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CapitalPress.com
Friday, February 26, 2021
Water infrastructure discussed at Family Farm Alliance conference
When it comes to criti-
cal water infrastructure in
the West, U.S. Sen. Michael
Bennet says it is about more
than dams, pipes and canals.
Water security begins
in the forest, along streams
and rivers that flow through
farms and communities,
Bennet, D-Colo., said during
the Family Farm Alliance
annual conference.
“As a country, we have
to treat America’s landscape
as essential infrastructure,”
Bennet said. “Our forests
are as essential to the west-
ern economy as the Lincoln
Tunnel or George Washing-
ton Bridge is to New York.”
Bennet, who has served
11 years on the Senate Agri-
culture Committee, recently
introduced legislation that
would establish a $60 billion
outdoor restoration fund,
supporting active forest
management and watershed
restoration projects at a time
when climate change is con-
tributing to more extreme
weather and large wildfires.
Broadly speaking, infra-
structure should be a top
priority for members of the
new Congress, Bennet said.
Once they pass the latest
round of COVID-19 relief,
Bennet said he expects they
will pivot quickly to a com-
prehensive bill addressing
the country’s aging roads,
highways and bridges.
Century-old water infra-
structure must be part of that
package, Bennet said. His
bill, the Outdoor Restoration
Force Act, would also spur
federal investment in west-
U.S. potato exports show
signs of improvement
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
U.S. potato exports con-
tinue to recover but remain
below year-earlier levels as
COVID-19 impacts persist.
Potatoes USA said
exports increased between
the marketing year’s first
and second quarters. The
marketing year began July
1.
Demand started com-
ing off its spring and sum-
mer lows in October, and by
December was decreasing
at a much lower rate, Chief
Marketing Officer John
Toaspern said.
July-December
2019
exports set record highs.
“Those markets like
Korea, Taiwan and even
Japan that have done a good
job in controlling the pan-
demic and in minimizing
economic impact have done
quite well,” he said.
Exports remain lower in
markets such as the Philip-
pines, where pandemic con-
trol has been less success-
ful and strong restrictions
remain.
Idaho Potato Commis-
sion International Market-
ing Director Ross Johnson
sees generally good vol-
umes, depending on the
destination.
“In Mexico, things are
going extremely well on
the fresh side and also are
doing well on the dehy-
drated side,” he said. Idaho
potato exports are trend-
ing about 3% ahead of
year-earlier levels in fresh
and about 1% ahead in
dehydrated volume.
In Asia, “we are strug-
gling in all ports,” Johnson
said. Containers have been
difficult to book and later
to arrive as ports carry out
COVID-19 restrictions that
contribute to the backlog.
Toaspern said demand
has been low in Europe,
particularly for frozen
potatoes, “so now that glut
of product we see moving
throughout the world at
very low prices is an addi-
tional factor. That is going
to be a continuing drag on
exports even as many of
George Plaven/Capital Press File
Efforts in Congress would fund maintenance work on
the nation’s water infrastructure.
ern lands and create more
than 2 million jobs.
While Bennet acknowl-
edged $60 billion is a large
price tag, he insisted the
money would be better spent
upfront rather than fighting
fires on the back end.
“This is about the federal
government taking respon-
sibility for these national
assets, which are the national
forests,” he said. “These for-
ests are our water infrastruc-
ture really as much as any
physical infrastructure.”
Addressing infrastructure
was identified as a top pri-
ority for the nonprofit Fam-
ily Farm Alliance, based in
Klamath Falls, Ore., in 2021.
The organization held its
two-day virtual conference
Feb. 18-19, featuring panel
discussions with both legis-
lators and top officials of the
Bureau of Reclamation.
Reclamation Commis-
sioner Brenda Burman said
there are few communities
in the West that aren’t deal-
ing with aging infrastruc-
ture that poses environmen-
tal and water supply threats.
“There have been fixes
through Congress. We know
we are going to need more,”
she said.
