On Farming in a World Where the Consumer is King

source: Farm and Food Report

A few minutes of conversation with Andrew Benson, VP of International Relations at the International Food Information Council (IFIC), is enough to convince you that agricultural producers are on the brink of a new revolution — one hinging on emerging opportunities made possible because of world consumer needs.

“Consumers are everybody’s ultimate customer,” Benson says. “Whether you are a seed supplier, a crop grower, a crop processor, a food manufacturer, a food retailer or a vendor — in the end, everybody serves a consumer. Therefore, it is very important to lend an ear to what consumers are looking for now and the trends that are impacting their purchasing behaviours over time.”

Benson’s Washington, D.C.-based organization carries out studies and research around issues such as consumer confidence in the food supply, as well as the distribution of information around nutrition and other areas.

“What we would do is go and talk to the public informally — either one-on-one or in small focus groups — and then, do the same substantially and quantitatively. We actually carry out surveys of large segments of the population, which gives us a really accurate read of what the public is thinking on particular issues — what their questions and concerns really are.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, the portrait of consumers today that emerges is dominated by a very startling observation. That is the rapid increase in rates of obesity that is occurring in developed countries and, to some extent, in developing countries as well, according to Benson.

“The challenge our research reveals — and that a lot of consumers are struggling with — is how to balance the pressures and demands of a very busy lifestyle: decreased opportunities for physical activities, less walking around getting to the job, more driving, more sitting at the office or on airplanes, and more pressures on consumers from the point of view of the need for convenience foods. Overall, this has had a very measurable effect on waistlines.”

One might ask why this should concern producers. Andrew Benson has this to say:

“Consumers are looking for help. They are trying to eat foods and drink beverages they enjoy, but that also fit their lifestyle. Truly, they want to modify their overall diet so that they don’t continuously face the issue of putting on more and more weight. I think the more successfully producers can help consumers do that, the more they can enhance their potential for providing products that consumers want.”

He suggests that producers familiarize themselves with tools like Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating or the newly released New Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, which reflect many of the objectives that consumers are trying to achieve themselves in terms of reducing their fat intake.

“They seek the right balance between fats and carbohydrates, while integrating a little more physical activity into their daily routines. Now, if the food you produce has an advantage which is beneficial to a consumer, then obviously the idea is to get the word out there.”

But Benson also cautions producers to be careful about how or why they communicate to the public, for information is a double-edged sword.

“Consumer confidence is very good and very high in both the U.S. and Canada, because people take the time to tell the public what is happening. If you look at surveys of U.S. opinion, 80 per cent of consumers think the food is safe and well looked-after by our regulators. But in other parts of the world — particularly a few years ago in Europe, where confidence kind of hit rock bottom after a series of food scandals over there – it is not always so. Consumer confidence can also erode quickly.”

His advice is, when you have a good, safe food supply, it is important to pay attention to the messages consumers are exposed to as much as possible.

“Nobody can be the ultimate source of information for everybody in the food chain. If you try to do that, you will fail. I don’t think the public expects that, either. For them to know about food, nutrition, health and food safety, the whole food chain needs to communicate: nutritionists, dieticians, politicians, farmers, agronomists, scientists and the media.”

In the new world of food production, the consumer is both king and kingmaker.

For more information, contact:
Andrew Benson
International Food Information Council
(202) 296-6540
http://www.ific.org/

Revision of Canada’s Food Guide for Healthy Living
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hpfb-dgpsa/onpp-bppn/revision_food_guide_e.html

Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005
http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines/

Managing Client Relations in Competitive Environment

source: Farm and Food Report

In times of increased international competition, the ability to massage the relationship with clients is more important than ever. That is certainly true of what is happening in canola industry.

Barbara Isman is President of the Canola Council of Canada.

“The big challenge we are facing is the dramatic increase in the production of soya beans in South America. Although canola has properties that make it attractive — low saturated fat and higher oil content — this massive increase has driven prices down overall. We, as a developed nation with a relatively high cost structure, are finding it difficult to produce at the price soya bean markets are forcing us to produce.”

As a result, explains Isman, “we have increased the amount of time and effort we are putting into maintaining the relationships we have with our customers. Does it get you more money in the market? No. But does it — all things being equal — get you sales? Yes. When all the competitor commodities are so aggressive, it is a must.”

During the last few months, the Council and industry members who market canola have hit the road to address the challenges at hand. With the amount of frost-damaged canola that costs more to process, producers still manage to fetch a premium for canola, an achievement Isman attributes to what canola producers and marketers have learned over time about their clients’ needs and business approaches.

