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CapitalPress.com
July 27, 2018
Christmas tree growers narrowly approve checkoff
Another referendum
planned next year
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
Christmas tree farmers
have narrowly approved a na-
tional checkoff program that
raises about $1.8 million a
year to promote and research
the crop.
Though 51 percent of
growers voted in favor of
continuing the Christmas Tree
Promotion Board during a re-
cent referendum, the program
continues to face uncertainty.
Another referendum would
normally be required in seven
years, but the USDA — which
oversees the research and
promotion checkoff — has
announced that growers will
again vote on its continuation
in about one year.
The agency hasn’t speci-
fied why another vote will oc-
cur so soon, but a referendum
may be held at the request of
the secretary of the USDA,
the Christmas Tree Promotion
Board or by more than 10 per-
cent of eligible farmers.
Roughly 1,500 Christmas
tree growers across the U.S.
who sell more than 500 trees a
year and pay 15 cents per tree
to fund the program are eligi-
ble to vote in the referendum.
“I’m pleased we’re going
to be able to go forward,” said
Betty Malone, a farmer near
Philomath, Ore., who spear-
headed the effort to start a
checkoff for Christmas trees.
Even so, Malone said she’s
surprised by the narrow mar-
gin of victory, since an inter-
Capital Press File
Harvest time at Greg Hunter Christmas Tree Farm near Tenino,
Wash. Though 51 percent of growers voted in favor of continuing
the Christmas Tree Promotion Board during a recent referendum,
the program continues to face uncertainty.
nal “head count” of growers
had indicated stronger sup-
port.
Holding another referen-
dum in a year will create un-
certainty at a time when the
checkoff program needs to be
making long-term decisions
about research and promo-
tions, she said.
“It’s absolutely crucial for
our industry to do that kind of
planning,” Malone said.
Frans Kok, a Virginia
farmer who organized oppo-
sition to the checkoff, said he
was disappointed by the result
because he’d been cautiously
optimistic growers had voted
against continuing the pro-
gram.
It’s likely USDA decided
to hold another referendum
next year because the vote
was so close, he said.
“It gives us a chance,” Kok
said. “A swing of 15 votes
shouldn’t be so hard but we
will get significant opposition
working against us as well.”
Kok said he must discuss
the situation with other growers
who funded “Farmers Against
Christmas Tree Taxation” to
see if they’re willing to orches-
trate a similar campaign in the
future.
Many growers oppose the
checkoff both because they
feel it’s ineffective — consum-
ers aren’t likely to grow more
aware of Christmas trees —
and because they feel the pro-
gram was foist upon them, he
said.
The checkoff program was
first allowed to operate for
three seasons before a ref-
erendum was held, partly so
organizers could compile a
list of eligible farmers. Oppo-
nents, however, discount that
rationale.
“Given the vote, you can
see it’s extremely controver-
sial,” Kok said.
Cherries doing better than last July
By DAN WHEAT
Capital Press
Jayson Korthius/Whatcom Family Farmers
Red raspberries are harvested in Whatcom County, Wash. The
Washington Red Raspberry Commission reports that imported red
raspberries are undermining U.S. growers.
Dan Wheat/Capital Press
Jose Lopez picks Orondo Ruby cherries at Griggs Orchard near Orondo, Wash., on June 19.
Prices and movement were strong in June and doing better this July than last.
$127 million. It was 13 per-
cent of the crop.
Fewer cherries going to
China puts some downward
pressure on prices but it’s be-
ing offset by great quality,
increased repeat sales and a
smaller crop, Peebles said.
“This July’s prices are im-
proved over last July’s. On a
20-pound box, it’s in the $30
to $35 range, domestic and ex-
port,” he said.
A cherry glut last July
caused prices to tumble.
As of July 23, the industry
had shipped more than 20 mil-
lion boxes of cherries domes-
tically and overseas, said Tom
Riggan, Chelan Fresh Market-
ing general manager.
Thurlby said he thinks the
crop will finish at over 24 mil-
lion boxes, somewhere higher
than the last estimate of 23.2
million. Last year’s crop was a
record 26.4 million boxes.
As of July 17, the industry
marked 30 days of shipping
more than 500,000 boxes
per day. Now it’s at 400,000
per day and will be closer
to 300,000 by the end of the
week, he said.
Other than China, export
demand has been outstanding
with plenty of large, 9-row
cherries heading to more than
40 markets worldwide, Thurl-
by said. Exports have made
up 35 percent of shipments,
he said.
