KAREN DAVIDSON

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario –More than three-quarters ofOntario’s 10,000 tender fruitacres will be mapped this springwith a Fruit Tracker managementprogram. From spray tracking toinventory control to CanadaGAPreport filing, this timesaving man-agement software is widelyaccepted yet is still a work inprogress.

“This is the most robust program in Canada,” states PhilTregunno, chair, Ontario TenderFruit Producers’ Marketing Board(OTFPMB). With 700 acres ofhis own peaches and nectarineson the Fruit Tracker program, heshows the speed of accessingeach block of trees from his homeoffice computer. This month,he’ll have his crop scouts identifying pests in specificblocks and then emailing the datain real time using a smartphone.

The seeds of the current project were sown in the AppleTracker and Grape Tracker programs, both of which startedas a recording tool for spraying.About eight years ago, applegrowers in Durham-Northumberland counties spottedthe electronic records of compet-ing growers in New York State.A number of apple and grapegrowers volunteered to test drivean Ontario-made program in com-puter labs, sensing a practical

solution based on evolving computer technology.

“The turning point for FruitTracker was when it became web-based,” recalls MargaretAppleby, OMAF and MRA IPMspecialist, who has consultedclosely with the growers since2005. “A web-based programalso solved compatibility issuesfor different computers.”

The program has evolved farbeyond spray regimes. By addingfertilizer, harvest and other eventdata into the system, growers cantrack crop protection usage, pre-harvest intervals, re-entryintervals and generate reports ontheir orchards on a block basis.With this sophisticated insight,growers can better manage foodand worker safety, pest management and production.

“As we began applying FruitTracker to recording tender fruitand apple orchards, we enlistedthe help of a few keen, enthusias-tic growers,” says LarissaOsborne, OTFPMB marketingand production analyst. That

focus group added much value tothe evolution of the program.

“Generating CanadaGAPreports in the required format isgreat,” the group said, “butwouldn’t it be even better if at thesame time we could track howmuch spray we used and howmuch it cost us to spray byorchard or by block.” That’s howthe chemical inventory modulewas born. Growers input theircurrent inventory, record purchas-es and the program tracks what isin their spray shed by deductingquantities from inventories eachtime a spray event is recorded.

Appleby agrees that the pesticide application features area key benefit. Each chemical islinked to the label. The program’sdropdown box shows existingtreatments from OMAF’s publication 360, showing thename, formulation, rates and target pest. Growers are thenprompted to answer the when,why, where and what for eachspray event. With this informa-tion recorded, the Fruit Tracker

program will then email alertswhen re-entry intervals havepassed or when it is safe to harvest.

More functionality will be pro-grammed in the future includingthe ability to produce cost of production reports by block, tointegrate weather data and toinput packing and shippingevents. “We are excited to seethe iPad scouting app being

developed too,” says Appleby. To sign up for Fruit Tracker,

growers must agree toGeographical Information System(GIS) mapping of their orchards,best described as a mergerbetween cartography, statisticalanalysis and database technology.Agricorp, the government agencythat delivers risk managementprograms in Ontario, has part-nered on the project, sending fieldagents to enter orchard coordi-nates whether growers participatein programs or not.

“Agricorp’s Fruition programuploads details such as the specialshape mapping files, tree counts,tree ages and variety type andlinks them with the collection ofyield data,” explains DavidHughes, of Agricorp’s programmanagement and industry rela-tions department. Agricorpemployees are busy inputting thedata during and following visitsto each grower’s farm before theproduction season is in swing.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

MAY 2013 CELEBRATING 133 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION VOLUME 63 NUMBER 05

At this time of year, Phil Tregunno takes pride in walking his peach orchard which he expects to be in bloom in early May near Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. As chair of the Ontario Tender Fruit Producers’ Marketing Board, he’s an adopter and proponent of the Fruit Trackerprogram which provides comprehensive orchard management tools. More than 75 per cent of Ontario’s 10,000 acres are signed up. Photos by Denis Cahill.

TECHNOLOGY

Acreage mapping collects data in record time

INSIDECPMA highlights Page 6

Washwater results distilled Page 17

Focus: Containers B section

www.thegrower.org

P.M. 40012319

Fruit Tracker isthe most robust program in Canada.”

~ Phil Tregunno

“

$3.00 CDN

THE GROWER

NEWSMAKERSThe Canadian Produce Marketing Association (CPMA) honouredseveral people in the industry at the convention and trade show inToronto, Ontario. Congratulations to Adrian Huisman, long-timegeneral manager of the Ontario Tender Fruit Producers’ MarketingBoard, who won the Lifetime Achievement Award. Jane Proctor,vice-president of policy and issues management for CPMA won theCanadian Produce Person of the Year Award. Stephanie Larivierewon the Mary Fitzgerald Award.

Isobel Dopta has left the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre(VRIC) for the Alliance of Ontario Food Processors where she willbe director of communications and industry relations. For the lastfour years, she worked tirelessly to put VRIC on the map during itsstartup and expansion phase. In her new role, she’ll be working withexecutive director Steve Peters.

The Ontario Tender Fruit Producers’ Marketing Board for 2013 ischaired by Phil Tregunno, Niagara-on-the-Lake. Vice-chair is JohnThwaites. Directors include: Jim Juras, Jamie Warner, DavidHipple, Leo DeVries, Rusty Smith, Ken Porteous and DaveEnns.

Farm & Food Care have launched the “Dinner Starts Here” initia-tive in Ontario, identifying commodity-specific young farmers toblog and tweet about agriculture. Erin McLean, Lakefield will berepresenting fruits and vegetables while Stephanie Kowalski,Glencairn, will be representing potatoes. Brian Gilroy, an applegrower from Meaford, Ontario represents the fruit and vegetablesector on Farm & Food Care’s 2013 board of directors.

Okanagan Specialty Fruits has been named the winner of this year’sBIOTECanada Gold Leaf Award in the category of early stage agriculture. This category is for companies who have products inthe pre-commercialized stage and are recognized for their potentialmarket impact. This award reflects significant progress in bringingnonbrowning Arctic apples to market in the U.S. and Canada. NealCarter, president, accepted the award at the BIO international convention in Chicago on April 23.

Thomas A. Barlow is the new president and CEO of the CanadianFederation of Independent Grocers, effective June 2013. With abackground in the consumer packaged goods industry, he was mostrecently a senior vice-president for Coca-Cola Refreshments,responsible for the vending and wholesale business for NorthAmerica.

Brian Hugli, Hugli’s Blueberry Ranch is the new president of theOntario Farm Fresh Marketing Association. He operates inPembroke, Ontario.

Congrats to Carl Huffman who has been inducted into the EssexCounty Agricultural Hall of Fame. He managed Huffman Farms inHarrow, with his father Charles and son, Andrew, growing morethan 500 acres of vegetables and field crops, including processingand fresh potatoes.

The Ontario Institute of Agrologists recently recognized membersfor outstanding service. Tom Prout, P.Ag. and Barry Fraser,P.Ag. were presented with Distinguished Agrologist awards.Joseph Rider and Ernie Hardemann, MPP Oxford, were both recognized with Honourary Professional Agrologist titles for theirleadership. Rob Saik, P.Ag., representing the Agri-Trend Group ofCompanies, accepted the OIA Corporate Award of Excellence.Also presented were service pins to long-serving members including50-year pins to Peter Hannam and Bruce Jones.

Congratulations to Kim Cooper of Chatham-Kent, Ontario, whohas been named the 2013 recipient of the Farm & Food CareChampion Award. He’s the agriculture specialist officer withEconomic Development Services for the Municipality of Chatham-Kent. For the last 12 years, he has written a weekly“Food for Thought” column in local newspapers, shining a light onagricultural commodities, practices and innovations. He is a speakerand tweeter, familiar to many audiences in the area. The award honours individuals, organizations or businesses that are agriculturaladvocates.

Condolences to the family of Philip Somerville, 54, who passedsuddenly on April 3. Based in Ancaster, Ontario, he was well-known in the agribusiness community as MANA Canada’s easternbusiness manager and new product development manager. Theindustry has lost a talented advocate whose sincerity and warmthwill be deeply missed.

AT PRESS TIME…

PAGE 2 –– MAY 2013

Greenhouse veggiespromoted at home

Although 70 per cent of pro-duction is exported, the OntarioGreenhouse Vegetable Growers(OGVG) isn’t taking the domesticmarket for granted. An Ontario“spring launch” promotion is run-ning from April through mid-Mayto highlight product availability,freshness and quality. The pro-gram was made possible with thepartnership of retail members onthe Greenhouse VegetableIndustry Advisory Committee.

“We have received unprece-dented support of this promotion-al program from the Ontarioretailers,” said OGVG GeneralManager, George Gilvesy.“Consumers can find fresh,greenhouse produce from theirlocal farmers now in stores acrossthe province.”

OGVG’s campaign includes:in-store sampling, point-of-saleeducational material, flyer promo-tions, radio spots, social mediaadvertising and a partnership withFoodland Ontario on the RetailDisplay Contest. The NaturallyFresh Inside emblem is featuredon in-store materials provided byOGVG.

A picture is worth athousand words. . . and $4,000

During the month of February,B.C. Tree Fruits “Good to Go”contest raised awareness abouthealthy eating with apples, butalso rewarded its photo contestwinner with $2,000 cash and amatching contribution to theircharity of choice. Vu Nguyen’sphoto received the most votes. Hedonated $2,000 to the BC CancerFoundation.

Seed of the Yearnominations sought

Agricultural professionals,commodity boards, researchersand members of the agriculturalcommunity are invited to partici-pate in the ninth annual EasternCanada Seed of the Year compe-tition, a joint initiative developedby SeCan and the University ofGuelph. Deadline for applicationsis May 3rd, 2013.

This competition recognizes apublicly developed Canadian field

crop, forage, fruit, vegetable orherb variety that has made a sig-nificant contribution to the agri-food industry. Any publiclydeveloped Canadian seed varietycan be nominated for Seed of theYear. Applications can be foundat: www.seedoftheyear.ca/east/nominate/

DRC launches newwebsite

The Dispute ResolutionCorporation (DRC) has launcheda new website: www.fvdrc.com.

The new site is designed tobetter align with recent rebrand-ing and marketing efforts. Easierto navigate, the site is based onthe core pillars, Education,Mediation, Arbitration andNetworking. The new site willnow allow industry to quickly callup reference tools such as DRCguidelines and templates.

Correction

In the March issue of TheGrower, an incorrect statementran on page 28 in the articletitled: The science behind thenext generation of fungicides. Itshould have read:

The two modes of action inLuna Tranquility are Group 7(fluopyram) and a Group 9(pyrimethanil).

Both groups have excellentactivity on leaf scab in apples,including strains that are resistantto Group 3 and Group 11 prod-ucts.

Only the Group 7 (fluopyram)mode of action has activity onpowdery mildew in apples.

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The GIS mapping willimprove efficiency in deliveringproduction insurance for fruitplans and will assist in future planenhancements. Agricorp’s data iskept up-to-date on new produc-tion practices and the planting ofnew varieties with the benefit thatgrowers producing apples andtender fruit can use the same pro-gram for both types of produce.

Long-term, the Fruit Trackerprogram is expected to be a boonfor all growers, helping the OTF-PMB with marketing and promo-tional strategies. With reliable,variety-specific data only a key-stroke away, general managerSarah Marshall can provide moreaccurate and timely information

to the industry. “We have seen this system

grow steadily into a one-stop window of opportunity across thevalue chain,” says Marshall.“With abilities to upload datafrom scout to grower to marketerto marketing board, our industrywill be able to predict, project andpromote with more accuracy thanwe have ever seen before.”

Tech-savvy growers areembracing Fruit Tracker for multiple reasons, not the least ofwhich is guaranteeing food safetyto their customers. Grant fundingwas provided through theTraceability FoundationsInitiative. Down the road, lookfor more crops to be added to theprogram. Berries are the nextlikely commodity.

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 3

THE GROWER

Acreage mapping collects data in record time TECHNOLOGY

INTERNATIONAL

resistance as well as traits thatboost yields under cold conditions.

“This acquisition will allowus to accelerate growth in strategic high margin vegetablesegments,” said AlexanderTokarz, head of vegetables atSyngenta. “The programs aretargeting the fast developingmarkets of Turkey, the MiddleEast and CIS and will broadenour pipeline of new varietieswith further benefits for growers.”

The Commonwealth ofIndependent States (CIS)includes the former Sovietrepublics.

Syngenta has also announcedthat it will broaden availability tosome of its patented traits andtechnologies for vegetables. Thee-licensing platform, namedTraitAbility, provides “quick andeasy” access to patented nativetraits of Syngenta commercialvegetable varieties. It also pro-vides access to patented enablingtechnologies, such as plant transformation and protein targeting.

Source: AgriMarketing

CONSUMER DEMAND

Idaho processors cutpotato acres

Flat sales in potatoes are forc-ing Idaho processors to cut pota-to acres under contract by aboutthree per cent for the 2013 sea-son. McCain Foods and ConAgraFoods Lamb Weston cut 4,000acres combined. J.R. Simplotmaintained its full acreage.

Many growers had alreadycommitted to leasing land, fumi-gating soil, preparing beds andpurchasing seed, prompting theSoutheast Idaho PotatoCooperative to warn againstfreed-up acres being planted forthe open market. Fearing moredepressed potato prices, thecooperative urged growers toplant other crops.

The cuts affected growers ineastern and southcentral Idaho.

Source: PotatoPro Weekly

RETAILING

Suppliers to stopneonicotinoids

British retailer Waitrose hasasked its fruit and vegetable sup-pliers to avoid the use of threeformulations of neonicotinoid-based pesticides on crops des-tined for the supermarket. Themove is a precautionary measureuntil scientists can prove thatthese pesticides aren’t adverselyaffecting bees, butterflies andother important pollinators.

Growers are to cease usingimidacloprid, clothianidin andthiamethoxam by the end of2014.

“The role of pollinatinginsects such as bees is crucial insustaining agriculture in the longterm, as part of a thrivingecosystem that will support foodsecurity, healthy diets and thewider agricultural economy,”said David Croft, Waitrose direc-tor of food technology.

Source: FreshPlaza.com

BREEDING

Syngenta beefs upvegetables

Crop protection and seedcompany, Syngenta, is acquiringMayAgro’s greenhouse vegetable breeding programsincluding cucumber, pepper andtomatoes. These comprise allnative traits developed toimprove virus and disease

RESEARCH

Increasing lutein inbroccoli

Enhancing levels of lutein inbroccoli is the focus of newresearch at North Carolina StateUniversity. An antioxidant,lutein is found in leafy greenssuch as kale and spinach and isknown for lowering risks forcataracts and age-related maculardegeneration.

The plan is to develop plantmaterial through hybridizationwith wild broccoli, then evaluatethe new broccoli material todetermine its stability and genet-ic potential for enhanced levelsof lutein and beta-carotene.Ultimately, the question iswhether increased levels of theseantioxidants will transfer to com-mercial production.

Researchers will also evaluateimportant quality traits such ashead size, compactness, colour,uniformity and harvest maturity.

Source: FreshPlaza.com

Grape growers’ production insurance adds brix to the mix

This year, Ontario’s winegrape growers will have moreprecise production insurance coverage that is based on thegrower’s average brix productioncapability in addition to their

yield. Thanks to GIS mapping byAgricorp, insured growers mayclaim losses that are more reflective of the grape varietythey produce and its harvestvalue.

“We’re now able to tie yieldand quality back to specificblocks and vineyard,” explainsDavid Hughes, of Agricorp’s program management and industry relations department,“and to underwrite the producer’sproduction insurance based ontheir own results for productionmanagement of quality winegrapes on their own farm.”

Technology is helping finetuneinsurance payouts that are equitable to all.

We’re now able totie yield and qualityback to specificblocks and vineyard.”

~ David Hughes

“

Anne Fowlie joined theCanadian Horticultural Council(CHC) in March 1999 and hit theground running, as the sayinggoes. “I drove to Ottawa fromNew Brunswick in a snow stormon a Sunday and on Monday flewto Winnipeg for my first CHCAnnual General Meeting as amember of the CHC team.”

Many know Anne as a part ofthe CHC for the past number ofyears, but who is she and whatpath brought her to Ottawa?

Growing up in Quebec’s east-ern townships, she doesn’tremember whether she first spokeEnglish or French. The two languages and cultures werealways closely linked. “My fatherwas an only child of Irish descen-dants and my mother was one ofa dozen francophone siblings. Itcertainly made for interestingfamily gatherings and a richnessof cultural and culinary delights.”Once done high school she left“la belle province” and headed toMount Allison University inSackville, New Brunswickthanks to a high school principalfrom the Annapolis Valley whohad attended Mount A. “It wasgood advice, likely some of the

best I ever received, and I am par-ticularly delighted to see mygrandson, Alex, finishing up hissecond year there.”

It was pure serendipity that ledher to agriculture. “People oftenask me if I grew up on a farm andalthough I did not, I often feelthat I could have. In 1978 I built a

house and that was the beginningof a lifetime career in agriculture.”

