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August 31, 2018 CapitalPress.com 5 USDA predicts record hazelnut crop Forecast calls for 52,000 tons (Thousands of tons) 45 38.5 Capital Press Capital Press File This year’s hazelnut crop will set a record, according to the latest USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service forecast. Sources: USDA NASS years, Nagely said, and rose from 66,980 acres in 2017. “I think interest has (been) piqued,” Nagely said. “We have a high-quality product, and there’s just a huge poten- tial.” Tom Klevay, CEO of Wil- lamette Hazelnut Growers in Newberg, said he antici- pates greater harvests for the foreseeable future as growers continue gravitating toward hazelnuts, and new plantings reach maturity in the coming years. na and lower prices offered by Turkey have combined to heighten trade anxiety. In Turkey, the world’s pre- dominant hazelnut producer, the lira has dropped about 60 percent compared to the dollar so far this year, which could depress global hazelnut prices. Meanwhile, China slapped a 15 percent tariff hike on U.S. hazelnuts in April following the Trump administration’s in- creased tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum. While the prospect of sell- Capital Press “Hazelnuts, you don’t have to plant them every year,” Klevay said. “In the eyes of the grower, it’s a crop that represents a good oppor- tunity, so that’s where they’re placing their bets.” Oregon is responsible for growing nearly all U.S. ha- zelnuts, but accounts for less than 4 percent of the world’s supply. Nagely said industry leaders are working hard to develop new markets, both domestically and overseas, though higher tariffs in Chi- Dan Wheat/Capital Press Luciano Garcia eyes his next tree while picking Gala apples at Griggs Orchards, Orondo, Wash., on Aug. 21. The U.S. apple crop is forecast to be 6 percent lighter than last season’s crop, which should help sales. Yakima. But he said he thinks the Washington fresh crop is understated and will be closer to the five-year average. But the larger factor point- ing to a great season is superi- or quality compared with the last two seasons, he said. “I’ve said it before, the cherry crop is often the indi- cator of the apple crop and we had outstanding cherry qual- ity this season,” Zeutenhorst said. “Now we have outstand- ing apple quality and that will drive sales and consumer de- mand more than anything.” U.S. apple growers export about $1 billion worth of ap- ples annually, roughly one- third of the country’s crop, which predominately comes from Washington state. The Northwest Horticul- tural Council, in Yakima, is estimating a $129 million loss in exports to Mexico, In- dia and China for the coming year-long sales season. Retaliatory tariffs from top markets against Trump admin- istration tariffs jeopardizes valuable trading relationships, said Boyer, a Pennsylvania grower who recently turned over the one-year board chair- manship to Kaari Stannard, a New York grower. Washington’s total fresh and processing apple forecast is 155 million boxes, down 13 percent from last season. New York is even at 31 mil- lion boxes. Michigan is up 40 percent at 28 million. Penn- sylvania is down 5 percent at 12 million. The next tier in millions of boxes: California, 6.2, up 16 percent; Virginia, 5.1, down 4 percent; Oregon 3.7, down 12 percent; North Carolina, 2.3, down 3 percent; West Vir- ginia, 2.5, up 3 percent; and Idaho, 1.3, up 14 percent; and Ohio, 1.2, up 10 percent. Eugene Livestock Auction gets new owners The Eugene Livestock Auction in Junction City, Ore., narrowly escaped dem- olition and now has new own- ers intent on keeping the busi- ness operating. After 23 years of running the auction, former owner Bruce Anderson wanted to sell the business, but the first three prospective buyers who approached him about the auction yard wanted to con- vert it to another use, he said. Anderson said his wife, Kate, who helped run the business, balked at the pros- pect of shutting it down, so they were both relieved when an employee, Leon Birky, of- fered to buy the company. Birky and his wife, Chloe, closed on the sale in mid-Au- 32 31 Up 62.5% from 2017 By DAN WHEAT Capital