“The U.S. grocery retail
industry is perhaps one of the
most competitive in the world.
Produce is key in summer.
So when a group of just over
2,000 growers in one corner of
the country can say their fruit
is on ad in more stores than
any other for the third week in
a row, then that’s really saying
something,” Thurlby said.
Growers have enjoyed
good weather with virtually no
crop-ruining rains nor exces-
sive heat.
“Quality remains outstand-
ing. Lots of size and sugar,” he
said.
Harvest will go to mid-Au-
gust or maybe later in higher
elevations, Thurlby said.
Researchers continue to combat growing ventenata threat
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Ventenata is a strange
grass, Tim Prather says.
The University of Idaho
plant science professor said he
has been “frustrated” by the
weed for years.
“It’s shallowly rooted, you
only find it in the top 3 inches
of soil, it’s mostly stem, there’s
not very many leaves, it’s not
LEGAL
PURSUANT TO ORS
CHAPTER 87
Notice is hereby given that the
following vehicle will be sold, for cash
to the highest bidder, on 8/2/2018. The
sale will be held at 10:00am by
AUTO TEAM CAR CARE CENTER LLC
2305 MCGILCHRIST ST SE, SALEM OR
2014 DODGE CARAVAN VAN
VIN = 2C4RDGBG9ER162267
Amount due on lien $6,256.96
Reputed owner(s):
FERY ASSOCIATES LLC/ GOLD STAR
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very tall,” he said. “In terms of
being in a grass crop, it’s go-
ing to be shorter than the crop.
And yet, we’re finding that it’s
able to take over in long-lived
grasses. ... We know there’s
no way this small plant would
out compete a larger perennial
grass.”
However, it’s possible ven-
tenata is a carrier for one or
more fungi that cause diseases
in other grasses, he said.
Prather said the number
of acres ventenata is infesting
continues to grow. It occurs
throughout northern Idaho
and Eastern Washington, and
beyond.
It’s a problem in pasture,
rangeland and grass hays, par-
ticularly timothy hay. It can
cut the life and production of a
timothy hay stand in half, and
hay with ventenata cannot be
exported.
“You’re left with a
low-quality, domestic hay
which might be $50 to $60
per ton, and you’re only get-
ting half the production you
should, instead of double the
production $250 to $260 per
ton,” Prather said.
Ventenata costs $22 mil-
lion each year in forage dam-
age, he estimated.
Cattle don’t like to eat hay
with ventenata, but will eat
pelletized hay that contains
ventenata, he said.
UI has looked for herbi-
cides effective in removing
a grass from a grass, Prather
said.
“There are more limited
options,” Prather said. “We
want to keep the crop as com-
petitive and healthy as possi-
ble, so it’s not susceptible to
injury by the herbicide.”
UI is looking at other man-
agement options, including
proper fertilization and soil
nutrients, raising the cutter-bar
height for timothy hay to 4
inches to help stem develop-
ment and not grazing in the
fall.
Ventenata is not yet listed
as a noxious weed. Commodi-
ty groups may petition the Ida-
ho Department of Agriculture
to get it listed, Prather said.
Tools are available for
pasture and rangeland. Prath-
er believes progress is being
made, but the weed continues
to spread.
He recommends farmers
keep an eye on county roads
and corridors, places where
ventenata likes to move in, for
early detection and preven-
tion.
“It has not reached every-
where it could in Idaho,” he
said. “It would be nice to stop
it from continuing to expand
and try to limit its distribu-
tion.”
Red raspberry imports
weigh on U.S. harvest
No case for trade
complaint
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
A spring surge in imported
red raspberries has soured the
economics of the summer har-
vest, according to Washington
growers.
Woodland farmer George
Thoeny said he sells fresh
raspberries at a profit at farm-
ers’ markets and a roadside
stand, but that he may lose
money on fruit he sells for
processing.
“The price has been a di-
saster, an all-time low,” he
said. “The imports have just
killed this industry.”
Farmers in the three red
raspberry-growing states —
Washington, California and
Oregon — compete against an
increasing volume of foreign
fruit. The main competitor,
Mexico, more than doubled
exports to the U.S. between
2014 and 2017, according
to the USDA Economic Re-
search Service.
So far this year, imports
from Serbia and Chile have
also significantly increased.
In April and May alone, 15.5
million pounds of frozen red
raspberries came into the
U.S. compared to 7.9 million
pounds the year before.