“Our Japanese customers have been extremely loyal, and that is terribly important as they are our primary customer. In return for that loyalty, they expect to be kept fully informed about all activities pertaining to the Canadian industry on a regular basis. This means staying in touch with the Japanese trade associations and also nurturing that customer-supplier relationship daily. You can never over-communicate with the Japanese market.”

Isman estimates that about half of the Canola Council’s time is spent making sure that the Japanese are being given the information just as quickly as it is accessed. To maintain that kind of intense relationship would likely be even more demanding if customers there did not move as a group, as in the case of Mexican customers, says Isman.

“Mexican crushers seem to be very individualistic and need individual attention. They don’t sit in a room and talk about group issues. Increasingly, they view canola as an attractive, differentiated product, but we must work with them one-on-one.”

In her experience, investing in a good interpreter is often well worth the price. “They will tell you very quietly if your approach is a little bit off in terms of cultural practices. And sometimes they will fix up what you said.”

Every society has its business traditions, and the more you know how people do business in your international markets, the better chances are to close a deal. Isman admits she is particularly impressed with the Chinese approach.

“They love business. They love the deal. I met more billionaires per square foot in China than I ever have in my entire life when we went at the end of September. I shared with our hosts how brave they were to move so quickly in the face of such political and economic change as they face daily. But they just thrive on it. One host explained to me, ‘you North Americans like to take holidays and relax. In China, our fun is business.’”

Without this openness to different practices, doing business would be a whole lot more difficult, according to Isman.

“We start with the premise that we don’t export Canadian values when we establish contact, except for one: respect. We need to respect the culture and the people who are buying our product. We are also fortunate enough to have companies that are selling Canadian canola who have representatives on the ground. We also work closely with our embassies abroad, and we use the good old Internet to maintain contact.”

And canola producers have high hopes that new markets and market segments that are canola-specific will be identified. Isman would love to generate a new lasting demand that could help insulate Canadian producers, to a certain extent, by attracting a premium.

“We used to be the only kid on the block when it came to canola, but now Australia has a canola industry; Europe has a huge rapeseed crop and they are actually exporting — so we don’t have just South America to worry about. It is a new world out there and we have to act accordingly.”

Isman believes there is a place in the world for Canadian canola. The entire industry is working on making sure new opportunities are seized as they emerge.

For more information, contact:
Barbara Isman
Canola Council of Canada
(204) 982-2100
http://www.canola-council.org

No Need to Pay for What is Free

source: Farm and Food Report

Every year, farm and ranch families receive letters or see advertising that encourages them to acquire privately published catalogues or directories that list grants, programs and services offered by federal and provincial governments.

These privately compiled and published directories and catalogues have a price tag attached.

However, the same information about federal and provincial government programs is available free of charge through existing toll-free telephone lines and publicly accessible websites.

There is no need to pay for the information, says Ken Imhoff, Manager of the Farm Stress Unit of Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food and Rural Revitalization.

Imhoff says an example of a directory that can be accessed free of charge is the Connections Services Directory, a computer-based, on-line directory of programs and services designed specifically for farm and rural people in Saskatchewan.

This electronic directory provides not only current provincial and federal information, but also information on community-based organizations and their programs and services. Informed decisions can be made on the most appropriate service to access, whether that be business development, financial, legal, education, farm safety or personal and family services. Since the CONNECTIONS Services Directory was developed to serve rural Saskatchewan, descriptions of services include information on any grants or funding assistance currently available to farmers, ranchers and rural people in general.

The programs and services offered through the Connections Service Directory can be explored and discussed with staff by calling, toll-free, 1-866-680-0006 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday to Friday. Through discussion to gain an understanding of their needs and interests, CONNECTIONS staff will identify current programs and services that most closely match the need. Staff, in doing so, will provide a brief description of the program or services for which the person may qualify.

The directory can also be accessed through the website: www.agr.gov.sk.ca/connections. Internet service is also available through the public library system.

The federal government offers words of caution to farmers who may be invited to buy information about government programs and services. “There's no need to pay for information that's freely available,” says Ellen Funk, a spokesperson for farm financial programs at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Winnipeg offices.

"We've received calls here from farmers and farm organizations, who are concerned because there are a number of private sector companies that are soliciting farmers and inviting them to pay money to get information on government programs and services," Funk said. "We're concerned about that because all of that information is available for free. Farmers don't have to pay money to get information on government programs -federal or provincial - or to apply for programs.

“So, we want to get the message out to producers: beware of websites and mailings and other promotional items that ask you to pay money to get information on farm support programs or other programs available for farmers, because all of that information is available to you, for free, from federal and provincial offices.”