What does building a househave to do with horticulture? Inthis case, everything. “I wasworking for Day and Ross at thetime and was also building ahouse. Two potato farmer broth-

ers, whose diversification was aconstruction company specializ-ing in concrete work, installed thefoundation. They were involvedwith five other farmers who hadformed a co-op to build a packingwarehouse and just happened tobe looking for someone bilingualto set up and manage the office. Itook the job and that was thebeginning.”

From 1978 up until the timeshe joined CHC she worked inthe potato industry in a number ofcapacities, including sales andmarketing for the grower cooper-ative which hired her, a largefamily-owned potato and grainfarming operation and then forthe provincial potato associationas director of communicationsand marketing and eventually asassistant executive director. Withopportunities to gain experiencein buying and selling, plant healthemergencies, border closures,countervail and anti-dumping andmuch more, the training for lead-ing a multi-commodity, nationalorganization was thoroughindeed. “I was fortunate to havehad outstanding mentors andopportunities over the years. Theexperience I gained serving onvarious boards, including twoterms as a ministerial appoint-ment to the AgriculturalDevelopment Board whose loanportfolio was subsequently takenover by Farm Credit Canada andACOA’s Community Futures waspriceless and has served me verywell.”

In 1998 the CHC was undergo-ing significant change. The longstanding relationship with theCPMA was evolving. The twogroups had co-shared staff formany years, including executivevice president – a position previously occupied by DannyDempster.

“Stephen Whitney was alsowith CHC and at that time the

groundwork for establishing theDispute Resolution Corporationwas developing. As his interest inthat new venture grew and theneed for dedicated leadership foreach of the groups increased, anopportunity presented itself.” Therest is history. Danny Dempstertook on the leadership role atCPMA and Anne joined CHC.

Today there are numerouschallenges and opportunities fac-ing horticulture and developingstrategies to ensure a sustainablefuture for farmers and their orga-nizations is paramount.

The Regulatory CooperationCouncil is providing an opportu-nity to resolve an issue which haslong been a point of contentionfor her. “During my years on asales desk my market of choicewas the U.S. and not Canadabecause I had recourse if therewere problems getting paid – thePerishable AgriculturalCommodities Act. I know all toowell the consequences of not get-ting paid. If we are unsuccessfulat achieving a made-in-Canadaoutcome that provides a similarprotection for Canadian farmersas that which is available throughthe PACA it will be the biggestdisappointment of my career. Iwill be working for several moreyears yet and remain optimistic.”

With a demanding job, there isoften little time for outside inter-ests. “Growing up in the easterntownships, I love to ski and haveenjoyed an opportunity to volun-teer with a local ski team for anumber of years. It is exciting towatch the young men and womencompete in downhill events andbeing on the course with them asa gate judge or in other coursecrew positions. I am a musicjunkie and always look forward tovolunteering at Bluesfest, butwhat I enjoy most of all is timeon my daughter’s sail boat withmy children and grandchildren.”

PAGE 4 –– MAY 2013THE GROWER

Marking 15 years at the Canadian Horticultural CouncilWHAT’S YOUR STORY?

Anne Fowlie, executive vice-president of the Canadian HorticulturalCouncil is pictured here with former agriculture minister EugeneWhelan. With his passing on February 19, 2013, Whelan is remem-bered for his colourful years as agriculture minister in PierreTrudeau's cabinet from 1972-1984.

Regulatory CooperationCouncil reports progress

On April 4, a progress statement on the RCC Financial Protectionfor Produce Sellers action item was released.

“The Canada/U.S. Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) is help-ing our respective agricultural industries by aligning regulatory sys-tems, reducing trade barriers and preventing misalignments in thefuture. The RCC process has allowed us to make solid progress infinding common ground to protect fresh fruit and vegetable growersand other sellers on both sides of the border from financial risk associ-ated with issues involving payment.

At this point, Canada agrees to consider the development of a one-licensing approach. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) isintending to initiate a process to publicly consult on new food regula-tions for Canada. This consultation will cover licensing requirementsfor produce dealers for the purposes of fair and ethical trade. Theseconsultations are expected to be launched later this spring and willprovide an opportunity for comments to be submitted.

The Government of Canada also recognizes the possibility forgreater risk mitigation in the fresh produce sector. For this reason, weare undertaking further analysis on risk mitigation measures beyondlicensing changes. We fully expect the outcome of this process willlead to improvements to the financial risk mitigation tools available tofresh produce sellers.”

KAREN DAVIDSON

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario –With the best harvest ever in thefermenting barrels, the GrapeGrowers of Ontario (GGO) arecounting their blessings: 66,014tonnes harvested for farmgatevalue of $88.6 million.

That’s short-term progress butnot enough to reach long-termtargets of owning the Ontarioindustry.

“Gaining market share contin-ues to elude us,” said Bill George,chair, GGO, at a recent mediaday. Vinters Quality Alliance(VQA) wine sales which include100 per cent Ontario grapes,account for 9.5 per cent of allwine sold in Ontario. When thesesales are combined with theInternational Canadian Blends(ICB), which include at least 25per cent Ontario grapes, Ontariowines make up just 38.3 per centmarket share.

“We are local growers, so it’sonly natural that local growth beour priority,” George added.

That’s why the association issetting 2020 as a target date tocapture 50 per cent of the Ontariowine market. Part of the problem

is a bottleneck at the LCBOwhich carries only 585 wines ofthe more than 3,000 produced inOntario. In response to a questionabout the value presented byFrench, Californian and Chilean

wines in the $12 to $15 range,George said he’s not worriedabout that competition.

“That’s our wheelhouse,”where George said Ontario winescan best compete. He’s more

worried about the $7 to $8Chilean wines.

Consumer access to wines isalso a problem. Statistics comparing Ontario and BritishColumbia outlets show that

Ontarians are under-served byLCBO outlets. Whereas there area total of 1,319 outlets in Ontario(630 LCBO stores, 219 agencystores, 470 winery retail stores) ,there are 1,396 stores in BritishColumbia (BC LiquorDistribution Branch AnnualReport 2011/12). That's a hugedifference given Ontario's popula-tion of 12.85 million and B.C.'s4.4 million.

“The only way our industrywill maintain its momentum andcontinue to be a strong economicdriver is for Ontario wines toreplace French, California,Australian, Chilean and Italianwines in the shopping carts ofOntario consumers,” notedDebbie Zimmerman, CEO, GGO.“Ontario grape growers are com-mitted to working with our part-ners to make that a reality.”

With a global wine shortageand the imminent roll-out ofLCBO Express stores and desti-nation boutiques, the GGO is cau-tiously optimistic about improv-ing distribution at favourableprices.

The LCBO is the biggest big-box wine retailer in the world.Ontario grape growers think theycan do better in those stores.

Bottleneck in LCBO distribution constricts Ontario wine sales

Toronto, Ontario – Always ahub of activity, the Ontario FoodTerminal will be more frantic asa $5 million refurbishment pro-ject gets underway in May. • All the second-floor office win-dows at the terminal will bereplaced for energy efficiency• The buyers’ court docks will beenclosed• A canopy cover will be builtover the existing buyer court’scentre strip loading area

“The enclosure of the buyers’court docks will be a majorimprovement on the conditions inwhich trucks are loaded at the

terminal,” says Bruce Nicholas,general manager. “This enclosurewill improve the ‘cool chain’ byensuring that produce loaded ontotrucks are completed within acontrolled building not subject tothe elements of weather.”

The canopy over the currentopen ground level loading area inthe centre of the buyers’ courtwill be a major improvement forbuyers. Currently they are subjectto weather conditions of rain andsnow. This canopy cover willprovide protection from thoseelements.

Ontario Food Terminalto improve infrastructure

MARKETINGTHE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 5

Grape Growers of Ontario have targeted 2020 to capture 50 per cent of the Ontario wine market. This picture shows how much more wine that represents than their current 38.3 per cent market share. Photo courtesy Grape Growers of Ontario.

EXPANSION

Photo by Glenn Lowson.

KAREN DAVIDSON

Timed for spring, the annualCanadian Produce MarketingAssociation Convention andTrade Show is something like theFrench amuse-bouche – a single,bite-sized hors-d’oeuvre – thatprepares us for the smorgasbordof fresh produce to come.Translated literally as mouth-pleaser, that’s the taste of thisyear’s 88th event.

What makes this conventionstand apart? Decision-makersattend – witness the retailers fromLoblaw, Sobeys, Metro, Walmartand others. Canadian innovatorsshowcase their new products andpackaging alongside internationalcompetitors. Delegates attendbusiness sessions to be challengedand inspired. It’s intimate enoughthat delegates can actually see thetrade show and feel that they’vehad meaningful conversationswith business owners.

The Canadian fruit and veg-etable industry views the show asits kick-off venue for products yetto hit grocery shelves. From NovaScotia’s bloo juice to Ontario’ssqueezable fruits, there’s noshortage of samples.

Boothmanship is a criticalaspect of the show with annualawards. This year’s winner,EarthFresh Foods, tipped thescales with a martini bar that

served spiced, mashed potatoes inmartini glasses against a dropbackof the Toronto skyline. A dining-room table served as a focal pointfor real-time meetings. For a casehistory on how to strategize andexecute such an interactive booth,search out Stephanie Cutaia, mar-keting manager.

Beyond the sizzle, exhibitorswere prepared with sell sheets,itemizing features, benefits andskus. This professionalism wasalso reflected in packaging thatcontained nutritional facts as wellas QR codes. In fact, packaging isbecoming a major feature of theshow as vendors wrap traditionalproduce in innovative ways.Clifford Produce, for instance,debuted a grill kit that containedall the vegetable ingredients for abarbecue in an aluminum pan.

American vendors are also inhot pursuit of the Canadian mar-ket. Take Duane Norton, forexample, who was looking forcontacts and distribution channelsfor Vidalia Brands Sweet OnionPetals. Made from real Vidaliaonion puree harvested by BlandFarms, it’s a melt-in-your-mouthsnack. Puree and corn meal aremixed to form a base, then thebase is pushed through an extrusion head. Next, the producttravels over a conveyer beltwhere sweet onion seasoning issprinkled over top before itarrives at the oven where it isthen baked, fusing the flavours onthe inside and the sweet onionseasoning of the outer portion.It’s just one more example ofinnovation from a root vegetable.

International vendors also consider the CPMA trade showevent an important showcase fortheir produce. Mexico, Chile andColumbia mount impressiveexhibits, reminding Canadian producers of the southern hemisphere’s prodigious output.

While Canadian producershead into their busiest season,take a moment to mark nextyear’s calendar for CPMA: April2 – 4, 2014 in Vancouver.

522 exhibit spaces sold out for ‘graze and schmooze’ eventCANADIAN PRODUCE MARKETING ASSOCIATION CONVENTION & TRADE SHOW

THE GROWER

PAGE 6 –– MAY 2013

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Earth Fresh Foods, Toronto, Ontario, won honours for the best exhibit of the show.

Exhibitors at the Columbian booth were aggressively meeting visitors in the aisle.

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 7

Developed in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley,Country Magic Bloo juice will be sold in the refrigeratedjuice section in the produce department at large retailersand specialty stores. The taste is the result of blending several blueberry varieties. It’s blueberry pie in a bottle.

Each 250mL serving contains 125mg of anthocyaninsand 245mg of polyphenols. The product is 100 per centjuice, and is not from concentrate. There are approximate-ly 600 blueberries in every bottle of the 100 per cent blueberry sku. Two other skus are also available: blueberry strawberry and blueberry citrus.

Martin’s apple chips are all-natural, dehydrated slicesof apple with no additives or preservatives. With all thehealth benefits of an apple, these super crispy chips are ahit with health-conscious consumers. They are now avail-able in a number of Ontario locations.

Arthur’s Fruit Crush is described as the perfect on-the-go fruit. Each squeezable pouch has one full servingof fruit, is all-natural, with no concentrates, flavours,colours or preservatives. It’s a brand extension of Arthur’sSmoothies.

Innovation knows no borders CANADIAN PRODUCE MARKETING ASSOCIATION CONVENTION & TRADE SHOW

FRUITS

VEGETABLES

Clifford Crunchies are a cocktail cucumber that appealto everyone from school-aged kids to baby boomers.Produced at Ruthven, Ontario greenhouses, it comes in aperforated, re-sealable bag which extends retailer shelf-lifeand provides customer convenience. It’s a cocktail cucum-ber variety that is crisp, crunchy and perfect for snackingat 8 to 10 cm long.

Mastronardi Produce Eco-Peppers were launched atthe CPMA trade show. Grown at its EnviroFresh Farmsgreenhouse near Sarnia, Ontario, these peppers are theproduct of the first carbon friendly greenhouse of its kindin North America, using waste heat and CO2 from aneighboring fertilizer facility. The Eco-Pepper is availablein various formats including bulk and packaged in aunique and completely reusable crisper bag. The Eco-Pepper was one component of the exhibit which won sec-ond place for best show exhibit.

NatureFresh Fried Green Tomatoes The first in North America, Leamington-based

NatureFresh has launched Fried Green Tomatoes in aneasy-to-carry kit that includes batter. Just add water tostart, so you can adjust batter thickness to taste. Leftoverbatter can be used for dill pickles, shrimp, okra, eggplantor zucchini. The package directions suggest that the greentomatoes be stored at room temperature and preparedpreferably, while they are still crisp and green. Servingtips include using fried green tomatoes in bacon, lettuceand tomato sandwiches or lasagna. The two-tomato sizepackage is just right for small households.

The Best New Product Award went to Paramount Farms' three new pomegranate-based juices branded under POM. Each mixes pomegranate juice with additionalflavours: Hula (pineapple and apple juices); Mango (mango and pear juices); and Coconut(coconut water and pear juice). The juice category continues to expand with new entrants

taking advantage of superfruit health claims and the trend of busy twenty-year-olds as liquid fuellers.

Canadians are showing their mettle with successful launches of new products in bothfruit and vegetable categories. Here are six.

Peter Chapman spent 20 years as a Loblaw’s merchan-diser and marketer in Atlantic Canada. He’s now a retailconsultant as well as Retail Navigator columnist for TheGrower. Editor Karen Davidson spent some time withhim at the CPMA trade show, learning what he sees asinstructive for the industry.

First, he pointed out Sunkist’s stand-up, family-sizedgrape packages. They cradle the fruit from bruising whileoffering portions that won’t spoil easily. “We are startingto see more packaging in produce as consumers are moreconcerned about food safety and the technology improvesfor storage and protecting the product,” says Chapman.“If you are considering a package for your product, com-municate with your retail customers to understand the opti-mal size. If the current average purchase by the consumeris one pound, you might try for 1.2 lb in your package.This provides you and the retailer with a 20 per centincrease in tonnage. There is also a lot of room on thesepackages to communicate with the consumer. People wantinformation so take advantage of every opportunity to provide it.”

Providing grocers with bins that serve as wings or free-standing merchandisers are both wins. Sunkist’s lemonbin offers in-depth information on nutrition facts, QRcode, storage and cues for social media. All of theseopportunities are there with these off-shelf units. Younever get this kind of communication with the consumerwhen your product is in line on the table. These bins workto drive incremental sales. Any time you can extend thelinear footage in the store it should be well received byyour retail customers. Communicate with them early toplan the arrival of these displays to ensure it fits with theirplans.

Think of packaging as a surface to communicate mes-sages not only to consumers but to store employees.Chapman points out the inside lid of a corrugated box andsuggests an opportunity to remind produce managers aboutproper cooling and storage. Employees in the store can beyour biggest advocates. Retailers are challenged withfewer training hours all the time. As a supplier you canhelp with improving product knowledge, which results in

your product being treated properly. Do not ever assumethe employees at store level know everything and that theywill keep the product at the correct temperature. One ofthe most common complaints from growers is that theirproduct does not look as good as it could in the store.Take a proactive approach and share some of your knowledge with the staff. If you have a great point of differentiation remember to communicate it to the staffand the consumer. It always helps to say “thank you” fortheir proper care.

Growers can always learn from the leaders in the cate-gory. Retailers visit other stores to get ideas and watch thetrends. Many of your retail customers will visit stores inEurope and the U.S. to see what they are doing. If you’rea berry grower, then he suggests checking out the leadersin the category. Driscoll’s, for example, had a large boothwith strawberries and blueberries in low profile clamshells.If the leaders are moving in this direction then it is worth

exploring the option in your business. Any time you aremaking changes make sure you have the capability andremember to communicate to your customers in advanceto ensure a smooth transition.

If you’re a greenhouse vegetable grower, then there’slots to see. Naturesweet, based in California, introduced apeel-off package that serves to preserve food safety as wellas convenience. The consumer can peel off the bottom fora simple rinse of the product.

Quebec’s cole crops are well-known and are displayedinnovatively in a refrigerated stand on mirrored glass.Association des jardiniers maraichers du Quebec makesstandard fare look fresh. It is important to remember consumers buy with their eyes in produce and simple merchandising that really showcases the product is mosteffective. Trade shows such as the CPMA are opportunities for producers to showcase their product totheir customers: the retailers.

THE GROWER

PAGE 8 –– MAY 2013

CANADIAN PRODUCE MARKETING ASSOCIATION CONVENTION & TRADE SHOW

Lessons to be learned through a retailer ’s lens

Peter Chapman

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 9

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Introducing aproduct that’sas exciting as dirt.