Press 36 28 Growers worried about tariffs By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI 35.5 44 32 Smaller U.S. apple crop forecast The 2018 U.S. apple crop is estimated at 256 million, 42-pound boxes and market- ers who have to sell that crop are worried about tariffs hurt- ing sales to Mexico, India and China. “The White House has taken actions to restrict trade with Mexico, India and Chi- na, which are our first, second and sixth largest export mar- kets,” Mark Boyer, chairman of the U.S. Apple Association, said at the group’s annual crop outlook conference in Chica- go, Aug. 24. “That has us all unsettled as we kick off the new har- vest,” he said, adding that it’s important growers remain united in lobbying, particular- ly on the trade front. The crop estimate is down 6 percent from last season and down 2 percent from the five- year average. It’s also down 6 percent from the USDA fore- cast for this season. A slightly smaller crop means it will be easier to sell, said Chuck Zeutenhorst, gen- eral manager of First Fruits Marketing of Washington, in 52* 47 By GEORGE PLAVEN Oregon hazelnut grow- ers can expect a record-high crop in 2018, according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The latest production forecast issued Aug. 21 calls for 52,000 tons of hazelnuts, surpassing last year’s total of 32,000 tons and the previous record of 49,500 tons set in 2001. Meredith Nagely, manager of the Hazelnut Industry Of- fice in Aurora, Ore., said the report comes as little surprise. Hazelnuts tend to be alternate bearing, meaning low yields one year are usually followed by higher yields the next. Overall hazelnut acreage is also on the rise, with 72,353 acres of orchards across the state — including 40,000 acres of mature, nut-bearing trees. Total acreage has more than doubled in the last 10 are opportunities for us going forward.” Nagely said the recent de- velopments in China and Tur- key have brought the Oregon hazelnut industry to the fore- front, and that is not necessar- ily a bad thing. “Our hazelnuts have been in a lot of discussions recent- ly,” she said. “It’s an oppor- tunity for us to make some things happen.” While hazelnut yields may experience record highs, the same USDA forecast not- ed a record low average nut size. Nagely said the hot, dry weather may at least be par- tially to blame. The Willamette Valley, where most hazelnuts are grown, has received just 85 percent of its normal precip- itation for the current water year, and the entire region is now listed in severe to ex- treme drought. The weather may also push the beginning of harvest season up to mid-September, Nagely said. It is expected to run through October, possibly into early November. Oregon hazelnut production gust. The price was not dis- closed, but county records show the 4-acre property worth more than $1.1 million in market value. “They actually did the in- dustry a favor,” said Ander- son. “When they heard it was going to be knocked down, they wanted to keep it going.” Only eight livestock auc- tion yards remain in Oregon after many closed due to the high cost of compliance with confined animal feeding oper- ation regulations, said Jerome Rosa, executive director of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Asso- ciation. Livestock auctions must obtain a CAFO permit despite only having animals at the fa- cility once a week, and they often don’t qualify for grants, Rosa said. Smaller livestock produc- ers tend to rely on auctions to sell their cattle, which makes having a nearby option im- portant because it’s tough for them to drive for hours to a more distant location, he said. Leon Birky, the new own- er, said he saw the auction yard as a good investment because it’s a strong local market for feeder cattle, sheep and goats. “I’ve been around cat- tle and livestock most of my life,” said Birky. Birky said the auction yard will continue to be run with honesty and integrity to keep people coming back. 2008 ’10 ’12 * Forecast ’14 ’16 2018 Alan Kenaga/Capital Press ing more hazelnuts may not seem appealing at first glance, Klevay said a larger — and more predictable — supply of Oregon-grown hazelnuts may actually increase demand, opening new avenues to sell the crop. “We feel that as the sup- ply gets larger, the demand will follow, similar to what’s happened with pistachios and almonds,” Klevay said. “Our crop is known to be very high quality, and those markets that are looking for quality U.S. cranberry growers still face Mexican tariffs NAFTA deal doesn’t resolve retaliation By DON JENKINS Capital Press The U.S.