Just before the end of
2020, Congress did pass a
suite of water-related bills
as part of a federal omni-
bus spending package. One
of those, the Water Supply
Infrastructure Rehabilita-
tion and Utilization Act, pre-
viously introduced by Rep.
Dan Newhouse, R-Wash.,
and Sen. Martha McSally,
R-Ariz., creates an “Aging
Infrastructure
Account”
for maintenance work on
bureau projects.
Newhouse and Rep. Jim
Costa, D-Calif., told the
organization that, while the
account still needs fund-
ing, it was an important first
step in prioritizing water
infrastructure.
“This was a huge win, I
think, for our communities,”
Newhouse said. “We’ve
got to continue with that
momentum.”
A roundtable discussion
with regional leaders for
the Bureau of Reclamation
underscored the importance
of ensuring water infrastruc-
ture remains modern, dura-
ble and efficient.
The future of wine: changing
consumers, new technologies
By SIERRA DAWN McCLAIN
Capital Press
U.S. Potato Board
A load of U.S. potatoes
is unloaded in Guatema-
la. U.S. potato exports
are regaining ground in
some countries.
these markets continue to
increase demand.”
He said Thailand and
Vietnam are among the
countries impacted by
reduced international travel
and tourism, another fac-
tor in demand for potatoes
at U.S. restaurant chains’
international sites.
Potatoes USA reported
frozen-product
exports
dropped by 17% for
July-December from a year
earlier but lost less ground
late in the period. Exports
to the Philippines and China
fell, though China improved
in December.
A strong December also
trimmed Central America’s
declines. Other July-De-
cember results included
moderate declines in Tai-
wan and Japan, a small
gain in South Korea and an
increase in Mexico, aided
by a strong December and
earlier removal of retalia-
tory tariffs.
U.S. exports of dehy-
drated potato products
fell 4% in July-Decem-
ber, including a 7% drop in
December, Potatoes USA
said
U.S. supply issues
played a major role. Exports
to China and the Philippines
dropped while exports to
South Korea, Japan, Can-
ada and Mexico increased.
Canada is the largest mar-
ket for dehydrated products,
followed by Mexico.
Ed Senz 503-580-8950
ed@baileyseed.com
The wine industry is
headed toward more digita-
lization, technology use and
new markets.
At the virtual Oregon
Wine Symposium this week,
several speakers talked
about how the wine indus-
try’s future may look differ-
ent than its past, with con-
sumer preferences changing,
new technologies available
and more shoppers eager to
buy online.
“Things have changed
forever, and COVID was the
great accelerator,” said Steve
Brown, a business consul-
tant and technologist who
calls himself a “futurist.”
Brown was the keynote
speaker during Tuesday’s
main virtual session.
What consumers want
Brown said consumers
— especially young con-
sumers — are making sev-
eral major shifts in their pur-
chasing behaviors compared
to previous generations.
More shoppers, Brown
said, are becoming “con-
scious consumers,” eager
to know their wine was
produced in a sustainable
way and that workers were
treated well.
Shoppers today also
crave less mystery and more
transparency.
Even in the traditionally
sophisticated wine sector,
Brown said consumer polls
and purchasing data show
people, especially younger
drinkers, want more inclu-
sivity and access as opposed
to wine’s traditionally exclu-
sive nature.
Sierra Dawn McClain/Capital Press File
Chardonnay grapes at Hyland Estates in Dundee, Ore.
Brown
said
winer-
ies should think about
changing their “snobby”
image, which he dubbed
“de-snobification.”
Consumers, he said, are
now also looking for more
personalization, online buy-
ing options, experience-fo-
cused purchases, innova-
tions and more convenience.
Futuristic technology
The other major change
in the wine sector, Brown
said, is that it’s headed in
a more technological direc-
tion, in the supermarket,
winery and vineyard.