Recently I was at an eventwhere the Ontario premier spokeabout the importance of the LocalFood Act, agricultural sustainabil-ity and the need to ensure a viablecompetitive agricultural sector.She also spoke about the need tofight poverty. The question ishow will the government propose

to fight poverty without negative-ly impacting our farmers in whatis the most labour-intensive sectorin all of agriculture. Should thewrong method be chosen then theimpact will be devastating formany of our growers.

It is my fear the governmentwill resort to the old standby ofraising the minimum wage rate.It’s quick, relatively painless togovernment and will get creditfrom those whose wages go up.

But is it the right tool to use?While it may be a convenient

tool it is nonetheless, the wrongtool. If eliminating poverty was assimple as increasing the minimumwage, then we would haveaccomplished that years ago.There are a number of ways tofight poverty, but the best waysare to create employment opportunities not to restrict them.

Ontario is a very diverseprovince made up of major cities

and rural communities where living expenses are different. Itcannot be assumed that the needsand opportunities are the sameeverywhere. It also consists of amyriad of employment opportuni-ties and job types. Some indus-tries and sectors need to beextremely competitive with goodsfrom outside of Canada such asfood, both fresh and processedand as well manufactured goods.Much of Ontario employment,however, is in sectors that do notcompete internationally or eveninterprovincially and these sectorshave the ability to recover anyadditional wage cost from themarketplace. Unfortunately thefruit and vegetable sector is in thefirst category and our farmersneed to meet that foreign competition.

According to StatisticsCanada, Canadian consumers arepaying less for vegetables today

than ten years ago and only oneper cent more for fruit. Whatgreater proof than our fruit andvegetable farmers cannot recoveradditional expenses could therebe?

The way to fight poverty is notby placing further burdens on thissector. It is by encouragingemployers to hire more people.The marketplace will dictate whatthe appropriate wage should be.

In 2003, the poverty rate inOntario was 6.9 per cent. In 2007it was 11.2 per cent and duringthe time of the largest minimumrate increase in Ontario history,the poverty rate jumped to 13.1per cent by the end of 2009.

Using minimum wageincreases as a tool to fight poverty does not work. If the policy makers assume there willbe no job loss then they arewrong. If they assume that allemployers can easily absorb or

pass on the additional expensethen again they are wrong. Howmany food processing plants havewe lost in the past few years?How many manufacturing plants?These facilities didn’t closebecause the owner wanted toretire. They were forced out ofbusiness because they were nolonger competitive.

If we believe that the best wayto fight poverty is through thecreation of jobs and opportunitythen implementing policy to helpthat happen is a must. Just ascompanies have adapted to newmethods of doing business in aglobal environment, so must government. Policies need to beforward thinking and in this case,they need to be about creatingopportunity, creating jobs and notstifling them.

For what it is worth, it’s theway I see it.

THE GROWER

PAGE 10 –– MAY 2013

STAFFPublisher: Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ AssociationEditor: Karen Davidson, 416-252-7337, kdavidson@ecomente.caProduction: Carlie Robertson, ext. 221, production@thegrower.orgAdvertising: Herb Sherwood, 519-380-0118, hsherwood@cogeco.ca

The Grower reserves the right to refuse any advertising. Any errors that are the direct result of The Grower will be compensated at our discretion with a correction notice in the nextissue. No compensation will be given after the first running of the ad.Client signature is required before insertion.

The Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association is thesole owner of The Grower. All editorials and opinions expressedin The Grower are those of the newspaper’s editorial staff and/orcontributor, and do not necessarily reflect the view of the association.

All rights reserved. The contents of this publicationmay not be reproduced either whole or in part without theprior written consent of the publisher.

P.M. 40012319

OFFICE355 Elmira Road North, Unit 105

Guelph, Ontario N1K 1S5 CANADATel. 519-763-8728 • Fax 519-763-6604

The Grower is printed 12 times a year and sent to allmembers of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association who have paid $30.00 (plus G.S.T.) per year forthe paper through their commodity group or container fees.Others may subscribe as follows by writing to the office:

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Subscribers must submit a claim for missing issues withinfour months. If the issue is claimed within four months, butnot available, The Grower will extend the subscription byone month. No refunds on subscriptions.

ONTARIO FRUIT AND VEGETABLE GROWERS’ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2013

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEEChair Ray Duc, Niagara-on-the-LakeVice-Chair Jason Verkaik, BradfordFruit Director Norm Charbonneau, Port ElginVeg Director Jan Vander Hout, WaterdownDirector Brian Gilroy, Meaford

BOARD OF DIRECTORSApples Brian Gilroy, MeafordFresh Vegetable - Other Mary Shabatura, Windham CentreTender Fruit Fred Meyers, Niagara-on-the-LakeON Asparagus Grws’. Mkg. Brd. Jason Ryder, DelhiGGO/Fresh Grape Growers Ray Duc, Niagara-on-the-LakeFresh Vegetable - Muck Jason Verkaik, BradfordON. Potato Board Mac James, LeamingtonSmall Fruit/Berries Norm Charbonneau, Port ElginON. Ginseng Growers’ Ken Van Torre, BurfordGreenhouse Jan Vander Hout, WaterdownGreenhouse Don Taylor, Durham

OFVGA SECTION CHAIRS

Crop Protection Charles Stevens, NewcastleResearch Harold Schooley, SimcoeProperty Brian Gilroy, MeafordLabour Ken Forth, LyndenSafety Nets Mark Wales, AlymerCHC Murray Porteous, Simcoe

Over the last several yearsmany government initiatives havebeen downloaded on the horticultural industry for the betterment of society.

Environmental regulations,Greenbelt, increased minimumwage and traceability are a few ofthe additional burdens put on usas growers. Monies have beenavailable to help growers with aportion of the costs to achievecompliance with new environ-mental regulations but the ongoing costs are borne by farmers. The amount of paperwork to stay compliant can beoverwhelming. Add to thisinspection costs, additional labourand the farmer is being squeezed.The Greenbelt was implementedwith no compensation for the lossof retirement lots nor the loss ofany speculative value lands mayhave had.

It is hard to argue that theseinitiatives are not beneficial for

the province as a whole, but itdoesn’t change the fact that thereis now a cost to do what we weredoing already. It was always inour own interests to protect ourlands for future generations, wehave been good stewards of theland for many generations andhave delivered a safe food supplyto Canadians for well over a century.

I recently got a call from agrower regarding a small annualfood safety audit fee. My firstthought as I listened was that thefee is minimal and this fee wouldhave no effect on the grower’sbottom line. As I listened I couldhear the frustration of a growerwhose profit margin had beensqueezed to zero with losses onthe horizon. My thoughts changed

as I realized that the small fee isthe straw that could break thecamel’s back. We are price takersnot price setters. In today’s competitive global market placewe cannot just raise our prices tocover these increased costs. Evenwith the ‘buy local’ movementgetting traction, price remains thebiggest factor when a consumer isdeciding which product to buy.

There are now faint signalscoming out of Queen’s Park thatthe Ontario provincial government is considering raisingthe minimum wage to help fightpoverty -- a noble fight but notone that can be placed on thebacks of fruit and vegetable growers. The last increase in minimum wage cost the horticultural industry in Ontario

$70 million annually. Furtherincreases would simply forcefarmers to reduce the amount ofworkers they employ or get out ofbusiness all together.

The Greenbelt, environmentalregulations, traceability, and anincreased minimum wage are allgood initiatives for society, however my concern is that wecannot take any more governmentimposed costs. There are manygood government programs inplace to help growers stay competitive through research,innovation, promotion and capitalexpenditures. If the minimumwage does increase it will negateall the gains made by beneficialprograms and will be the strawthat breaks the camel’s back.

The camel and the straw

RAY DUCCHAIR, OFVGA

ART SMITHCEO, OFVGA

The folly of raising the minimum wage

WEATHER VANE

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date.~ From Shakespeare’s Sonnet XVIII. Photo by Glenn Lowson

THE GROWER

You don't normally see storiesabout alfalfa in Canada's premierfruit and vegetable sector newspa-per.

But last month's protest overgenetically modified (GM) alfalfamerits discussion here, if for onlyone reason: the protest was moreabout limiting farmers' access tonew technology than it was aboutgrowing hay. And to me, that’ssomething that concerns everyfarmer, whether you grow alfalfa,apples or asparagus.

The Canadian BiotechnologyAction Network, which despite itsname is actually against geneti-cally modified crops, lead thecharge against the GM alfalfa. Itwas trying to convince the publicthat farmers neither want norneed Roundup Ready alfalfa,because it’s an environmentalhazard, and in their words, it will“contaminate” the countryside. Itcannot possibly coexist with con-ventional alfalfa, they said.

Reporters dutifully reportedwhat the protesters said aboutcontamination by GM alfalfa.Front-page photos of peopledressed in cow costumes (I sup-

pose, to show a connection tolivestock) appeared in some ofthe 30 communities acrossCanada, where peaceful shows ofresistance occurred against GMalfalfa.

On the flip side was, and is,agri-business -- particularlyMonsanto -- which created thetechnology, and a company calledForage Genetics International,which is commercializing it inCanada.

They want the public tobelieve farmers do indeed needand want Roundup Ready alfalfa.They claim it’s one more tool infarmers’ toolboxes, just like theother GM crops that are widelyused in Canada.

Farmers were mostly quiet onthe issue. Quentin Martin ofCribit Seeds was an exception.On the contamination issue, henoted only a handful of alfalfaacres in Ontario are harvested asseed, nearly all of it harvested aswhole plant hay or haylage andfed to livestock.

“Even if a bee were to buzzaround a genetically modifiedalfalfa plant, take some pollenand fly to a field of conventionalor even an organic field of alfalfaand pollinate a plant there, it doesnot change the genetics of thatplant which is harvested for hayseveral times in a summer and forseveral years,” he said.

If an alfalfa plant were left toset seed, he added, it is mostprobable that it would be pollinat-ed by the nearest plant of thesame genetics.

And finally, this from Martin:“The key to coexistence is farm-ers must buy the varieties of seedthey desire. In Canada that iseasy, we have a pedigreed seedsystem that has provided variety

verification for over a century.”It seems to me that when it

comes to pollination, the publicshould hear from fruit and veg-etable farmers too. And now’s thetime to speak up -- about thisissue, and in general, about whoshould be dictating what toolsfarmers are allowed to use. I don'tbelieve a lot of Canadians wouldmarch a metre, let alone a cityblock or two, because they're upin arms about alfalfa. I doubt ifmany people who were carryingprotest signs at last month’sdemonstration even know whatalfalfa is.

And while it’s certainly theirright to demonstrate, are these thepeople you want making policyfor farmers? Even urban politi-cians are cozying up to the pre-cautionary principle, the wait-and-see approach, which is reallyanother way of saying let’s waitand see which way the proverbialwind blows, then make policy. Itcasts research results and science-driven policy to the wolves.

Farmers traditionally supportresearch. Huge gains in produc-tion have been realized becauseof research. Further advancesdepend more and more on public

support. Trusting that support willjust naturally happen, or won’t bedriven in an unhelpful direction,is a major risk.

GM protest was not really about alfalfa

OWEN ROBERTSUNIVERSITY OFGUELPH

PERSPECTIVE

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 11

NEW MODE OF ACTION

CITED IN APHID DEATHS.

www.uap.caWestern Canada: 1-800-561-5444Ontario & Maritimes: 1-800-265-5444Quebec: 1-800-361-9369British Columbia: 1-604-534-8815

Photo by Amanda Brodhagen

Ontario garlic field dayset for June

Get set for local Ontario garlic! The Garlic Growers of Ontario arehosting a field day June 8 at the farm of Brant County GarlicCompany, Scotland, Ontario. On-site, there will be a crop tour of theUniversity of Guelph test plots.

“We’ve got a great agenda with all the experts in the field,” saysBob Romaniuk, host. These include: Michael Celetti talking aboutbulb and stem nematodes; Marion Paibomesai talking about leek moth;John Zandstra talking about bulbil research; Becky Hughes talkingabout clean seed; Sandra Jones talking about Foodland Ontario promo-tions, Al Spicer talking about Cangrow Foliar Nutrient Products, TedShelegy talking about 20 years of organic farming.

Equipment manufacturers will showcase their wares including:Agri Distribution J. M. Inc demonstrating Erme garlic equipment fromFrance; Dubois Agrinovation demonstrating plastic culture containers;Packing Corporation of America demonstrating corrugated containers;NNZ Packaging Network demonstrating packaging; Sylvite AgriServices demonstrating fertilizer and chemicals; Wiltsie EquipmentSales demonstrating vegetable equipment; VandenBussche Irrigationdemonstrating irrigation equipment, drip units, mulch machinery,Checchi and Magli Italia planting equipment.

Lunch is provided if attendance is confirmed by June 4. ContactBob Romaniuk at 519-751-9200.

THE GROWER

PAGE 12 –– MAY 2013

LILIAN SCHAER

Thanks to social media, everybody not only has an opinion, but they can also easilyspread that opinion far and wide.Unfortunately for agriculture,many of those are promoting misconceptions about food andfarming.

But farmers can leverage thosesame tools to help tell the realstory of Canadian food and farming, in real time from theirown farms, said farmer and socialmedia advocate AndrewCampbell at a recent workshopfor Farm & Food Care members

about the whys and hows ofsocial media.

“Groups that are against agriculture are extremely good atusing these tools. Our challenge isthat when they’re presenting theirmessages on social media, theyare impacting a lot of people,”said Campbell, known as @freshairfarmer on Twitter.“Social media determines wherewe find the news, and if we don’tspeak up and use social mediatools, others will do it for us.”

People for the EthicalTreatment of Animals (PETA),for example, has more than 1.5million “likes” on their Facebookpage; by comparison, the most

popular Canadian agriculturalgroup on Facebook is DairyFarmers of Canada, with approximately 20,000 “likes.”

Social media brings out emotions in people and createsconnections and many people –like celebrities – who are incredi-bly passionate about agricultureand are speaking out about it, yethave no understanding of it.

Popular tools includeFacebook, Twitter, YouTube,LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterestand others, which allow users toshare information instantly fromanywhere. Social media users caneither create their own content toshare or share materials posted byothers.

For Campbell, the easiest andbest way to communicate isTwitter, a social network built on140-character updates called“tweets.” He advised using thetool on a smart phone for real-time updates – many farmerson Twitter post updates and photos about life on the farm, forexample.

Users “follow” each other,“retweet” each others’ posts anduse “hashtags” to group tweets orput them into a single feed.Popular agriculture hashtags are#westcdnag (tweets relating towestern Canadian ag) and #ontag(Ontario).

“Informationsharing is one ofthe reasonsactivists are sosuccessful.People are passionate toshare their infor-mation and theymake it easy todo so,” he said.“As farmers, wehave to becomebetter at talkingabout what wedo.”

To be effec-tive in socialmedia, Campbelladvised users tothink of whothey’re trying toreach, whetherit’s other farmersor consumers, andwhy. Look at whatothers are doing,keep a consistentpresence and thinkabout how whatyou’re posting may be interpretedby people outside of agriculture.

“Social media is like tooth-paste. Once it comes out of thetube, it doesn’t go back in, sothink before you post,” he said.“Everybody’s not going to gomeatless on Monday because ofone tweet, but the more timespeople see a message, the morelikely it is to stick. Ask a sealhunter today about what it means

if you ignore public opinion.” Check out Farm & Food

Care’s social media guide or agood resource produced by theOhio Farm Bureau for moreinformation: • www.farmfoodcare.org/images/pdfs/SocialMediaFactSheets.pdf. • http://ofbf.org/uploads/Social-Media-Guide-V2_single-pages-PRESS.pdf

Spreading some#FarmerLove - whyfarmers should botherwith social media

May 14 – 16 United Fresh, San Diego Convention Centre, San Diego, CA

May 25 Taste of the Food Terminal, Ontario Food Terminal, Toronto, ON

May 30 4-H Canada 100th Anniversary Gala Celebration, Fairmont Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB

June 8 Garlic Growers of Ontario Field Day, hosted by Bob Romaniuk, Scotland, ON

July 28 – 31 Potato Association of America Annual Meeting, Quebec City, QC

July 2013 Federal-Provincial-Territorial Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting, Halifax, NS

Aug 13, 14 North American Strawberry Growers Association Summer Tour, Vermont, U.S., info@nasga.org

October 5 Soupfest, Ansnorveldt Park, Bradford, ON

October 24 Ontario Harvest Gala, Guelph, ON

Nov 1 – 10 Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, Direct Energy Centre, Toronto, ON

November 7 American Agri-Women Conference Canadian Tour, Holiday Inn & Suites, Parkway Conference Centre, St. Catharines, ON

Nov 12 – 17 Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmer Awards, Regina, SK

Nov 19 – 21 Potato Growers of Alberta Conference and Trade Show, Calgary, AB

Dec 10 – 12 Great Lakes Expo, Michigan

COMING EVENTS 2013

Social media is like toothpaste.Once it comes out of the tube, itdoesn’t go back in, so think beforeyou post.”~ Andrew Campbell

“

The April 23rd issue of ThePacker newspaper reports thatdespite the United StatesDepartment of Agriculture(USDA) report earlier this yearthat said fresh produce from theU.S. does not pose a safety con-cern based on pesticide residues,the Environmental WorkingGroup(EWG) again released itsDirty Dozen produce shoppingguide. I have copied excerptsfrom the article as follows:“In its ninth year, the guild rankspesticide residues on 48 fruit andvegetables based on thousands ofsamples tested by the USDA andthe Food and DrugAdministration, according to anews release from the group. The Washington, D.C. basedEWG reported that apples againtopped its annual list of the mostpesticide-contaminated produce,followed by strawberries, grapesand celery. The remaining freshproduce items on the Dirty Dozenlist, released April 22, werepeaches, spinach, sweet bell peppers, imported nectarines,cucumbers, potatoes, cherrytomatoes and hot peppers. TheEWG also issued what it calls the“Clean 15” list which includes

corn, onions, pineapples, avocadoes, cabbage, frozen sweetpeas, papayas, mangoes, asparagus, eggplant, kiwi, grapefruit, cantaloupe, sweetpotatoes and mushrooms.