-Mexican pre- liminary trade agreement won’t erase the 20 percent retaliatory tariff Mexico put on dried cranberries in June, the director of an association of U.S. cranberry handlers said Tuesday. The tariff responded to U.S. tariffs on steel and alu- minum, which remain in place. The deal announced Monday reworked the North American Free Trade Agree- ment, which imposed no tar- iffs on cranberries. “The information we re- ceived yesterday was that the agreement (with Mexico) did not address the steel and alu- minum issue, and our under- standing is the tariff would remain the same,” said Terry Humfeld, executive director of the Massachusetts-based Cranberry Institute. U.S. cranberries are fre- quently targeted for retalia- tory tariffs. China, Canada and the European Union also have imposed new duties since June. The retaliation strikes at a major crop in House Speaker Paul Ryan’s home state of Wisconsin. The U.S. exports about $300 million worth of cran- berries and cranberry prod- ucts a year. Roughly $30 million of that is in the form of dried cranberries bound for Mexico. The tariffs come as the cranberry industry is trying to reduce a price-de- pressing surplus. The U.S. Census Bureau has yet to release export figures for July, the first full month that retaliatory duties were in place. Humfeld said it’s too early to judge the damage to the industry. “We believe there is an impact, but don’t have any numbers to back that up, and Don Jenkins/Capital Press File The new trade deal between the U.S. and Mexico won’t help U.S. cranberry growers, the industry says. “You have to do the biggest crop you can. I don’t know how it’s going to sort out.” Malcolm McPhail Cranberry farmer from Long Beach, Washington probably won’t for a few months,” he said. The European Union, the largest overseas market, im- posed a 25 percent tariff on cranberry concentrate and held out the possibility that the tariff eventually will ap- ply to dried cranberries. Can- ada put a 10 percent tariff on juice. China increased a tar- iff on dried cranberries to 40 percent from 15 percent. Bumper crops and flat demand have led to a large surplus. The USDA ordered handlers to divert 15 percent of the 2017 crop from the marketplace to reduce the surplus. The order, howev- er, didn’t apply to about 35 percent of the crop because handlers who took in fewer than 125,000 barrels were exempted, according to fig- ures from the Cranberry Marketing Committee. Each barrel equals 100 pounds. The committee calculat- ed that the USDA mandate, granted at the industry’s re- quest, diverted 792 barrels, or about 9 percent of the har- vest. The USDA had yet to make a final decision on whether to order a portion of the 2018 crop be divert- ed. The USDA proposed a 25 percent diversion, with small handlers again being exempted. The USDA this month forecast that cranberry grow- ers will rebound from a subpar 2017 harvest — not particularly good news for the industry. The USDA pre- dicts the crop in the five top cranberry producing states, which include Oregon and Washington, will be up 3 percent to 8.6 million bar- rels. Long Beach, Wash., farmer Malcolm McPhail said he’s continued to grow as many cranberries as he can. “I just do everything the way I always have. That’s the best philosophy,” he said. “You have to do the biggest crop you can. I don’t know how it’s going to sort out.” Wine & Brew TASTING EVENT SATURDAY Sept. 22, 2018 12 NOON - 5PM POWERLAND HERITAGE PARK Brooks, OR Tasting in 11 Heritage Museums ELLIS EQUIPMENT 800-949-2336 31-5-3/102 .COM MFG OF BRUSH MULCHERS | STUMP GRINDERS | DRAINAGE PLOWS BOOM MOWERS | PTO GENERATORS | AUGER BITS & DRIVES TRENCHERS | TREE SPADES | TREE SAWS | LIMB SHEARS AND MORE www.PowerlandHeritagePark.com Buy Tickets Online at PowerlandHeritagePark.com & Powerland Museums 35-1/106 $40 for Two $20 for Singles