The size and timing of the
influx left Washington grow-
ers in some cases without
buyers, particularly for ber-
ries that were to be sold for
juice, Washington Red Rasp-
berry Commission Executive
Director Henry Bierlink said.
“That kind of sent the mes-
sage to everybody, they can
get product without paying
much for it,” he said.
The raspberry commission
suspects growers are being
undercut by foreign fruit be-
ing dumped on the U.S. mar-
ket at below the cost of pro-
duction. Gathering evidence
LEGAL
CHERRY AVENUE
STORAGE
2680 Cherry Ave. NE
Salem, OR 97301
(503) 399-7454
AUCTION
SAT., AUGUST 4, 2018
• 10 A.M.
Unit AS-11 Anthony Ballentine
Unit AS-93 Alena Virgilio
Unit 75:
Lisa Gayman
Unit 103:
Brian Clem
Unit 124
Cynyhia Mendoza
Unit 149
Gene R. Boyd
Unit 156
Able Martinez
Unit 162
Erik Vincent
CherryAvenue Storage
reserves the right to
refuse any and all bids.
30-3/102
29-2-3/999
has been complicated by the
way imports are labeled and
reported, Bierlink said. The
commission retained a Wash-
ington, D.C., law firm last year
to investigate whether it had a
case.
“We asked, and they said,
‘You don’t have much of one.
You need better data,’” Bier-
link said.
The state commission led
successful challenges to Cana-
dian trade practices in the mid-
1980s and Chilean trade prac-
tices in the early 2000s. Even
with better data, pursuing a
new claim would be harder
now, Bierlink said.
California has become a
major red raspberry state, and
many producers there also
grow berries in Mexico. “They
would have limited interest in
suing themselves,” Bierlink
said.
Another hurdle would be
money. Bierlink estimates
pursing a claim would cost $1
million to $2 million. Congress
in 2005 repealed the Byrd
Amendment, which awarded
payments to U.S. companies
that filed successful trade com-
plaints. The World Trade Or-
ganization had ruled the prac-
tice illegal.
Unlike many sectors of the
farm economy, trade does not
benefit red raspberry grow-
ers, said Lynden farmer Jon
Maberry, the raspberry com-
mission chairman.
“We understand we don’t
have the same position as
some of the other ag commod-
ities,” he said. “We would be
happy if we could supply the
U.S.”
Low-cost Mexican red
raspberries that end up as an
ingredient in juice or other
products pose the biggest long-
term threat to the U.S. indus-
try, he said.
The raspberry commission
is talking to policymakers
about labeling laws to inform
consumers that they are buy-
ing U.S. berries, Maberry said.
“We don’t want a bail out,
we just want things to be fair,”
he said. “We think it’s in the
best interest of consumers to
have the U.S. growing its own
food.”
LEGAL
PURSUANT TO ORS
CHAPTER 87
Notice is hereby given that the following
vehicle will be sold, for cash to the
highest bidder, on 8/3/2018. The sale will
be held at 10:00am by
COPART OF WASHINGTON INC
2885 NATIONAL WAY WOODBURN, OR
2014 KW TRK
VIN = 1XKAD49X8EJ400295
Amount due on lien $1,695.00
Reputed owner(s)
JOEGESHWAR SINGH
HITACHI CPTL AMERICA CORP ELT
SPRINT CARRIERS INC
29-2-3/999
YAKIMA, Wash. — De-
spite sales to China dropping
dramatically due to a 50 per-
cent tariff, Washington whole-
sale cherry prices are “slightly
above last year (in July) in
most export markets and do-
mestically,” says a top export
manager.
“The wholesale price to
China is much higher driv-
en by great fruit and taxation
of the increased tariffs,” said
Bryan Peebles, export market-
ing manager of Chelan Fresh
Marketing, in Chelan, one of
the largest cherry marketers in
the state.
Tariffs rising to 50 percent
on July 6, in retaliation for
the Trump administration tar-
iffs on Chinese goods, have
slowed shipment to China
“significantly in July com-
pared to last year,” Peebles
said.
B.J. Thurlby, president of
Northwest Cherry Growers,
in Yakima, previously report-
ed 341,499, 20-pound boxes
of Northwest cherries sold to
China as of June 26 compared
to 249,432 at the same point a
year ago. More recently, ship-
ments to China are “down sig-
nificantly,” he said, adding he
did not have specific numbers
compiled.
The Pacific Northwest
shipped 3.2 million, 20-pound
boxes of cherries to China in
2017, valued at approximately