The industry-backed Alliancefor Food and Farming,Watsonville Calif., countered theDirty Dozen with a dozen reasonswhy consumers should eat moreconventional and organic producecommodities. One of the reasonsis the USDA’s statement on foodand pesticide residues.

Health professionals and nutritionists agree that eatingmore of both conventional andorganic fruits and vegetables willimprove health, according to theAlliance.

Scientists who have reviewedso-called ‘shoppers guides’ and‘good producer/bad produce’ liststargeted toward consumers havefound the methodology used tore-interpret government data didnot follow any established scientific procedures, that riskwas not examined and thereforethese lists/guides should not beused when making purchasingdecision.“The amount of pesticide residuesthat an average person ingeststhroughout an entire year is evenless that the amount of theseharmful substances in one cup ofcoffee,” Bruce Ames, professor ofbiochemistry and molecular biology at the University ofCalifornia-Berkley, said in theAlliance release.

The comparison with one cupof coffee was startling to me asan eight-cup-a-day consumer butthat it was an excellent observa-tion to put things into perspective.I also found it strange that the socalled “Environmental WorkingGroup” keeps issuing thesereleases especially when it has

been refuted by both the government and industry (forgood reason). They are obviously

an environment activist organiza-tion which continue to use scaretactics for their own purposes.

Dirty dozen list again issued and refuted

ADRIAN HUISMANONTARIO TENDERFRUIT PRODUCERS

Prepared foods are not new.We are all familiar with theHungry Man dinner. The realopportunity lies in delivering thenext evolution of prepared foods.

There are really three areas offocus that drive sales in preparedfoods.• Health and wellness• Culturally diverse items

• Innovation

As we have discussed in previ-ous issues, health and wellness isbecoming more important totoday’s consumers. They read thelabels and they will not purchasea prepared meal that has 47 percent of the recommended dailyamount of sodium.

If you have the ability to pro-duce prepared items that offer theconvenience of reduced prep timeand health and wellness youmight have a winner. Remember,if you do have such an item,make sure you are very clearabout the benefits. Explore thecategory and shout about yourpoints of differentiation. A foodsolution does not always have tobe a full meal. There are manydips available today that savetime and provide an instant solu-tion that tastes great. Many aremade with fresh ingredients toappeal to the health consciousconsumer.

The second area where foodsolutions are growing very quick-ly is food that appeals to culturaldiversity. Consumers have somuch more exposure to differenttastes and types of cuisine. Sushiis now something you will see inevery province and, in some ofthe bigger cities, it will rival TimHorton’s for outlets on a busystreet. If you have the ability todeliver culturally diverse itemsprepared or partially prepared youmight have a big opportunity. Iwould suggest testing the itemwith different consumers toensure it has the right attributesand is easy to prepare. As con-sumers become more educatedand exposed to new meals, theyalso become more demanding inthe products. Prepared items are one of theareas in the grocery store wherewe continue to see innovation.Whether it is packaging, produc-tion process or cooking methods,there are many examples of inno-

vation. Your retail customers liketo be on the leading edge of this,so if you do have some newexciting opportunities, get them tomarket as quickly as you can,providing you do all your duediligence on continuity of supplyand food safety. Usually the firstperson to market with these newideas is the most successful.

To understand where yourretail customers are investingshelf space and resources, explorethe store and their websites. Thestore is constantly changing tomake room for new items andeven new categories. Frozen skil-let dinners were not even avail-able 10 years ago. Now they are a16-foot section in many freezers.The websites have significantspace committed to food solu-tions. Perhaps you have items orideas the retailers can use. Morethan likely it is the marketingdepartment, so you will have toget a referral from the merchan-dising employees you work with.

Remember you are always slight-ly more valuable if you bringthese ideas to the table.Food solution opportunities areavailable throughout the store.You can provide innovation inevery department and it does notalways have to be complicated.One of the best examples Iremember of a food solution isCedar Bay planked salmon. Thiswas not a complicated idea, but agreat one because it made cedar-planked salmon available toeveryone. The plank is pre-soaked, the product is preparedand ready to cook, plus salmon ishealthy. In 12-15 minutes theconsumer has a great tasting itemthey might have been intimidatedto try or unwilling to soak a pieceof wood for six hours. If youhaven't seen this in the store, youcan see the different items atwww.cedarbaygrilling.com.When is your next cedar plankedsalmon?

Food solutions

PETER CHAPMAN

RETAIL NAVIGATORTHE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 13

DR. JASON S.T. DEVEAU,APPLICATION TECHNOLOGYSPECIALIST, OMAF ANDMRAJAMES D. REISS, VP AGCHEM, PRECISIONLABORATORIES, LLCHELMUT SPIESER,AGRICULTURAL ENGINEER,OMAF AND MRA

Are you considering a newtank mix this year? Perhaps twonew fungicides, or an adjuvantyou want to try? Be sure youknow what you’re doing beforeyou risk an untested tank mix.Users of commercial class pestcontrol products for crop protec-tion or vegetation managementare permitted to apply unlabelledtank mixes of registered pest con-trol products as long as:• each partner is registered for usein Canada on the crop,• the tank mix only includes anadjuvant when specificallyrequired by one of the mix part-ners,• the application timing of eachpartner is compatible with cropand pest staging,• each partner is used accordingto the product label,• no partner is specifically exclud-

ed on any other partner label.The order in which you add

each product to the tank or induc-tor is critical. Making sure youhave the right mix, in the rightorder, is made easier with the freeapp from Precision Laboratories(www.mixtankapp.com) whichworks on Android andiPhone/iPad systems.

At the start-up screen, select“Mix Guide” (see Figure 1).Then, select the category of theproduct you wish to tank mix (seeFigure 2) and then select theproduct(s) from the alphabetizedlist. The app analyzes your selec-tions and suggests the best orderto add them to the tank. Note thatthese are U.S. products, whichmeans they may have differentnames in Canada, if they are reg-istered at all. The app has otherappealing features you canexplore, such as saving yourmixes for future reference, andaccessing instructional videos.

Always check the productlabels for information on compat-ibility of spray materials.“Compatibility” refers to thephysical and/or chemical compat-ibility of two or more products ina solution. If you are concerned,you should perform a jar test.Always wear personal protectiveequipment and do it in a safe andventilated area, away fromsources of ignition.1. Measure 500 ml of water intoa one litre glass jar. This shouldbe the same water you would filla spray tank with.2. Add ingredients according to

Table 1, stirring after each addi-tion.3. Let the solution stand in a

ventilated area for 15 minutes andobserve the results. If the mixtureis giving off heat, these

ingredients are not compatible.

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

THE GROWER

PAGE 14 –– MAY 2013

Tank mixing and pesticide compatibility: “The jar test”

CROP PROTECTION

FO

AFUM

Try ne

03/13-20810_MPT1

Figure 1 – Precision Laboratories’ Tank MixingApp Start-Up Screen

Figure 2 – Select from five categories and chooseup to 19 tank mix partners

Figure 3 – Physical incompatibility in the tank

Figure 4 – Gelatinous mess made by using an inductor as a mixing vatfor incompatible products

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 15

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

If gel or scum forms or solids settle to the bottom (except forthe wettable powders) then themixture is likely not compatible(see Figures 3 and 4 for examplesof physical incompatibility).4. If no signs of physical incompatibility appear, test themixture using a spray bottle on a

small area where it is to beapplied. Look for phytotoxic indications, such as plant damage,and monitor efficacy (which ishard to do unless you actually fillthe sprayer and try it on a fewplants).

Commercial compatibility kitsare available, such as the kit fromPrecision Laboratories. This kitcontains three plastic “jars” andfive disposable micropipettes (see

Figure 5). By following theinstructions included with the kit,you can easily reduce largelabelled volumes (such as 1.0kilogram of product in 500.0litres) of multiple products tosmall volumes at the same ratio.These kits can be purchased for~$20.00 (including delivery) bycalling 1.800.323.6280.

Remember: a compatibilitytest will only reveal physical

incompatibility between prod-ucts in a tank mix – they willnot reveal any other form of antagonism, such as productsinactivating one another, or thepotential for phytotoxicity. Theonly way to know for sure is toapply the mix to a few test plantsand keep an eye on them over theseason.

Tank mixing and pesticide compatibility: “The jar test”CROP PROTECTION

MINOR USE

OR MORE INFORMATION: mptmustardproducts.com

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Order IngredientQuantity for 500 ml or g of product labeled for

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1. Compatibility agents 5 ml (1 teaspoon)

2. Water-soluble packets, wettable powdersand dry flowables

15 grams (1 tablespoon)

3. Liquid drift retardants 5 ml (1 teaspoon)

4. Liquid concentrates, micro-emulsions andsuspension concentrates

5 ml (1 teaspoon)

5. Emulsifiable concentrates 5 ml (1 teaspoon)

6. Water-soluble concentrates or solutions 5 ml (1 teaspoon)

7. Remaining adjuvants and surfactants 5 ml (1 teaspoon)

Figure 5 – Contents of a commercially-available compatibility test kit

Altacor insecticide labelextended to strawberries

Canadian strawberry growers have a new tool to fight commonpests, thanks to an extension that adds strawberries to the label ofDuPont’s Altacor insecticide.

Now approved for use on strawberries for oblique-banded leafroller, three-lined leafroller, climbing cutworm and Japanese beetle(suppression), the addition will allow more growers to benefit fromthe unique toxicological profile Altacor offers.

"Altacor is effective at very low use rates, and it is easy on beesand beneficials," says Ray Janssen, market segment manager, horticulture, DuPont Crop "It's a very popular choice in an integratedpest management program."

Its active ingredient, rynaxypyr, is from a whole new group ofchemistry (Group 28), with no cross-resistance to other chemistries.As with all crop protection products, read and follow label instructionscarefully.

Source: DuPont Crop Protection news release

Japanese beetle

THE GROWER

PAGE 16 –– MAY 2013

MICHAEL T. TESFAENDRIAS, M.PAIBOMESAI, M. CELETTI ANDMARY RUTH MCDONALD

SummaryStemphylium leaf blight is a foliar diseaseof onions caused by the fungusStemphylium vesicarium. Initial symptomson leaves consisted of tip necrosis followedby small, light yellow to brown disoloura-tions with water-soaked lesions. Leavesmay completely blighted as the lesions

coalesce. Stemphylium leaf blight has beenobserved in the Holland/Bradford Marshand other onion growing regions of Ontariosince 2008. More infected fields were identified in 2009, and in 2010 yield losseswere associated with this disease. A surveyof foliar diseases of onion was conductedin 20 fields in main onion producing areasin Ontario from July 23 - August 10, 2012.All of the surveyed fields had stemphyliumleaf blight with severity ranged from 2 to60%. Of the surveyed fields 14 had purpleblotch with severity ranging 2 to 20%. In

2012, a field trial was conducted in theHolland/Bradford Marsh region of Ontarioto determine the efficacy of several fungicides on stemphylium leaf blight incidence and severity. Treatments were:Pristine (pyraclostrobin 25.2%, boscalid12.8%), Bravo 500 (chlorothalonil 50%),Manzate 750F (mancozeb 75%), Switch62.5WG (cyprodinil 37.5%, fluodioxinil25.0%), Fontelis 20SC (penthiopyrad20%), Inspire (difenoconzole 23.2%), LunaTranquility (fluopyram 11.3%,pyrimethanil 33.8%) and Quadris Top

(azoxystrobin 18.2%, difenoconazole11.4%). All of the fungicides reduced disease compared to the untreated check.Disease severity was lower in Quadris Top,Fontelis and Luna Tranquility treated plotsthan the other treatments. The most effective fungicides in reducing stemphylium leaf blight symptoms wereQuadris Top, Luna Tranquility and Inspirewhich reduced disease symptoms by 62, 60and 47% respectively.

Disease survey and fungicide treatments for the management ofstemphylium leaf blight of onion in Ontario

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Table 1. Disease ratings for stemphyllium leaf blight symptoms of onions, cv. Patterson,treated with various fungicides, grown near the Muck Crops Research Station, HollandMarsh, Ontario, 2012.1 - Disease rating using a 0-9 scale, where: 0 = 0%, 1 < 2%, 2 = 2-4%, 3 = 5-9%, 4 = 10-24%, 5= 25-40 %, 6 = 41-55%, 7 = 56-70%, 8 = 71-85% and 9 > 85% foliar area diseased per plot.2 - AUDPC = area under the disease progress curve.3 - Numbers in a column followed by the same letter are not significantly different at P = 0.05,Fisher's Protected LSD test.

Table 2. Comparison of marketable yield and size distribution of onions, cv. Patterson,treated with various fungicides grown near the Muck Crops Research Station, HollandMarsh, Ontario, 2012.1 - not significantly different at P = 0.05, Fisher's Protected LSD test

Fig 1. Stemphylium leaf blight of onions

TreatmentRate

(per ha)

% foliagewith

Symptoms

Plot Rating1

AUDPC2

July 27 Aug 7 Aug 17

QuadrisTop

1.0 L 12.0 a3 1.0 a 1.8 a 2.3 a 43.5 a

LunaTranquility

1.2 L 12.8 ab 1.5 ab 2.3 abc 2.8 ab 57.1 bc

Inspire 512 mL 16.8 abc 1.8 ab 2.8 bcd 3.8 cd 70.8 cd

Fontelis 1.4 L 18.9 bcd 1.5 ab 2.0 ab 3.3 bc 56.9 bc

Pristine 1.3 kg 19.8 cd 1.5 ab 2.5 abc 4.0 cde 67.0 cd

Manzate 3.25 kg 20.1 cd 2.0 b 2.8 bcd 4.8 e 78.3 de

Switch 975 g 23.1 d 2.0 b 3.0 cd 4.3 de 78.5 de

Bravo 4.8 kg 23.4 d 1.5 ab 2.5 bcd 3.8 cd 65.8 cd

Check -- 33.0 e 2.0 b 3.5 d 6.3 f 94.0 e

TreatmentRate

(per ha)

MarketableYield(t/ha)

Size Distribution

% Jumbo(> 76 mm)

% Large(64 - 76

mm)

% Medium(45 - 64

mm)

% Cull(< 45 mm)

QuadrisTop

1.0 L 56.5 ns1 0.04 ns1 12.4 ns 75.7 ns 11.7 ns

LunaTranquility

1.2 L 50.9 0.10 13.9 70.0 15.4

Pristine 1.3 kg 50.0 0.00 13.7 73.8 12.6

Bravo 4.8 kg 49.1 0.03 9.2 78.3 12.2

Manzate 3.25 kg 48.7 0.00 10.6 75.2 15.7

Switch 975 g 48.7 0.00 8.6 75.2 16.2

Fontelis 1.4 L 47.9 0.00 13.6 69.6 16.8

Inspire 512 mL 46.8 0.03 10.6 71.9 17.2

Check -- 40.7 0.00 4.0 76.4 19.6

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 17

KAREN DAVIDSON

Bradford, Ontario -- Ontariovegetable growers with post-har-vest washwaters are looking foranswers to water quality neededbefore discharging, and what willit all cost?

Water authorities may not pro-vide adequate advice for solutionsfor washwater discharge compli-ance from Ontario root crop pro-ducers. If settling ponds are sug-gested, many of the current carrotfacilities are constrained for spaceto build them. That’s whyDeanna Nemeth, OMAF andMRA’s nutrient management leadfor horticulture, is evaluating howland application of washwaterscould be an alternative option.

Nemeth released results ofstudies from three carrot opera-tions in the Holland Marsh at the62nd Muck Vegetable Growers’Conference in Bradford, Ontario.The toplines offer some insight.

During harvest 2012, OMAFand MRA completed a waste-water characterization study. Foreach of the carrot operations,washwater was sampled twiceduring harvest season and stan-dard washwater characteristicswere analyzed for water quality(total suspended solids, biologicaloxygen demand), pathogens (E.coli, coliform, salmonella), nutri-ents (nitrogen, phosphorous,potassium), and heavy metals.

“This is high-volume, low-nutrient water,” says Nemeth, butit’s not irrigation water per se.”