Funk says a good clearinghouse for information is the federal government's toll-free information line, 1-800-O Canada (1-800-622-6232), or the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada website at www.agr.gc.ca.

Addresses of federal government programs and services are available on the Government of Canada website.

For more information on Saskatchewan services, call CONNECTIONS toll-free at 1-866-680-0006.

For more information, contact:
Ken Imhoff
Farm Stress Line
Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food and Rural Revitalization
(306) 787-5196

Ellen Funk
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
(204) 984-5751

Responding to Changing Customer Habits with Beef

source: Farm and Food Report

It is surprising how much changes in lifestyles can affect consumer habits, and ultimately the value of various agricultural products. Take the beef sector.

A study, conducted with the help of SAFRR’s Beef Development Fund and producers, has recently taken a fresh look at value-added beef development in response to market trends. Phyllis Shand is a researcher at the College of Agriculture’s Department of Applied Microbiology and Food Science at the University of Saskatchewan.

“In the early 1990s, we were witnessing a change in the value of various cuts in the beef carcass,” Shand explains. “While cuts from the loin region seemed to be increasing in value, the front and hip of the carcass became perceived as less consumer-friendly. Consequently, their values decreased.”

Shand attributes this to consumers leading busier lives and their need for quick and simple meal options. Most consumers judge the quality and overall acceptability of beef products based on tenderness, which has been identified as the single most important palatability factor affecting consumer satisfaction with beef.

“Although this may not be true of Saskatchewan in general, in larger urban centres, the food preparation knowledge around cuts that are perceived as less tender is being lost,” says Shand. “Evidence of that can be found in the decreasing popularity of traditional stewed dishes or pot roasts. People just don’t have the time to prepare them, and they will go for the more simple solutions: grilled steaks, roasts and ground beef — of which we seem to have an insatiable need.”

About half of the beef that makes it to market currently ends up as ground beef. While this market segment should not be neglected, exploring further avenues to respond to changing consumer needs is well worthy of study, indicates Shand. “We aim to keep beef competitive by finding new ways to process underutilized and undervalued parts.”

Because Shand and her colleagues had a background in meat processing — particularly in pork — they felt well equipped to start looking at new options. It turned out it was not as simple as that.

“We realized that we couldn’t simply take processing methods that worked in pork and apply them to beef,” Shand says. “We learned that we have to develop species-specific processes. Beef muscle implies different processing challenges because of its characteristics — each cut has its own. The chuck and the round each have unique features that we need to exploit.”

The findings from various studies conducted under this project suggest that marination by injection offers great potential in improving the palatability of lesser value cuts of meat. Mechanical treatment of meat tissue, including blade tenderization or tumbling, can also greatly enhance tenderness of tougher cuts such as round muscles. During tumbling, meat is rotated in large drums to disrupt the muscle fiber structure and to aid in marinade incorporation.

In addition, results suggest that moisture enhancement of lesser value cuts — followed by an appropriate cooking regime — offers a new means of ensuring consistently tender products.

The preservation of appearance and quality is essential during the distribution and merchandising of perishable products such as meat, so Shand’s research group has also looked at various packaging methods for fresh meats. After all, visual appearance is the only criterion consumers have at the point of purchase when selecting meat cuts. The way the product looks will influence consumers’ decisions, and technology that enhances this is valuable to the industry.

The good news is that the Saskatchewan Beef Development Fund approved funding for an additional five years of support for this research program. Shand is beaming at the significance of this.

“It means we will continue to have the infrastructure in place to continue our value-added beef research and to assist the industry in any expansion of beef processing activity taking place in the province — nothing less.”

For more information, contact:
Phyllis Shand
College of Agriculture
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-8842

Avoid Furarium Wilt Through Variety Selection

source: Farm and Food Report

AVOID FUSARIUM WILT THROUGH CANOLA VARIETY SELECTION
Canola growers would be well advised this spring to ensure the variety of canola they plan on seeding is resistant to Fusarium wilt, according to SAFRR Integrated Cropping Management Specialist Dale Risula.

“Some producers have experienced some major losses during the last couple of years — as much as 100 per cent in some cases,” says Risula. “The disease was first noticed in northern regions of the Peace River area in Alberta in 1999. Since then, Fusarium wilt has been found sporadically in the canola production regions of Saskatchewan and Manitoba as well.”

Fusarium wilt infects plants through the roots and plugs their vascular system, limiting the flow of water and nutrients up the stem and leading to stem discoloration. If severely infected, plant death will occur. Often, the symptoms are observed on only one side of the plant, or only affect a few branches.

