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FRIDAY, JULY 28, 2017 VOLUME 90, NUMBER 30 WWW.CAPITALPRESS.COM Canadian ag minister urges caution in NAFTA talks THINKING outside the CAN By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI Capital Press Thinkstockphotos.com Food processors change with the times as consumer tastes evolve Food and beverage manufacturing establishments in the U.S., 2015 By ALIYA HALL Capital Press T “If people are eating more fresh fruit and less canned fruit it certainly affects us. I see it in my own life. ... We eat more fresh fruit because it’s available.” Russell Loughmiller Muirhead Canning Co. owner 0-499 HE DALLES, Ore. — Russell Loughmiller has seen fi rst-hand how the food processing industry has changed over the years. He’s changing with it. Loughmiller’s Muirhead Canning Co. in the Dalles, Ore., is one of the 1,016 food and beverage processing plants in Oregon and is part of a $500 billion national in- dustry, according to the USDA Economic Research Ser- vice. But Loughmiller, 42, who has been canning peach- es, cherries and pears for 11 years, has noticed a steady decline in consumers’ desire for canned goods. “That affects me directly. I go into grocery stores and see that canned fruit is shrinking,” he said. “I feel like some of it is generational, and some of it is the availabil- ity of fresh fruit year-round.” Loughmiller bought the cannery in 2006, and employs 25 people. Like every industry, food processing has gone through many rapid changes in recent years. Chief among them is a shift from canning produce to freezing it or shipping it fresh, either packaged individually, sliced or as salad mixes. Turn to CANNED, Page 12 500-999 1,000- 1,999 2,000- 3,999 Wash. Mont. S.D. Wyo. Neb. Nev. Utah Calif. Ariz. Wis. Kan. Okla. N.M. Penn. Mo. Ind. Ohio Kty. N.J. R.I. N.C. Del. Ark. S.C. Ala. Mass. W. Va. Va. Tenn. Miss. Texas N.Y. Mich. Iowa Ill. Colo. Maine Vt. N.H. Minn. Ore. Idaho 4,000- 6,000 Mich. N.D. Conn. Md. D.C. Ga. La. Alaska Fla. Hawaii Source: USDA ERS Alan Kenaga/Capital Press Top 12 states by number of establishments Rank/state 1. California 2. New York 3. Texas 4. Pennsylvania 5. Illinois 6. Washington Number 5,531 2,508 2,175 1,489 1,384 1,323 Rank/state 7. Florida 8. Wisconsin 9. Ohio 10. New Jersey 11. Michigan 12. Oregon $2.00 Number 1,212 1,119 1,067 1,028 1,026 1,016 PORTLAND — Cana- da’s Minister of Agriculture, Lawrence MacAulay, said he’s amenable to negotiations over the North American Free Trade Agreement but hopes the talks proceed with cau- tion. “It’s put a lot of money in the farmers’ pockets in the U.S. and Can- ada, so let’s be sure to contin- ue down that path,” MacAu- lay said. “If Lawrence you’re going to MacAulay fi x something that’s in good shape, be careful.” MacAulay stopped in Portland July 24 for the an- nual summit of the Pacifi c Northwest Economic Region, a non-profi t created by fi ve American states and fi ve Ca- nadian provinces. NAFTA is top of mind in agriculture these days, with negotiations over the agree- ment between the U.S., Can- ada and Mexico set to begin Aug. 16-20 in Washington, D.C. After meeting with USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue, Ma- cAulay sees an ally who’s also supportive of the strong trade relationship between the U.S. and Canada. Whether Perdue will be able to infl uence NAFTA’s renegotiation, however, is a subject about which MacAu- ley said he’d prefer not to speculate. In late April, it appeared the President Donald Trump was ready to pull out of NAFTA, until Perdue and other pro-trade agriculture groups convinced him to re- visit the deal rather than with- draw entirely. In outlining the Trump administration’s objectives in the NAFTA discussions, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer specifi- cally pointed to “market ac- cess issues” related to trade with Canada in grain, dairy and wine that the current deal “is unequipped to ad- dress.” Turn to NAFTA, Page 12 Good cherry season for consumers, not so much for growers By DAN WHEAT Capital Press YAKIMA, Wash. — It’s been a stellar Northwest cher- ry season in terms of weather, fruit quality and sale prices for consumers. But it’s likely to be the largest crop on record at more than 25 million, 20-pound boxes, making it less than stellar for grower returns. “It’s been the best cher- ry weather ever. No rain. It hasn’t been 100 degrees ev- 1426 Front St. Fort Benton, MT 59442 406-622-3803 www.fbrealty.com ery day and it’s been cool at night. But pricing has not im- proved,” says Brenda Thom- as, president of Orchard View Farms in The Dalles, the larg- est cherry grower in Oregon. Wholesale prices averaged $25 to $27 per 18-pound box two weeks ago and have not gotten better, Thomas said. The wholesale average over the past three years was $35 per box, she said. Early cherries were small, later ones are larger but more volume has not increased profi ts, she said. “This year it’s a lot of work for little pay. It’s really at the orchard level. Orchards won’t get the returns they received last year,” she said. It will be one of the low- er-return years for Orchard View Farms growers and most likely throughout the industry, she said. Retail advertising sales prices typically run $1.99 to Dan Wheat/Capital Press Turn to CHERRIES, Jessica Flores and her mother, Veronica Flores, check Rainier Page 12 cherries at Drescher Orchard near Orondo, Wash., on July 12. TWO BLAINE COUNTY FARMS/RANCHES • 1,360 ACRES (+/-) TOTAL • WEST & EAST OF HARLEM , MT THE EAST UNIT- APPROX. 860 ACRES 3 MILES EAST OF HARLEM: Includes approx. 93 acres pivot sprinkler, 160 acres gated-pipe flood irrigation, 213 acres flood irrigated (147-acre pivot sprinkler possible), and 394 acres pasture. $1,170,000. THE WEST UNIT (HOMEPLACE) - APPROX. 499 ACRES 7 MILES WEST OF HARLEM: Includes approx. 250 acres under pivot – 2 sprinklers, 130 ac. flood irrigation, 115 acres grass/pasture along the Milk River, with home & shop & barn/corrals. $1,080,000. For details, call Fort Benton Realty LLP /Mark Pyrak, Broker 406-788-9280 or Shane Ophus, Broker 406-788-6662 IRRIGATED HAY FARM: 208 acres located 5 miles E of Harlem, MT. 153 acres of flood irrigated hay, very nice 5-bdrm home, 30’x60’ heated shop, storage shed/ tack room, corrals, and some farm equipment. Good Pheasant hunting area. $571,000. Call Shane Ophus, Broker for details at 406-788-6662. 30-3/#4