Results from the washwatersampling from carrot operationsshowed the washwater may be agood source of potassium withlevels ranging from 1.4 lbs K2Oper 1000 imperial gallons in car-rot root washing water, to levelsof potassium at 9.5 lbs K2O per1000 imperial gallons washwaterfrom carrot processing operations.

A second washwater study isin progress in the Holland Marshconducted by the Univeristy ofGuelph Muck Crops ResearchStation. Due to the physical char-acteristics of carrots, washwaterhas high soil sediments. Thisproject is to determine if landapplication of wash water andwashed off soil poses a risk oftransferring plant diseases:Sclerotinia sclerotiorum,Sclerotinia cepivorum and patho-genic fusarium. They are testingsurvival of sclerotia in the pondsover time.

The environmental issuebecomes what are the best man-agement practices for disposingof the water. Measurements arenow being taken to see if dis-charging that washwater mayimpact the water quality of thereceiving river or stream. In thefuture, it may need to be treatedbefore release, or land applied toother crops as a nutrient source.Several observations are cloudingthe issue. Production and there-

fore washwater quality is not con-sistent. For example, a limitedamount of soil is on cauliflowerand broccoli whereas root piecesreadily come off root vegetablessuch as carrots and parsnips.That means washwater qualitycan change dramatically depend-ing on the crop. Also, the volumeof water can change depending onthe crop being washed.

“The challenge for growers isto know what washwater treat-ment or land application optionsfit their operations best,” saysNemeth.

The best option is to reducethe amount of soil on the carrotswhen they come out of the fieldby dry brushing or mud removalbefore the carrots are washed.After the carrots are washed,

washwater treatment options toseparate solids from the washwa-ter are settling basins, aerobicponds, or mechanical screens toseparate sediment from the water.Land application options arespreading or irrigating onto crops,keeping in mind food safety andwater quality requirements ifoverhead irrigating onto freshmarket horticulture crops (exam-ples such as lettuce, spinach, cel-ery or herbs).

Nemeth said more work isrequired to understand operationalcharacteristics. She emphasizedthat solutions need to have mini-mal operator input.

“Water treatment is not yourmain business,” she said,“Solutions need to be as simple aspossible.”

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Photo by Glenn Lowson

“

THE GROWER

PAGE 18 –– MAY 2013

POLLINATION

PETER G. KEVAN, SARAHBATES, AND THOMAS S.WOODCOCK

Plant breeders have con-tributed marvellously to yieldincreases in agriculture. Cultivarsbred for greater productivity inseed and fruit crops are a main-stay of modern farming. One traitthat breeders have incorporatedinto many modern crop varietiesis self-compatibility. The flowerson self-compatible plants can fer-tilize themselves, getting aroundthe age-old problem of needinginsects and/or wind to transferpollen from plant to plant.

The benefits of self-pollinatingplants have been clear since theearliest days of agriculture. Theancient ancestor of the grapeplant (Vitis vinifera) was proba-bly dioecious – that is, it hadmale flowers and female flowerson separate vines. Early farmerswould have kept the vines thatproduced fruit and culled thosethat did not. Fast forward througha couple thousand years of selec-tion, and today’s grape cultivarsnow produce flowers that arebisexual and self-fertile. Similarly, ancient farmers wouldhave selected various fruit trees,such as peaches and pomegran-ates, that set fruit when isolatedfrom other trees. These trees didnot require a nearby mate forcross-pollination and could polli-nate themselves: they were self-compatible.

Not all crop plants have theability to change their sexual sys-tems and lose the need for cross-pollination. Apples, pumpkins,blueberries and alfalfa are exam-ples of crops for which cross-pol-lination remains essential. Butfor those crops that do have theability to change, one can appre-ciate the advantage of growing aself-compatible cultivar. Theyreduce the need for insect pollina-tors, whether they be wild ormanaged. When self-compatiblesunflowers became widely avail-able for production in the 1960s,seed companies advertised thatadding honeybee hives to fieldswas no longer needed and thatproduction costs would bereduced.

But is it well and truly the casethat pollinators are altogetherunnecessary in self-compatiblecrops? Over the years, thisunproven idea seems to havetaken firm hold. The fact thatpollen grains cannot jump bythemselves from an anther to astigma, even within same flower,is frequently overlooked.Growing evidence also suggeststhat even if spontaneous self-pol-lination takes place, the resultingseeds or fruits are of lower quali-ty than if cross-pollination hadoccurred. It is the same basicprinciple that favours outbreedingover inbreeding – the geneticdiversity introduced by cross-pol-lination produces bigger andhigher quality fruits and seeds, ashas been demonstrated in canola,

sunflower, strawberry, peppers,sour cherry, and others. Plantsmay invest more in growing supe-rior outbred seeds and fruit.

The table above lists a fewwell-known crop plants that arecommonly believed to not requirecross-pollination by insects, butfor which studies have shown an

increase in yield quantity and/orquality when pollinators areadded. The simple addition ofpollinators to some self-compati-ble crops could increase yield byas much as, for example incanola, 20 per cent - but strange-ly, the results of these studies,even those made in Canada, havebeen largely ignored.

Of course, the economics ofmanaged pollination still needs to

be taken into account. If a farmercan obtain a boost in yield from aself-compatible crop cultivar byadding managed pollinators toproduction practices, is the yieldincrease enough to make deploy-ing pollinators economicallyworthwhile? With significantyield increases entirely possible,it is a question well-worthanswering!

Cultivars that can self-pollinate are no guaranteeof full yield

Crop Plant Pollination System Yield Boost Potential

Tomato Pollination in the field by agitation bywind and insects. Pollination in green-houses by managed bumblebees.

For field production, some research indicatesyield boosts with bees deployed on fields.Managed pollination is required in greenhouses.

Peppers Pollination in the field by agitation bywind and insects.

Pollination in greenhouses improved by managedbumblebees.

Soy Bean Flowers can self-pollinate without fullyopening.

Possible for some cultivars.

Plums Some cultivars are self-compatible,others not

Some research suggests that higher quality fruitresults from cross-pollination.

Canola Role of pollen transfer by wind notunderstood.

Several studies show improved yields, quantityand quality, with managed pollinators present.Yield increases of up to 20% and more in somecircumstances.

Strawberry The degrees of self-compatibility andself-incompatibility differ between cul-tivars.

Even cultivars that are highly self-compatiblebenefit from insect pollination for well-formedand large fruit.

Cherry, sour Self-compatible Adding honeybees to a sour cherry orchard canincrease yields 2 – 4 fold. Sweet cherry is self-incompatible

Sunflower Improved yields, quantity and quality,with managed pollinators deployed

Yes, up to 20 – 40% increase in tonnes/Ha

Table: Crops where self-compatible cultivars may benefit from the addition of managed pollinators.Information taken from the “Best Management Practices for Pollination in Ontario Crops” website(www.pollinator.ca/canpolin).

Strawberries bloom under plastic tunnels at Jennen Family FarmMarket, Thamesville, Ontario.

During the spring 2012 cornplanting season, 230 separateincidents of bee killswere reported in Ontario, predominantly in the southwest,involving thousands of bee hivesat different beeyard locations.These reports have triggered a re-evaluation of neonicotinoidinsecticides by Health Canada’sPest Management RegulatoryAgency (PMRA).

With the re-evaluation ongoing, and the start of thisyear’s corn planting season, theOntario Beekeepers Association,Ontario Federation of Agriculture,Christian Farmers Federation ofOntario, and Grain Farmers ofOntario are working together toaddress the concerns of allfarmer-members in relation to thisissue.

In a position statement on theOntario Beekeepers’ Association(OBA) website, a backgrounderindicates that planting of cornseeds treated with the nitro-guanidine insecticides clothianidin and/or thiamethoxamcontributed to the majority of beemortalities. Clothianidin wasdetected in about 70 per cent ofthe samples analyzed in Ontarioand clothiandin and thiamethoxam were detected inthe samples analyzed fromQuebec. On a beeyard basis, theseresidues were detected in about80 per cent of the bee yardswhere dead bee samples were collected and analyzed.

The OBA says that in almostall cases, there was evidence ofcorn planting near affected beeyards as well as the use ofnegative pressure (vacuum)planters and talc seed flow lubricants. OMAF and MRA aswell as Agricorp have confirmeda correlation between the beemortalities and location ofOntario corn growers.

While the Pest ManagementRegulatory Agency is re-evaluating the registration ofthese chemicals, there is notimetable for a decision or criteriafor regulatory action. Concernsare exacerbated with the releaseof Statistics Canada numbers onApril 24 that in Ontario, farmersexpect to seed 2.3 million acres ofcorn for grain, up two per centfrom 2012. This is above the previous record of 2.2 millionacres set in 2012. In Quebec,farmers anticipate the area seededto corn to rise 15.8 per cent toreach 1.1 million acres.

As OBA notes, acreage devoted to corn continues toincrease, representing about 25per cent of Ontario’s field crops.Living in harmony with commercial fruit production isimportant due to farmgate valueof more than $225 million.

The four organizations agreethere is much more work to bedone to clarify the relationshipbetween neonicotinoid insecticides and the spring 2012

bee kills. The goal is to ensurefarmers have access to all cropprotection products as they deemnecessary for a successful growing season. At the sametime, honey bees play an important role in pollinating cropsand all farm associations are dedicated to ensuring a healthybee population in Ontario.

The four associations areencouraging the continued investigation into the cause of thebee kills, and support existing andongoing objective research intonew products and technology thathave the potential to reduce pesticide exposure.

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 19

POLLINATOR HEALTH

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MANA Canada offers four insecticides to protect your fruits and vegetables and maximize your production.With MANA Canada, you receive fair pricing and still achieve the results you expect. MANA Canada insecticides,

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DR. JASON S.T. DEVEAU,APPLICATION TECHNOLOGYSPECIALIST, OMAF ANDMRABRIAN HENDERSON, SALESREPRESENTATIVE,HYPRO/SHURFLOMURRAY THIESSEN -CONSULTINGAGRICULTURAL MECHANIC

You should plan for half-a-dayper sprayer for your start-up rou-tine. It may not take that long, butpressure gauges snap off, fittingscrack, and bearings seize – have aplan for getting replacementparts! (see Figure 1) Here are afew bulleted tips for you to con-sider as you get your sprayersrolling for the 2013 season.

• Visual inspection, generalcleaning and lubrication. Do anoperational check of the sightgauge (it should not be opaque),regulator and valves. Inspect theframe for corrosion or brokenwelds – it might even need apaint job. Test the hitch integrity,safety chains and the tank mount,too. Clean and inspect the fanblades, housing, screen and trashguard. Be sure to clean and lubri-cate the power take-off telescop-ing shafts and the shields. Wheelsbearings and tire pressure shouldbe inspected. An article on wheelmaintenance can be found here:http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/eng-lish/crops/hort/news/hort-matt/2012/30hrt12a2.htm

• Pump Maintenance. One of themost common causes for faultypump performance is "gumming"or corrosion inside the pump.You should get into the habit offlushing the pump and the entiresystem with a solution that willchemically neutralize whateveryou sprayed that day. This willdissolve most residues remainingin the pump and will also leavethe inside of the pump clean forthe next use.

Diaphragm PumpsHypro recommends changing

oil after 40 hours of break-inoperation and every 500 hoursafter that. Diaphragms should bereplaced every 500 hours andcheck valves should be replacedevery 1,000 hours. GenerallySpeaking, EPDM (BlackDiaphragms) are a better choicefor airblast sprayers while theDesmopan (Amber Diaphragms)are a better choice for lawn caresprayers.

Centrifugal PumpsCorrosion is the biggest con-

cern. When you winterized yoursprayer, you should have cleanedit and flushed it with a 50% solu-tion of permanent-type automo-bile antifreeze (Prestone® ,Zerex® , etc.) containing a rustinhibitor. Alternately, you couldhave filled the pump with FluidFilm® and then drained andsaved the excess for the nextapplication. The ports shouldhave been plugged to keep out airduring storage.

• Flush the lines. If they aren’talready off, remove the nozzles,strainers and filters. Run a fewtanks of clean water through thesystem with the agitation running.This is when rust, scale, anti-freeze and who-knows-what-elsebreaks free of the sprayer tankand lines. Run them until the dis-charge is clear, then clean andreplace the nozzles, strainers andfilters.

• Search for leaks. With the tankfull, check it for leaks. If the agi-tator shaft is leaking a little, tight-en the packing. If it has bot-tomed-out you will have torepack it. Get the sprayer up topressure and look for wet areason all hoses and connections. Ifyour booms drain through thenozzles when the boom is off,consider new nozzle bodies withcheck-valves. They cost about$40.00 each (does not apply to

Turbomist).

• Check your strainers and fil-ters. If you don’t already havethree levels of filtration (includ-ing the tank-opening basket) thenconsider slotted (not mesh) strain-ers behind the nozzles in the noz-zle body. If you don’t use thembecause they plug up, then lookto your agitation system: If theresludge at the bottom of your tankwhen it’s empty, then your pesti-cide is not mixed or staying sus-pended properly. That leads toclogged strainers and nozzles. Itmay also be your sprayerhygiene: You should be washing

nozzles and strainers after eachspray day.

• Are you sure your pressuregauges are accurate? The reliefvalve should always be in the by-pass position during sprayer startup. If you get a pressure spikeduring start-up and the needleburies, then the gauge will alwaysread high and must be replaced.An opaque, leaking, or otherwiseold gauge should be replaced.Consider purchasing a really goodgauge (e.g. www.winters.com)rather than a $20 dollar versionfor a farm supply store. New orold, test your gauge for accuracy.

A tool to do this can be foundhere:http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/eng-lish/crops/field/news/croppest/2012/06cpo12a3.htm

So, there are lots of other tips– more than we could includehere. Always consult your sprayermanufacturer’s manual. There’salso a checklist at the end ofFactsheet 10-047 “CalibratingAirblast Sprayers”. Considerprinting and laminating a copy foruse with a dry-erase marker againand again:http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/eng-lish/crops/facts/10-047.htm

Happy Spraying!

THE GROWER

PAGE 20 –– MAY 2013

Airblast sprayer start-up tips CROP PROTECTION

Figure 1 – It takes time and elbow-grease to get seized parts, such as this fan gear box, moving again. Planfor half-a-day per sprayer when performing your seasonal start-up, and be sure you have a source forreplacement parts.

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 21

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DR. JENNIFER DeELL, FRESHMARKET QUALITY,ONTARIO MINISTRY OFAGRICULTURE AND FOOD,AND MINISTRY OF RURALAFFAIRS

Strawberries are one of themost perishable fruit crops andare essentially fully ripe at har-vest. They have a high rate ofmetabolism and will destroythemselves in a relatively shorttime, even without the presenceof decay-causing pathogens.

Maturity and Harvesting

The harvest date is determinedbased on berry surface color. Allberries should be harvested nearfull ripe (>¾ red color), as eatingquality does not improve afterharvest. Appearance (color, size,shape, and freedom from defects),firmness, flavor (soluble solids,titratable acidity, and flavorvolatiles), and nutritional value(vitamin C) are all importantquality characteristics. Foracceptable flavor, a minimum 7%soluble solids and/or a maximum0.8% titratable acidity are recom-mended.

Strawberries have a relativelyhigh rate of respiration (50-100mL of C02 per kg per hour at20oC) and thus are highly perish-able. They produce very littleethylene (<0.1 ppm per kg per

hour at 20oC) and do not respondto exogenous ethylene by stimula-tion of the ripening processes.Removal of ethylene from storageair may reduce disease develop-ment in all berries.

Strawberries are usually handharvested and field packed.Berries are harvested with thecalyxes attached and must be heldloosely in the hand to avoid bruis-ing injury and discoloration. Thestrawberries must be handled withcare and placed gently into thecontainer, not dropped into it.Harvest should be as frequent asneeded to avoid over-matureberries. Harvesting, sorting, andpacking should be done simulta-neously in the field. Studies offruit quality loss have shown thatmost damage occurs in the fieldduring picking and packing.Therefore, minimizing berry han-dling is critical to good qualitymaintenance and postharvest life.

Cooling and Low Temperature

Good temperature managementis the single most important factorin reducing strawberry deteriora-tion and maximizing postharvestlife. The best way to slowspoilage is to quickly removefield heat and to maintain theberries as close to 0oC as possible.Any failure to maintain produceat low temperatures during han-dling, storage, and transportationwill result in loss of quality and

marketability. Berries held at20oC have only ¼ to ½ the lifeexpectancy of those held at 0oCand market life will be reduced toonly a few hours if strawberriesare held near 30oC, as may occurin the field.

Berries should be protectedfrom warming when they remainin the field after harvest. Due totheir dark color, strawberries indirect sun exposure will absorbheat and quickly warm to aboveair temperature. Precooling(rapid removal of field heat) ofstrawberries is essential within 1hour of harvest. Cooling delaysof 2, 4, 6, or 8 hours reduces mar-ketability by 20, 37, 50, or 70%,respectively, after holding thefruit at 25°C. The most commonmethod to precool berries isforced-air cooling, which is themost widely adaptable and fastestcooling method for small-scaleoperations. Cold air is forced tocirculate rapidly through the con-tainers (versus around the con-tainers as in room cooling),allowing the cold air to be indirect contact with the warmberries. Pallets of strawberriesare positioned so that the cold airmust pass through the packageopenings and around individualberries. The most commondesign consists of a tunnel, whichis formed by leaving spacebetween two rows of loaded pal-lets, and covering the top and oneend of the tunnel with a tarp.