“One of the challenges,” explains Risula, “is that the symptoms are similar to those of drought stress, which makes it difficult to identify. Plants may be stunted, discoloured and exhibit poor seed set. Fusarium wilt causes a discolouration of the stem. It is often seen as purple, grey or brown streaks starting from the foot region and moving up the plant.”

One of the ways to determine if it is Fusarium wilt is to scrape or cut away the epidermis to look for dark streaks in the vascular tissue running up and down the stem. Often, the infected plants will die prematurely and yield can be greatly reduced.

Fusarium wilt can be differentiated from other canola diseases because roots of affected plants will remain intact, unlike in a case of root rot. There will be no cankers on the stem base or lodging as with blackleg, nor bleaching and shredding of the stems, as with sclerotinia rot.

“The only way to control Fusarium wilt infestations at this point is through disease resistance,” says Risula. “There are no registered fungicides to deal with the problem. Fortunately, variety selection — combined with an appropriate crop rotation program — is extremely effective. The beauty of it is that selection is that effective.”

There is differentiation between varieties of Argentine canola (Brassica napus), which means that breeders will continue to screen this susceptibility out of future varieties.

Canola growers are advised again to check if the variety they choose is resistant to Fusarium wilt before seeding.

For more information on Fusarium wilt, please consult the information sheet on the disease prepared recently by SAFRR.

For more information, contact:
Dale Risula
Agriculture Knowledge Centre
Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food and Rural Revitalization
1-866-457-2377

SCCA Eyes Profits Through Soil Management Practices

source: Farm and Food Report

The 2005 edition of the Saskatchewan Soil Conservation Association’s Direct Seeding Conference takes place in Saskatoon on February 15th and 16th.

Organizers have picked “Management Practices for the Future” as this year’s theme, because of the increasing popularity of direct seeding, according to Edgar Hammermeister, one SSCA’s Directors.

“Fifty per cent of acres seeded in Saskatchewan are direct seeded now,” says Hammermeister. “As a producer, I personally find that if you can manage your soil properly and even out the productivity of a field so that it holds moisture longer — and you become less dependent on the timing of a rain — you have a wider window of a few extra days. The long-term direct seeders are finding that their long-term yield averages are more stabilized. We all learn lessons and they indicate a need to address soil management with a view to the future.”

Hammermeister and his colleagues have whipped up a full program that features sessions about fertility effects on crop and weed competition, weed control strategies, and crop rotations. Some sessions address direct seeding issues and opportunities for advanced practitioners, as well as the benefits of adopting a systems approach to low input crop production. Other sessions target novice direct seeders’ needs.

There will be special emphasis this year on the forages and livestock angles in terms of direct seeding opportunities for forage crops, but also on rejuvenation/re-establishment of forage stands and rotational grazing practices.

“We will also feature a bear pit session which will be more of a producer-to-producer opportunity on topics like how to start direct seeding; integrated pest management; and how one controls weeds with crop rotations,” Hammermeister says. “Of course, we are always looking for ways to reduce pesticide inputs to address our insect challenges. Fertility management is also on the program, and something else: new developments on the carbon credits front.”

Hammermeister recognizes that carbon credits are more of a political issue, but it is one the SCCA has steadily been working on for eight years now, and on which producers are seeing some progress.

“We are getting a sense that decision-makers are starting to see where agriculture can fit in meeting Canada’s Kyoto commitments. Farmers own the carbon credits. Canada has a huge commitment to Kyoto: 240,000,000 tons of emission reductions that it has to meet. If the farmers are treated fairly, they can provide at least 20 per cent, possibly a lot more of that solution. Direct seeding is the quickest way to increase carbon storage in the soil by increasing organic matter. So it is a fit through agronomy.”

In the meantime, Hammermeister points that the impact of direct seeding on the environment is already quite visible, especially during droughts.

“If you remember back in 1988, we had some serious dust storms. The land was moving. Now the drought we had a few years ago, we didn’t have any significant dust storms as a result. The land was staying put and that topsoil has a tremendous value. It is hard to put a monetary value on it — perhaps it is a priceless resource. When a farmer can maintain production by keeping the soil on his own place, it benefits anyone.”

The Saskatchewan Soil Conservation Association is made up agricultural producers, but it welcomes anyone with an interest in direct seeding to its AGM and Conference. To find out more, or to register, visit: http://ssca.usask.ca/

For more information, contact:
Edgar Hammermeister, P.Ag.
Saskatchewan Soil Conservation Association
(306) 489-2281