after a suspected outbreak of bird flu, which, among other actions, includes the culling of more than 30,000 poultry.

Northern Ireland’s Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) Dr Robert Huey has also implemented a Temporary Control Zone around the town of Clough, County Antrim. This restricts how birds can be moved within the area, as well as ensuring detailed records are kept of who handles poultry and eggs and how the birds are housed etc.

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