With the exhaust fan operating,air is removed from the tunneland a slightly negative air pres-sure is created. Cold air from theroom then flows through packageopenings and around warmberries to reach the tunnel. Thecooling rate and efficiency of thesystem depend on a number offactors: 1) the temperature differ-ence between the fruit and thecold air, 2) the air flow rate, 3)the accessibility of the fruit to thecold air, and 4) the dimensions ofthe air channel. An inefficientsystem will increase the coolingtime, thus increasing the operat-ing cost and reducing the mar-ketable weight and quality of thefruit.

Storage Conditions

Optimum storage conditionsfor strawberries are 0oC and 9095% relative humidity. In suchconditions, strawberries can have7 10 days of storage-life.However, storage-life is verydependent on the handling ofberries during and after harvest.The highest freezing point is0.8oC for strawberries, althoughberries with high soluble solidscontent are less likely to freeze.

Generally, strawberries are notstored for extended periods oftime. However, some temporaryholding is often necessary toachieve orderly marketing.

Holding berries under optimumstorage conditions even duringshort marketing periods is benefi-cial to quality retention.Detrimental processes to berryquality are reduced at low tem-peratures, such as respiration,softening, moisture loss, anddecay development.

Strawberries are subject torapid water loss, causing them toshrivel and deteriorate, as well ascausing the calyx to wilt and/ordry out. These symptoms willaffect berry appearance beforethey affect eating quality. Waterloss is governed by the vaporpressure deficit between theatmosphere and the product. Theskin of a strawberry offers littleprotection to water vapor move-ment, and thus readily loses mois-ture to the surrounding air.Relative humidity of a storageroom should be maintained at 90-95%, as strawberries will start toshrivel when stored below 90%relative humidity. However,excessive condensation of freewater on the berries should beavoided.

This article has been abbreviated. It can be found infull at www.Ontario.ca/crops.Follow the links to berries, thenstrawberries. Source: “Our Strawberries”, byShahrokh Khanizedeh (editor)and Jennifer DeEll (contributor),2005

THE GROWER

PAGE 22 –– MAY 2013

Raspberry bushy dwarf virus in raspberries?

PAM FISHER, BERRY CROPSPECIALIST, ONTARIO MINISTRY OFAGRICULTURE AND FOOD, ANDMINISTRY OF RURAL AFFAIRS

Do your raspberry plants turn yellow inspring? Do you see apparent symptoms ofherbicide injury on emerging primocanes?Is fruit crumbly? These may be symptomsof raspberry bushy dwarf virus, a pollen-born virus that affects red and black raspberries and occurs naturally in wildraspberries.

Raspberry bushy dwarf virus (RBDV)can cause a variety of symptoms, and maycause no symptoms in some cultivars. Onecommon symptom is yellow, interveinalchlorosis on emerging primocanes in thespring (Figure 1 and Figure 2). Thesesymptoms are commonly mistaken forsimazine injury. This virus can also causecrumbly fruit, and a reduction in vigour.Leaves may exhibit yellow blotches, ringsand lines.

The best way to diagnose raspberry

bushy dwarf virus is early in the season,when temperatures are fairly cool andsymptoms are most evident. Collect a fewyoung but fully expanded leaves withsymptoms and send to a diagnostic labora-tory. ELISA test kits have been developedto diagnose this virus and most diagnosticlabs will provide this service. Raspberry bushy dwarf virus is a big prob-lem because it is spread to new plants inpollen from infected raspberry plants.Some varieties are more tolerant than oth-ers, and some plant breeders have devel-oped varieties with resistance to this dis-ease. Primocane fruiting varieties areprone to RBDV because of their longbloom period. Management of RBDVincludes the following steps: • Purchase virus-tested plants from anaccredited nursery. • Control wild raspberries around the fieldand farm. • Rogue out infested plants. • Remove bloom in the establishment yearof a raspberry planting.

Authors notes: Tomato ringspot virus isanother common virus in Ontario raspber-ries, and the one I see most often. Tomatoringspot virus is spread by the dagger

nematode. Symptoms include crumbly fruit,and a reduction plant vigour. This viruscan also be diagnosed using the ELISAtest.

Postharvest handling and storage of strawberries

Symptoms of raspberry ringspot virus inprimocane fruiting raspberries. Note thedifference in varieties.

Symptoms of raspberry ringspot virus onplant foliage, sometimes described as a“calico” pattern.

THE GROWERMAY 2013 –– PAGE 23

BERRY FOCUS

Biology: Spotted Wing Drosophila in Ontario

LISA EMILJANOWICZ ANDGERALDINE RYAN, SCHOOLOF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES, UNIVERSITY OFGUELPH, AND PAM FISHER,ONTARIO MINISTRY OFAGRICULTURE ANDMINISTRY OF RURALAFFAIRS

Spotted wing drosophila(SWD) is an invasive vinegar flynative to southeast Asia. It is apest of soft-skinned fruit. SWDfemales are able to lay eggs inundamaged fruit before harvestdue to a large, serrated ovipositorthat is not normally present onother common vinegar flyspecies. Therefore, larvae may bepresent in fruit at harvest, reducing fruit quality and yields.Additionally, the ovipositionwound acts as a pathway to secondary infection by otherinsects and pathogens causingrapid deterioration of the fruit.SWD are of concern as they haverecently invaded the U.S.,Canada, and Europe, causing fruitdamage and revenue loss.

Life Cycle:

Since SWD has only recentlybeen found in Ontario, our knowl-edge of their biology is based oninformation from southeast Asiaand western North America,where they have been establishedfor a longer period of time.Research is underway to gatherinformation more specific toSWD in Ontario. However, it isknown that SWD have a lifecycle containing an egg stage, 3larval instars, a pupal, and anadult stage. Eggs, larvae, andpupae are present inside the fruit.Full development from egg toadult can take between 8 and 25days depending on temperature.See figure 1: Life cycle of SWD

The adult lifespan can varybetween 3 and 9 weeks, althoughoverwintering adults that emergein late autumn can survive untilthe following spring by seeking

refuge under leaves, betweenstones, or in man-made enclosures. Most SWD move tosheltered locations outside of cropfields to overwinter.Overwintering SWD enter a stateof reproductive diapause and arethen able to lay eggs the follow-ing spring. Females reach sexualmaturity 1 to 2 days after emerg-ing, with the ability to produceanywhere from 380 to 560 eggsin a lifetime. Populations peak inlate summer and early fall. Thepreferred temperature for SWD isbetween 20 and 25°C, and theiractivity is reduced when tempera-tures exceed 30°C or fall below10°C. Given this information, it ispredicted that SWD will be ableto complete 3 to 9 generations inthe Canadian growing season.

Crops affected and wild hosts:

SWD has a wide host rangebut is primarily a pest of soft-skinned berries and stone fruits.They can infest cultivated cropsand wild hosts that may bordercrops. If perimeter hosts are leftunmaintained populations mayincrease as SWD adults movefrom host to host with differentripening times. Late season cropsare at a higher risk of infestation

because populations peak afterlate July, however early crops canalso be affected. Crops of concerninclude: strawberries, blackber-ries, blueberries, cherries, rasp-berries, elderberries, mulberries,nectarines, peaches, pears, andplums, and possibly grapes. Wildhosts include: buckthorn, dogwood, brambles, nightshade,honey-suckle, black elder,

pokeweed, and pin cherry. SWDhave been found to feed on oaktree sap, and oviposit on crackedor damaged tomatoes, and evenflowers, in the absence of idealhosts. This is an indication oftheir opportunistic behaviour.

Observations in Ontario:

The first detection in Ontario

was in November 2010. In 2011,SWD adults were not trappeduntil the middle of August, andnumbers did not increase untillate September. No commercialdamage was reported.

In 2012, the first SWD weretrapped on June 25th. Larvaewere detected in fruit as early asJuly 6 and widespread damagewas evident in mid-late August.The winter of 2011-2012 wasvery mild and spring 2012 wasvery early. We expect that thesemild conditions contributed to theearlier build up of SWD inOntario.

Studies on SWD in their nativerange of Japan suggest that thisspecies can survive and overwin-ter in below-freezing conditions.It is important to monitor theactivity of adult SWD each yearto determine when the pest isactive. The risk to early-develop-ing fruit crops, particularly earlyvarieties, could vary from year toyear, depending on overwinteringconditions. All growers should beprepared to control SWD in 2013.

For more information on SWDsee: www.Ontario.ca\spottedwing

Figure 1: Life cycle of spotted wing drosophila

Keep in touch with theseOMAF and MRAresources

The Berry Bulletin will be starting shortly with updates on crop andpest development in Ontario berry crops. You can have the BerryBulletin emailed to your inbox, or sent to you by fax. This service isprovided by the Ontario Berry Growers Association to their members. . . don’t forget to ask for it by contacting the OBGA office.Although the bulletin is also posted in the OMAF and MRA website,it is not archived there. You can subscribe to receive an email noticewhen a new berry bulletin is posted on line:www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/updates/berry/index.html

I am also on Twitter! You can follow me on twitter: @fisherpam.I try to follow many berry growers.

Are you interested in speciality crops and specialty berries likehaskaps, goji berries and sea buckthorn? The ON Specialty CropsBlog keeps growers up to date with specialty crop news. www.ONSpecialtycrops.wordpress.com

Label expansion granted forCommand 360 ME herbicideJIM CHAPUT, OMAF & MRA, MINOR USECOORDINATOR, GUELPH

The Pest Management Regulatory Agency(PMRA) recently announced the approval of aminor use label expansion for Command 360 herbi-cide for control and suppression of labeled weeds onfield peppers in Canada. Command herbicide wasalready labeled for management of weeds oncucumbers, melons, squash, pumpkins, sweet potatoes and soybeans in Canada.

This minor use project sponsored by Agriculture& Agri-Food Canada, Pest Management Centre(AAFC-PMC) was submitted in 2004 in response tominor use priorities identified by producers andextension personnel in Canada.

This new registration will provide field peppergrowers with a much needed weed managementtool.

The following is provided as a general, abbrevi-ated outline only. Users should consult the completelabel before using Command 360 ME herbicide.Command 360 herbicide should be applied beforetransplanting peppers and before weed emergence ata rate of 1.55 – 2.35 L product per ha in at least 95L water per ha. Consult the label for soil typerestrictions and other precautions. A maximum of 1

application per season is permitted; do not use onbanana peppers. The pre-harvest interval for peppersis 70 days.

Command herbicide should be used in an inte-grated weed management program and in rotationwith other management strategies. Follow all otherprecautions and directions for use on the Commandherbicide label.

For copies of the new supplemental label contactKristen Callow, OMAFRA, Harrow (519) 738-1232, Jim Chaput, OMAFRA, Guelph (519) 826-3539 or visit the UAP website www.uap.caNote: This article is not intended to be an endorse-ment or recommendation for this particular product,but rather a notice of registration activity

MINOR USE

On guard against brown marmorated stink bug

KAREN DAVIDSON

While the brown marmoratedstink bug (BMSB) smells, its eco-nomic bite is worse. Apple grow-ers in the mid-Atlantic U.S. werestung for $37 million in 2010.

To date, BMSB has been con-firmed as established in theHamilton-Burlington area ofOntario. It has not been identifiedin the field and there have beenno reports of crop damage.BMSB has not been found inother provinces, although therehave been some interceptions incargo and vehicles.

“I don’t want to get bitten bythis pest,” warned Hannah Fraser,technical working group co-chairwho presented at the AlienInvasive Species Symposium inMarch.

So handy at hitchhiking thatit’s crossed the ocean from itsnative Asia, this insect has abroad appetite for more than 150plant species, including manyagricultural crops. Its adaptationto diverse habitats means thatonce BMSB is established in anarea, it’s likely there to stay.

BMSB overwinters as adults inprotected areas that can includehomes and buildings. It’s not sur-prising that the first detectionstypically come from people whonotice them making their wayindoors in the fall. The adultsemerge from overwintering sitesin the spring and lay eggs over anextended period, so that multiplelife stages may be present fromJune through September. GivenCanada’s climate, there’s likely

only one generation per year.Fraser is urging growers to lookfor BMSB in their crops and isencouraging the general public toreport suspects collected in theirhomes or gardens.

BMSB is highly mobile andmoves between crops throughoutthe growing season. Crops are atthe greatest risk of injury whenfruit, pods or seeds are present,but BMSB will also feed on vege-tative plant parts. Populations canalso build up on unmanagedwoody hosts before moving intocrops.

“It’s a perimeter-driven pest,”says Fraser. “Damage is oftenworst near field borders.”

BMSB has a very broad hostrange that includes tree fruit,berries, grapes, vegetables, agro-nomic crops, ornamental trees andornamental shrubs. Both nymphsand adults can cause injury.Damage results when they inserttheir piercing-sucking mouthpartsinto fruit, seedpods, buds, leavesor stems of plants. Symptoms ofstink bug feeding can include dis-coloured, corky or collapsed fruit,leaf stippling and shriveled,stained seeds or punctured ker-nels. Harvest of field crops mayinduce migration into late seasoncrops such as pome fruit andgrapes.

With unpredictable host usepatterns and no effective naturalenemies, BMSB is proving hardto kill. Researchers don’t knowhow long it takes between colo-nizing new habitats and wheneconomic damage can be expect-ed. In the U.S., researchers arelooking at pesticide efficacy tri-

als, monitoring tools, seasonaldynamics, “attract and kill” bio-logical control repellents andsolutions for organic growers.

“Insecticides will play a leadrole for the short term,” saysFraser. “Of 37 insecticides evalu-ated, few provided very goodcontrol of BMSB. There are vari-able results even within classes ofpesticides. One pyrethroid, forexample, didn’t work as well asanother pyrethroid. A lot of thenewer reduced-risk chemistriesare not efficacious. There seemsto be limited residual activity ofinsecticides against adults.”

This discouraging news meansthat pesticides are not effective inpreventing initial BMSB adultsfeeding on maturing fruit or veg-etables. It does not take manyBMSB to cause injury. Not everyadult warrants an insecticidaltreatment, but the presence ofnymphs may indicate enoughBMSB are present in the crop totrigger a spray. With this initialunderstanding of the pest, Fraserpredicts that biological controland other management strategieswill be important in controllingBMSB in the long term.

Tiny parasitic wasps that

attack BMSB eggs in Asia arebeing screened in the U.S. Beforethese can be released, researchersneed to ensure these biologicalcontrol agents won’t cause dam-age to native stink bugs, many ofwhich are important predators inagricultural crops.

With the status of the invasionin Canada not entirely clear, thissummer’s research plans includeassessing the distribution andabundance of BMSB in southernOntario and identifying agricul-tural areas at risk from BMSB.The intent is to develop an inven-tory of natural enemies of stinkbugs. This list will provide base-line data on the potential for bio-logical control of BMSB inCanada by native predators andparasitoids.

Researchers will also be evalu-ating a new pheromone trappingsystem for efficacy and utility inearly detection. Studying coldtolerance and overwintering phys-iology is another prong ofresearch to determine the poten-tial for establishment of BMSB indifferent parts of Canada.

Several products are registeredin Canada for control or suppres-sion of BMSB including: LannateToss-N-Go, Clutch 50 WGD andMalathion 85E. Additional prod-ucts and label expansions arerequired to provide adequatemanagement tools for all affectedcrops. Wherever possible, regis-tering new pest control productswill be harmonized with theAmerican IR-4 program.

For ongoing research updates,look to www.stopbmsb.org.

THE GROWER

PAGE 24 –– MAY 2013

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The brown marmorated stink bug is 14 – 19 mm long and 8 mm wide.Its distinguishing feature is the presence of two white bands on eachantenna. Report suspect finds of this pest to local provincial authori-ties. Photo by D. Galbraith, Royal Botanical Gardens.

Label expansion granted for Prowl H20 herbicideJIM CHAPUT, OMAF & MRA,MINOR USE COORDINATOR,GUELPH

The Pest ManagementRegulatory Agency (PMRA)recently announced the approvalof a minor use label expansion forProwl H2O Herbicide(pendimethalin) for control ofweeds on green onions (mineralsoil), transplanted leeks (mineralsoil) and outdoor ornamentals inCanada. Prowl H2O herbicidewas already labeled for manage-ment of weeds on corn, soybeans,snap beans, adzuki beans and drybulb onions in Canada.

These minor use submissionswere sponsored in 2010 and 2011by the minor use office ofOMAFRA in response to minoruse priorities identified by pro-ducers and extension personnel inCanada. Additional data support-ing these projects was providedby Dr. Darren Robinson, S. Vink,U. of G., Ridgetown; Dr. C.Swanton and K. Chandler, U. ofG. main campus; Dr. J.O’Sullivan, R. Grohs, U. of G.,Simcoe as well as Dr. B.Zandstra, MSU, Dr. D. Doohan,OSU and colleagues in Quebec.

Weed control is an importantcomponent of green onion andleek production and has beenidentified as a priority by producers for several years. Theregistration of Prowl H2O

herbicide is an important steptowards improving the weed management and resistance management toolkit.