On the marketing side,
Brown cited digital ser-
vices like Wine4.Me, an
interactive tool which rec-
ommends wines to buyers
based on their answers to
questions like how much
spice, sweetness, body and
oak flavor they like in their
wine.
An even more entry-
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Washington wheat grow-
ers will be monitoring their
crops closely following a
mid-February cold snap
that brought low tempera-
tures, wind and snow to
the eastern portion of the
state.
Some winter dam-
age is possible, said Glen
Squires, CEO of the Wash-
ington Grain Commission.
“I think we’re fortunate
that for the most part this
snow cover started coming
about the right time to give
some protection,” Squires
said.
Capital Press File
Low temperatures, snow and wind have wheat farmers
keeping a close eye on their crops in Eastern Washington.
“It was a pretty mild
winter, really, until we got
that cold snap from the
arctic (air mass) that came
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level digital tool for rookie
wine drinkers is called Tas-
try, which asks shoppers
simple questions such as,
“How do you feel about the
smell of flowers?” Based
on the consumer’s answers,
the tool recommends wines
that could suit the person’s
palate, providing a digital
sommelier-like experience.
Brown said wineries
should think about how
they can label their bottles,
potentially using labels that
signal a particular wine’s
characteristics.
In the winery, some
vineyards are turning to
computational blending,
a type of Artificial Intel-
ligence system that helps
winemakers create blends
that meet specific needs
or appeal to particular
demographics.
Some conference attend-
ees seemed enthusiastic in
their comments: “This is
amazing!”
Others
appeared
skeptical.
“Would small, hands-on
wineries really use this
kind of computation blend-
ing?” wrote Lindsay Neil-
son, a wine scholar, in the
virtual chat.
In the vineyard, Brown
said, there’s room for tech-
nological innovation, too.
Precision
agricul-
ture is making its way
into wine grape growing.
In higher-end vineyards,
fruit-picking robots are
beginning to emerge. Some
vineyards are using ultra-
violet light treatments and
other technologies to com-
bat powdery mildew, a fun-
gal disease. Some grow-
ers are even using Burro
“cobots,” a type of robot that
collaborates with humans, to
carry heavy buckets.
“The world is changing,”
said Brown, the consultant.
“You need to innovate to
remain competitive.”
Farmers watch wheat crop after cold snap, wind
2021
www.roguefarmcorps.org/changinghands/workshops
S225400-1
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
down,” said Steven Van
Horn, a meteorologist at
the National Weather Ser-
vice in Spokane.
Temperatures
dipped
across the region Feb.
11-13. A low of 9 degrees
Fahrenheit was recorded
Feb. 12 at Spokane Inter-
national Airport.
Snow arrived Feb. 14,
resulting in roughly 5
inches in a three-day span.
The snow will pro-
vide some needed mois-
ture, Squires said. He’d
heard concerns from the
commission board and the
Washington Association
of Wheat Growers leader-
ship prior to the change in
weather.
“People weren’t freak-
ing out but we did have
a little less moisture,” he
said. “This snow is help-
ful because it also brings
moisture.”
The combination of
cold and wind caused
some concern about crop
damage, Squires said.
“Obviously (we’ll have
to) wait for some time to
see if there was some dam-
age,” he said.
In
January,
winds
reached 70 mph, Van Horn
said.
More snow fell the eve-
ning of Feb. 18, 1 to 2
inches around Spokane and
more to the southeast, Van
Horn said. Roughly half an
inch to 1 inch fell Feb. 19.
Temperatures rose into
the 40s over the weekend
and into the week of Feb.
22.
Van Horn also expected
wind gusts of 35 to 40 mph.
“The snow that we have
is going to melt — whether
we melt all of it, I’m not
quite sure,” he said. “But
we will melt quite a bit of
it, because it’s going to be
quite windy.”
The wind won’t cause
“a whole lot of damage,”
he said.
March predictions favor
below-normal
tempera-
tures and normal precipi-
tation. More snow is possi-
ble, but won’t likely stick
around, Van Horn said.