The following is provided as ageneral outline only. Users shouldconsult the complete label beforeusing Prowl H2O herbicide.

Leeks, green onions:

Prowl H2O herbicide can beused for control of selected annual weeds in green onions andtransplanted leeks grown on mineral soils at a rate of 2.37 Lper ha. Apply after transplantingof leeks and before weed emer-gence. Apply at the 2 – 3 true leafstage of green onions after thecrop has emerged. Prowl H2Ocan be applied in a minimum of

200 L water per ha.Do not apply Prowl H2O her-

bicide to green onions and leekswithin 30 days of harvest.

Outdoor ornamentals, includingconifers:

Prowl H2O herbicide can beused for control of selected annual weeds in outdoor ornamentals at a rate of 3.7 L perha in a minimum of 100 L waterper hectare. Consult the label forspecific details about establishedfield and container ornamentalsand newly transplanted field andcontainer ornamentals. Also consult the label for details abouttolerant ornamental species andapplication restrictions and precautions.

Prowl H2O herbicide should beused in an integrated weed management program and in rotation with other managementstrategies. Follow all other pre-cautions and directions for use onthe Prowl H2O herbicide label.March 27, 2013

For copies of the new supple-mental label for green onions andleeks contact Kristen Callow,OMAFRA, Harrow (519) 738-1232, for ornamentals contact Jennifer Llewellyn,OMAFRA Guelph (519) 824-4120 ext. 52671 or visit theBASF Canada website athttps://agro.basf.ca/basf/agsolutions/SelectRegion.htm

EngageAgro todistributeGranuflo Tfungicide

Engage Agro has announcedthat it’s the exclusive marketerand distributor for selectTaminco products in Canada,including Granuflo T multi-sitefungicide for fruit and vegetablecrops.

“In addition to Granuflo T,there are several other excitingnew chemistries from Tamincothat we believe will helpCanadian growers increase theirproduction while remaining com-petitive in the global market-place,” says Michael Brazeau,business development and mar-keting manager with EngageAgro Corp.

Granuflo T, Desikote Max andEnfuse 510 are all currentlyavailable from Engage AgroCorp. with additional products tobe launched over the next fewyears. Taminco is based inAllentown, Pennsylvania.

Source: Engage Agro newsrelease

MINOR USE

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 25

Always read and follow label directions. ELEVATE, the ELEVATE logo, MAESTRO, the MAESTRO logo, KANEMITE and the KANEMITE logo are registered trademarks of Arysta LifeScience North America, LLC. “Go with what works” is a trademark of

Arysta LifeScience North America, LLC. Arysta LifeScience and the Arysta LifeScience logo are registered trademarks of Arysta LifeScience Corporation. ORTHENE is a registered trademark of OMS Investments, Inc., exclusively licensed to Arysta LifeScience

Corporation in numerous countries. ©2012 Arysta LifeScience North America, LLC. ORT-048

Thanks for putting your trust in our products. For more information, visit www.gowithwhatworks.ca or call 1-866-761-9397 toll free.

Growers have some unusual traditions — things they do every year to ensure a successful growing season. From

the hula girl one grower pulls out at planting, to the barn dance another grower throws after every harvest, you

go with what works. Just like the products that come through for you year after year, why mess with a good thing?

THE GROWER

PAGE 26 –– MAY 2013

Be careful what you ask for-you may get it! We have all heardsuch sage advice over the years. Itfollows on the footsteps of thefinal bidder at an auction is onlyone bid dumber than the previousbidder! When it comes to a bigticket purchase, how often doesthe glitter quickly wear off whenupon further inspection, the itemis not quite what you had thoughtit was? Experience is best gainedby seeing and learning from themistakes of others, but comes at adear price sometimes when it isyour own mistake that caused thelearning!

All of this is to make a point. A lot of farm land has been

changing hands lately. (Cityhomes too.) The big keep gettingbigger, and more and moresmall(ish) land holdings are dis-appearing. At one time, a farmalmost never got ‘listed,’ -- itwas sold by private treaty to aneighbour or his son, to get him astart in farming. Occasionally,when a feud existed, a farm mightget sold to anyone except to acertain family. Even when theymight be willing to pay a premi-um, it was never going to happen!

There are still a few original‘Century’ farms about, (pre 1867ownership and still in the samefamily). Often these are held ontofor purely sentimental reasons,but the farming business on thatland may (likely) be a non-starterfrom an economic point of view.While it may be impossible topart with them, they do have avalue which means a lot to thefamily members who do not getthem! Family fights have startedover the deemed value of grand-

pa’s farm!More recently, there have been

farms offered by tender to thehighest bidder. There will likelybe a reserve to ensure that at leasta fair price is achieved, but usual-ly this becomes moot when thebidders line up. Sometimes thevalue is actually diminished bythe cost associated with removalof unwanted and unusable build-ings. (In the past when an olderhouse could be severed off as anunwanted farm dwelling, theremay have been some recoverablevalue, but this kind of severanceis rare today.)

If a long-term land renter hasbeen using the farm, he will bethe one who best knows its poten-tial, and its weaknesses. He willknow what (if any) improvementshave been made, and what theresidual fertility may be. The his-tory of pesticide use, the weedproblems, and the potential forcrop disease in specialty cropsmay be also be factors that heknows best. Other features mayinclude the presence of a water-course, irrigation pond, a forestedarea or woodlot, fencing or wind-breaks. All of these can be lookedupon as a good or bad thing by abuyer -- it depends upon whattheir plans are for the land.

Another bidder may best watchthe former renter and see whatbid they are prepared to offer (inan open property auction). In mylocal area, there are a handful oflegitimate farmer-bidders on anypiece of farmland. They usuallyknow exactly what it’s worth, tothem for their business opera-tions, and they rarely get into bid-ding wars. When a new (outside)bidder enters the fray, they areprepared to back off, and hopethat the land will ultimately comeback on the market, when thebold bidder realizes their ‘error.’ Ican count those kinds of proper-ties around here over the past 30years, and they almost alwaysended up in the hands of previousbidders! In some areas, bidderscome from far away, and will payseemingly outrageous amounts tobuy land. I understand that this isbecoming more common acrossthe country. It is hard to competewith ‘endless funds -- just try to

buy a silent auction item at somecharity events!

At one time, the value of ahouse you could afford was 2.5times your annual gross salary. Afarm’s worth was based on thevalue of the number of cattle itcould sustain. The extras such asa good water source, a goodwoodlot for fuel, and the qualityof the buildings determined thefinal selling price. Today it is thevalue of corn and/or soybeans.Even the wheat in rotation is seenonly as a necessary evil for landmanagement purposes, but thereis less of it and almost no springgrain compared to the past. Thishas affected everything in the ‘oldeconomy.’ The vegetable produc-ers have been able to barter forbetter prices for their crops sim-ply because they can switch allthose acres to an easier crop (cornor beans) leaving the processorwith nothing to sustain their busi-ness investments. These growers

are still willing to grow thesevegetable crops, knowing that inthe fullness of time, they will seecorn and bean prices moderate.There is no sense in giving awayany future opportunities by beinggreedy today!

I saw this in Scotland back in1986 when a European ‘subsidy’to grow malting barley had ledgrowers to rip up long-term pas-tures to plant barley. They alsoripped out older raspberry andstrawberry fields. Former potatoland grew barley after barley.Eventually, there was a glut ofbarley, and the subsidy ended.The short-term shortage of berrieshad allowed those still growing toget a better price, but the renewedcrops eventually undermined thatgain as well.

In addition to all of this, some-times land which is really notsuited to a crop gets planted to itanyway, as the dream of ‘riches’overrules common sense. We

have much sandy to very sandyland here which should not grow‘row crops’ without irrigation andthe addition of organic matter atleast biannually. That land maysell for less than more suitableland, but there is always that lastbidder!

One sage piece of advice I hadfrom my great uncle was that youshould only buy the best landyour money will allow. It may bea smaller piece, but good landalways pays, and poor landalways costs! Never let sentimentget in the way of good businesssense.As you go about getting in thisyear’s crop, and have some think-ing time on the tractor seat, itmay pay to remember at least myfirst and the prior paragraphs! Bidwith economics in mind; do notlet your heart get engaged! Itcould save you (and your off-spring) a lot of heartache later on!

CRAIG’S COMMENTS

Land costs or pays

CRAIG HUNTEROFVGA

MINOR USE

engageagro.com 1-866-613-3336 © 2013 Engage Agro Corporation.

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The vegetable producers have been able to barter for betterprices for their crops simply because they can switch all those acres toan easier crop (corn or beans) leaving the processor with nothing tosustain their business investments.”

“Photo by Glenn Lowson

JIM CHAPUT, OMAFRA, MINOR USECOORDINATOR, GUELPH

Arysta LifeScience North America andthe Pest Management Regulatory Agency(PMRA) recently announced the registration of Kasumin (kasugamycin)bactericide for several crops in Canada.This is the first registration for this activeingredient in Canada and marks an important milestone in addressing some ofthe most important diseases affecting pomefruit, fruiting vegetables and tree nuts. Thisproduct and the diseases it controls havebeen identified for many years as animportant disease management tool neededby Canadian producers.

Kasumin bactericide is registered forcontrol or suppression of fireblight ofpome fruits (apples, pears, quince), bacterial spot and stem canker of field and

greenhouse fruiting vegetables (tomatoes,peppers, eggplant) and walnut blight ofwalnuts. The following table provides asummary of the crop registrations on thenew Canadian Kasumin bactericide label.Consult the full product label for detailedinstructions, precautions and restrictions.

Follow all other precautions and directions for use on the Kasuminbactericide labelcarefully. Consult individual crop and disease control recommendations on the Kasumin bacteri-cide label for additional use restrictions.

Kasumin bactericide should be used inan Integrated Pest Management programand in rotation with other managementstrategies to adequately manage resistance.Consult provincial guidelines and localextension specialists for monitoring protocols and disease management recommendations.

For copies of the new Kasumin

bactericide label contact Jim Chaput,OMAFRA, Guelph (519) 826-3539 or visitthe Arysta Canada website at

www.arysta-na.com/ca-agriculture/prod-ucts.html

Kasumin bactericide granted Canadian registration

Potato herbicideco-pack

Western Canadian potatofarmers and Canadian processingtomato growers now have a newtool for powerful, flexible weedcontrol and more convenientresistance management. TitusPRO is a new DuPont post-emer-gent herbicide solution that com-bines DuPont Prism SG (rimsul-furon) and a 75% DF metribuzininto one convenient co-pack.

"Titus PRO provides excep-tional post-emergent control of abroad spectrum of grassy andbroadleaf weeds, and its multiplemodes of action make it anexcellent resistance managementtool," says Ray Janssen, marketsegment manager, horticulture,DuPont Crop Protection.

Packaged in a convenient,easy-to-use 40-acre case, DuPontTitus PRO delivers multiplemodes of action - Group 2 andGroup 5 - in one co-pack, pro-viding the industry with a proac-tive resistance management tool.

"Growers have always appre-ciated the superior control ofannual grasses they've achievedusing Prism SG. Now with theadditional power of metribuzin,they'll see enhanced residualcontrol of a far wider range ofbroadleaf weeds as well," saysJanssen.

Titus PRO controls grassyweeds such as barnyard grass,quackgrass and lamb's-quartersand broadleaf weeds such ascocklebur, common chickweedand post-emergent stinkweed. Afull listing of registered uses isavailable on the product's label.

For more information aboutTitu PRO or any other DuPontproduct, ask your retailer, call 1-800-667-3925 or visit croppro-tection.dupont.ca

Source: DuPont CropProtection news release

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE 27

MINOR USE

Fireblight on apple tree

THE GROWER

PAGE 28 –– MAY 2013

Phostrol® helps maintain the quality of your

potatoes while in storage so you can get the most

out of your crop. Phostrol® is an extremely systemic

and highly unique fungicide that provides effective,

convenient & flexible preventative protection of late

blight and pink rot when applied during the season

and at harvest.

Now Registered!

Always read and follow label directionsPhostrol is a registered trade-mark of Engage Agro Corporation.

For more information on Phostrol please contactEngage Agro 1-866-613-3336engageagro.com

Make themall count.

STORIES BYKAREN DAVIDSON

From a grower’s perspective,ambling down the centre aisle ofa farmers’ market is anything butroutine. The mental checklistincludes competitors’ pricing,quality and labeling. Andalthough the scene may appearbucolic to consumers, growers arequick to notice infractions.

Are the containers sitting onthe ground where they might becontaminated by pets?

Are the containers properlylabeled with truthful advertisingabout source of produce?

Are the containers of food-grade quality, appropriate for theproduce being sold?

These are questions that alsoconcern the food and inspectionbranch of the Ontario Ministry ofAgriculture and Food andMinistry of Rural Affairs (OMAFand MRA). Horticultural assis-tants randomly collect samples ofproduce at farmers’ markets anddirect sale outlets all overOntario.

“We go out on a complaintbasis,” explains Suzete Moniz,regulatory and standards coordi-nator for foods of plant originprogram, OMAF and MRA. Riskmanagement specialists on per-manent staff also look into con-cerns. Most complaints deal withsignage or labeling regarding ori-gin of produce or discrepanciesbetween signage and individualcontainer labeling.

As Loree Saunders, compli-ance programs coordinatorOMAF and MRA, explains, thereare no set container sizes exceptfor potatoes in Ontario. On therequest of the Ontario PotatoBoard, O. Reg 119/11 sets outspecific mandatory package sizesfor potatoes until June 30, 2016.

In addition to labeling issues,OMAF and MRA staff conduct afood safety monitoring program.

In total, 867 samples were col-lected for either chemical ormicrobial analysis from roadsidestands, farm gate and farmers’markets. The results werereleased in March 2013.

Under microbial analysis, of657 samples representing 491Ontario growers, three samples(0.5 per cent) tested positive forSalmonella spp. Two were sam-ples of leaf lettuce and one was asample of strawberries. Two sam-ples (0.3 per cent) tested positivefor generic E. coli above 3,000colony forming units per gram.One was a sample of lettuce andthe other a sample of spinach.

Under chemical analysis, of210 samples representing 183Ontario growers, four samples (2per cent) contained residue levelsabove Health Canada’s allowable

limits. Three of these were sam-ples of lettuce and one was a sam-ple of wax beans.

When adverse results weredetected, the grower was notifiedimmediately and government staffassisted in determining the sourceof contamination. One publicrecall of shelled peas was issuedas a result of sampling.

“Results from this program arenot statistically valid and cannotbe used to make generalizationsabout the state of the industry,”states Nicole Robb, data andissues management coordinator,OMAF and MRA, in a March2013 factsheet.

Containers themselves are notlikely sources of contaminants,but how they are handled isimportant in the analysis of criti-cal control points.

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 CELEBRATING 133 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION SECTION B

Labelling and food safety go hand-in-handCONTAINERS

FOCUS: CONTAINERSMARKETPLACE

Sam Elias Junior, Leamington, Ontario, oversees his stall at the Ontario Food Terminal where clearly labeled, one-use, corrugated cardboardboxes are stacked on pallets above the ground. Photo by Glenn Lowson.

Types of fresh fruits and vegeta-bles tested for microbial analysisin 2012.

Types of fresh fruits and vegeta-bles tested for chemical analysisin 2012.

CommodityType

Total NumberTested

Broccoli 41

Green Onion 61

Carrot 99

Strawberry 121

Cilantro 8

Lettuce 120

Parsley 21

Spinach 41

Tomato 139

Other 6

CommodityType

Total NumberTested

AsianVegetable

41

Wax Bean 61

Apple 99

Lettuce 121

Tomato 8

Peas 120

Spinach 21

Green Onion 41

The trend towards more ReusablePlastic Containers (RPC) has opened upopportunities for customized packaging.For example, a new 10-pack strawberryquart has been designed by Phil Short,owner of Vortex Packaging to precisely fitan IFCO 08N. For those shipping toLoblaws, IFCO is one of the approved sup-pliers of RPCs.

“You have to start at retail to designsomething that will create sales,” saysShort. “It may require extra effort forgrowers, but it will pay off.”

As a grower, retailer and shipper atVineland Station, Ontario, Short has carvedout a niche in specialty packaging for pro-duce. His lidded baskets for peaches were abreakthrough a couple years ago, and sincethen, he’s been designing new packagingthat suits retailers large and small. Thisyear, a new strawberry one-litre containerhas a flush mount lock enabling more effi-cient use of space while protecting perish-able fruit. The container design reduces theamount of polypropylene which is a gradefive for recycling. Less material is better.

Short says the new strawberry quarts areventilated for faster cooling, and will shipwith less shrinkage. From the grower’s per-spective, he says the lead time for packing

is shorter because there’s no need toassemble corrugated containers. “Aboutone-eighth of the space is required to storethis packaging,” says Short.

Also new to the market this year is aone-litre blueberry basket that will holdthree 170-gram clamshells. With blueberryproduction ramping up all over NorthAmerica, Short thinks these new basketswith handles will be a useful marketingsize. “They are excellent for on-farmretail,” he says, “lid on or off.”

While growers have not been enthusias-tic about the labour required for attachingthe handles, these handles provide anothersurface for adhering farm logos orFoodland Ontario symbols. For a con-sumer, all that’s needed is one hand to pickup a balanced, reinforced basket. That’s asimple price to pay to make the sale.

With convenience in mind, Short isintroducing a 2.5 pound ziplock handle bagthat will fit small- to medium-sized apples.“It’s a better price point than the four-pound or three-pound bags,” explainsShort. “It’s a gusseted bag that will standup on display shelves as well. ”

These packaging innovations speak tothe current trends in Canadian marketing offood safety and convenience.

THE GROWER

PAGE B2 –– MAY 2013

FOCUS: CONTAINERS

Packaging is custom designed for RPCs

Stephanie Dueck demonstrates the new 10-pack strawberry quarts at the recent OntarioFruit and Vegetable Convention. Vortex Packaging was also an exhibitor at last month’sCanadian Produce Marketing Association trade show in Toronto, Ontario. Photos byDenis Cahill.

THE GROWERMAY 2013 –– PAGE B3

FOCUS: CONTAINERS

As the spring season kicks into gear, here aresome grower tips:

1) all produce containers must have name of packeror producer, full municipal address and postal code. 2) the name of the commodity must be on the pack-age if it’s not readily visible3) in the case of potatoes, the grade name must beidentified.4) a retail sign is necessary at the farmgate or farm-ers’ market indicating what produce is for sale,country or province of origin, price per unit of

weight, if applicable. In the case of peppers, theymust be labeled sweet or hot5) any advertising – print, email or broadcast – mustindicate the country or province of origin of the pro-duce, the quantity in the package if applicable andin the case of potatoes, the grade. 6) In Ontario, price cards are available fromFoodland Ontario. Go to www.ontario.ca/produce-safety for a retail display sign toolkit. Any furtherquestions can be directed to 1-888-466-2372 orSuzete Moniz, 519-826-4655 ext 64655.

Six tips for proper labeling of producecontainers

www.applebags.comwww.applebags.comw

This container of basil appears to have no edible parts contacting the ground. It’s not exposed toa hazard, but because of the location, it is at risk ofcontamination (e.g. dog) and would be better if thebushel was on a table. Where producers get into trou-ble is when they take containers that have been sittingon the ground, stack them one on top of another andthe bottom of the stacked container contacts food.That’s exposed to a hazard.”

~ Suzete Moniz, regulatory and standards coordinator forfoods of plant origin program, OMAF and MRA.

“

Photos courtesy of Mopani Communications

Corrugated is first choice for food safety THE CANADIANCORRUGATED ANDCONTAINERBOARDASSOCIATION

Periodic reports of E. coli, salmonella and listeria in foodmake news because they cancause serious illness and death.Recent reports, including thehorsemeat scandal in Europe,have raised warning flags aboutwhat we are consuming. The bottom line is that Canadianswant to know their food is safe.Their trust is wavering.

One way to build trust is tohave high standards and maintainthem in the field, during transportation and in retail environments. Packaging andhandling play a significant role inmaintaining product integrity andthe Canadian Food InspectionAgency has specific rules forpackaging meat, poultry, fruit andvegetables. For example, fish

must be packed in new, clean,sound containers. Containers forfresh fruits and vegetables mustnot be stained, soiled, warped,broken or otherwise damaged asto affect the shipping quality.

In short, the regulations prohibit selling food from a package that could contain substances harmful to people.

Canadian growers have whole-hearted respect for these regula-tions. They are committed to pro-ducing and distributing the safestfood possible, from the farm toour tables. As such, packagingand shipping is always top-of-mind. Some retailers mandate theuse of one kind of shipping con-tainer over the other, while some

allow the farmer to choose. Thetwo most prevalent options arethe corrugated box and reusableplastic containers (retrippers).

The most widely used andtrusted option is the corrugatedbox. Growers have voiced concerns over the sanitary standards of retrippers, as theyhave to come from the U.S. andperiodically arrive at Canadianfarms soiled. This raises questionsabout the quality of the cleaningprocess.

Corrugate has a long history ofsafe use in the food industry,across a wide range of applica-tions. The industry has beenaround for more than a centuryand is continuously updating itsfood safety standards and proce-dures. Corrugate is always new,manufactured using high tempera-tures that eliminate bacteria.

Certifications acquired by cor-rugated industry members includeAmerican Institute of Baking(AIB) and Hazard Analysis and

Critical Control Points (HACCP).HACCP is a systematic preven-tive approach recommended bythe United Nations to find, correct, and prevent hazardsthroughout the productionprocess. Corrugated manufactur-ers are also subject to strict thirdparty and customer audits.

Preventive measures undertaken by the corrugatedindustry ensure accountability atthe source.

The objective of the grower,the packaging industry, and theretailer is to provide the safestfood possible and corrugatedproducts are the best way toarrive at their destination. Formore information about the corrugated industry, visitwww.cccabox.org. To learn moreabout the CFIA and food packaging regulations, visitwww.inspection.gc.ca.

One of the hottest trends in theproduce industry is packagingfruit and vegetables in convenientcontainers to make them moreaccessible. Most of these contain-ers urge consumers to snack onfresh produce in the hopes thatthe product will appeal to children and their parents. Onfirst look, AMCO’s new productlooks similar, but it's the targetmarket that sets it apart.

“We're trying to go for oldercouples with this,” said AMCO’sMitchell Amicone, referring totheir mini cucumbers and grapeswhich are packaged together.‘There is definitely a market forchildren, some of which we take

part in, but we feel it has alreadybeen utilized.” While he thinksthat the convenient packaging andsnacking appeal of their minicucumbers and grapes will stillappeal to children and their parents, he also thinks that thesimplicity of the product andquality ingredients will appeal toolder customers who want something to add to their meals.

“You can easily snack on thisat work, add to salads, or anyother kind of meal, it is also easyto take on the go,” said Amicone.“It has enough in there for a couple of meals.” He noted thatthe appeal of getting two meals'worth out of one package can also

appeal to deal-savvy consumers.The product can be available

year round and it will be grown inAMCO’s Ontario greenhouses.Amicone noted that they willmake sure that the entire productis grown in Ontario, as it helpswith ease of tracking, quality ofproduct, and helps to reduce han-dling of the produce which ulti-mately results in fresher product.

“The grapes are slightly biggerthan your average grape but theyare just as sweet,” he said. “We'reusing two main specialty itemsthat we know people really like,it’s been proven, and so we're justtrying to keep it simple.” In thatvein, he added that the packaging

was designed to be visuallyappealing, sturdy and convenientfor consumers. That's all part oftheir strategy of keeping things

simple with a quality product theyknow will sell well.

Source: FreshPlaza.com

THE GROWER

PAGE B4 –– MAY 2013

FOCUS: CONTAINERS

AMCO Produce aims for older demographic with new packaging

LOUTH & NIAGARA ORCHARDSP.O. Box 43 • Virgil, Ontario • L0S 1T0 • 905-468-3297

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ADVERTORIAL

KAREN DAVIDSON

For Loblaw, the debate is overon the cost benefits, improvedproduce quality and environmen-tal sustainability of using reusableplastic containers (RPC). Gradingtheir pilot project using three million RPCs in 2011 a success,Canada’s largest grocer broughtmore commodities and suppliersinto the program upping usage to15 million boxes in 2012. Thatnumber is expected to doubleagain to a target of 30 million in2013, bringing in produce fromthe entire NAFTA trading region.

“Now that we know what theprocess looks like, we will beexpediting the program at aquicker pace,” says Stuart Rogers,project manager, retail enable-ment for Loblaw. He expects toadd Canadian apples, cabbage,lettuce and cauliflower to the program this growing season.This summer will include localOntario strawberries.

The benefits of packing highlyperishable berries and tender fruitin RPCs are clear to Loblaw.“Ontario peaches were a signifi-cant success last summer,” saysEric Biddiscombe, senior directorplanning for Loblaw Companies’produce business unit. “One ofthe key wins is pallet stability.When you’re loading and storingpallets, there is less damage to thefruit as the RPCs go through thesupply chain. The case is rigid.”

In a brief to their top 40 produce suppliers in conjunctionwith the Canadian ProduceMarketing Association meeting,Loblaw reported that 7,005 metrictons of waxed corrugated boarddid not go to landfills due to theRPC program and 6,807 metric

tons of corrugated board movedto RPCs for a total of 13,812 metric tons.

For growers, the logistics ofconverting to RPCs have not beenwithout anxiety. In many cases,it’s not a straight conversion fromcorrugated to RPCs. Growersmust store and manage both sys-tems at once to fulfill orders forseveral customers. To date,Loblaw and Safeway in westernCanada are the only two grocersrequiring that produce be delivered in RPCs.

In the U.S., some Americangrowers have been using RPCsfor almost a decade now and arestill challenged to keep both cor-rugated box and RPC inventory.Some say the RPCs don’t ride aswell in trucks as corrugated, causing bounce issues. However,Loblaw reports no ride damage intheir 2011 and 2012 RPC programs.

Loblaw acknowledges thatchange is never easy.Biddiscombe says their approachhas been to understand the impacton operations at grower meetingsacross Canada. For Loblaw, thereare five criteria for success.

• RPCs must maintain orimprove quality of produce• Cost of RPCs must be compet-itive or lower than corrugate• Freight costs must be maintained or lowered with unitsper trailer load• Potential case-pack changeneeds to be understood andapplied to the Loblaw supplychain processes as it relates tolisting new items in the distribu-tion centres and ordering productthrough terminal markets • Grower operations must betaken into consideration. Pilottesting allows perspective on

quality/cost and impact to operational process.

As reported in the April issueof The Grower, a motion waspassed at the CanadianHorticultural Council annual general meeting to review thesanitation protocols of RPCs.Some growers who are usingRPCs are worried that residuesharbouring “silent” plant virusesor soil-borne pests might be intro-duced to the Canadian industry.

“We are not opposed to the useof RPCs, but we are not aware ofany controlled studies to give uscomfort,” said Don Taylor, chair,Ontario Greenhouse VegetableGrowers. “Moving RPCs betweenfarms without clear evidence thatsanitation procedures will ensureagainst the introduction of anypossible harmful organisms iscounter to the protocols of infection protection.”

The Canadian ProduceMarketing Association (CPMA)is now in the throes of reinstitut-ing its RPC task force says JaneProctor, vice-president of policyand issues management, CPMA.

“As we understand, RPCmanufacturers have protocols inplace but the industry needs tohave a more in-depth understand-ing of what they are,” Proctorsays. The RPC task force ischaired by Alan Newton, DudaFarm Fresh Foods based inFlorida. Other members includeretailer representatives, RPC companies and a cross-section ofgrower-shippers as well as theCanadian Food InspectionAgency.

“During the next RPC TaskForce meeting, there will need tobe a clear articulation of outstand-ing issues by those who havenoted ongoing concerns,” saysProctor. That meeting will beheld in the next few weeks.

Nevertheless, the conversion toRPCs will escalate with Loblawestimating 43 million boxes byend of 2014. Those numbers beg

the question of when Canada willbe ready for its own washingfacility. Currently, the closestfacilities to Canada are inChicago, Illinois and Portland,Oregon. Both are operated byIFCO, one of three vendorsapproved by Loblaw. The othertwo are Polymer Logistics andTosca (formerly Georgia Pacific).

It’s estimated that 30 millionRPCs are likely the critical massneeded to trigger a decision. Thenext question to be answered iswhere is the most logical locationin eastern Canada. And will therebe a station in western Canada.

As implications of the RPC

system reverberate within thesupply chain and as growers,packers and shippers come to better understand this NorthAmerican phenomenon, the issueof branding comes to the fore.Corrugated boxes currently offergrowers their best opportunity forproduce aisle branding. So itstands to reason that as RPC useincreases, the job of individualgrowers building consumer loyalty becomes harder. Within aglobal system, how can local produce continue to effectivelycompete? That’s just one of manyquestions to be answered in thefuture.

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE B5

FOCUS: CONTAINERS

Loblaw plans to double number ofreusable plastic containers in 2013

Vineland Growers Co-operative Ltd.www.vinelandgrowers.com

• Vineyard Supplies • Custom Colored & Printed Handles• Aluminum Picking Ladders & Repairs • Bahco & Felco Pruning Tools• Fertilizer & Micro Nutrients • Trucking & Transportation• Complete Line of Fruit Containers • Custom Packing of Fruit• Food Safety Programs • Fruit Sales & Marketing• Greenhouse Supplies • Cold Storage & CA Facilities • Irrigation Supplies • Crop Protection Products• Strawberry Packaging, Corrugated & Plastic

Email: info@vinelandgrowers.com

A Tradition of Family Farming

Head Office 905-562-4133

Jordan905-562-4642

Virgil 905-468-3234

THE GROWER

PAGE B6 –– MAY 2013

Something tried and true

. . . and some things new

FOCUS: CONTAINERS

Crown Storage supplies plywood binsmade from western Douglas fir and easternhemlock. Based in Ontario, the companyships a lot of product to British Columbia,Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and the U.S.The bin parts are all dipped individually infood-grade stain, making them eligible to

cross the border with no problems. Whileplastic might be a new trend, wood hasnever gone out of vogue.

“Government regulations both presentand future are weighing on everyone’smind,” says Don Sheridan, owner CrownStorage. “At present, there are no studies

to support plastic over wood with regardsto food safety. Personally, I like plywoodboxes. They don’t slide on the forks and fitinto storage better. Storages were designedfor a standard 48-inch by 42-inch bin. Thewood bins dry out much faster, eliminatingmold problems.”

All food commodities – fruit and veg-etables – work well with plywood. A half-bin is also available for soft or delicatecommodities that cannot withstand a lot ofweight.

Dubois Agrinovation carries a new line of CenterFlow con-tainers ideal for transporting and dispensing seed,granular/pelletized materials and small manufacturing compo-nents. The smooth, funnel-shaped interior has a 35˚ angle for effi-cient flow of contents and complete emptying in as quickly as30 seconds. According to the company, users can expect thefollowing:

• Handles loads up to 2,500 lbs.• Side access door allows one person to control the flow andsafely remove all or part of the contents• Tight-fitting lid provides extra protection against contami-nants• Strong, reinforcing crossbars evenly distribute load

• Latches lock ring securely to the base• Compatible with forklifts and pallet jacks• Solid oak base rails provide added traction for forklift tines• Stack and nest for shipping and storage - 1.6:1 return ratio• Structural foam molded HDPE construction resists impact,moisture and most chemicals• Will not rust, peel or splinter• Use with temperatures of -20˚ to 120˚ F• Customization and identification options available• Backed by a one-year limited warranty• 100% recyclableFor more information, go to: http://www.buckhorninc.com/products/specialty-boxes/center-flow.aspx

Industrial Bags Inc.Durable Ecolo-Clamshell• Reusable and cleanable fruitand vegetable containers• Made with a transparent sturdy lid to showcase your prod-ucts• Made with a maximum airflow to minimize moisture andpreserves the nutritional qualitiesand freshness of containers• Perfect to keep product refriger-ated

• Re-closable optimizes hygieneandconservation of products andpromotes consumption outsidethe home;• Break resistant, ideal to pack products when wet• Great package to-go, take-out,and for today’s families

NorampacConventional fruit baskets are usually provided with rigid handles

(for example, plastic or wood), and are therefore relatively difficult to stack or to store in anefficient manner. These compo-

nents are not always locallyavailable and delivered sepa-

rately to a customer, whomust then assemblethe components tomake the baskets.This step requirestime, equipment and

labour. With this new

basket with a pop-up handle, these

issues are no longer of any con-cern for producers. This one piece

basket is fully assembled, using less spacefor a larger quantity of trays. Without wood or

plastic, this basket is now fully recyclable at the end of its life cycle.Norampac is proud to introduce this basket as the ideal solution for

the need to be more efficient. We could design and adapt your actualpackaging for sizes from 1 liter to larger sizes. Used for strawberries,blueberries, peaches, pears, apples or any other fruits or vegetables thatis normally offered with this type of packaging.

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THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE B7

In praise of containersFOCUS: CONTAINERS

The produce industry wouldnot survive without containers. Atour through the Ontario FoodTerminal is a reminder that mil-lions are spent to get fruit andvegetables to consumers everyday.

Ian MacKenzie, president ofthe Ontario Produce MarketingAssociation, recalls the 1970s and1980s when standard containersfor both wholesale and consumer-size packages were the norm.The idea was to stop the prolifer-ation of container sizes to controlinventories and therefore costs.

Those rules exist no more withonly six commodities regulatedfor container size, i.e. carrots,onions, beets, parsnips, rutabagasand potatoes.

“It’s really difficult – andexpensive -- to maintain invento-ries when there are too many con-tainer sizes,” says MacKenzie.“But consumers are changinghow we package and sell to them.They are looking for convenientsize packaging and the industry isadapting quickly. Single house-holds and aging demographics areplaying a role.”

It’s really difficult – and expensive -- to maintain inventorieswhen there are too many container sizes. But consumers are changinghow we package and sell to them.”

~ Ian MacKenzie

“Photos by Glenn Lowson

THE GROWER

PAGE B8 –– MAY 2013

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KETTLE CREEK SALES519-644-1320

kettleck@xplornet.ca

CALL ABE FIRSTFOR BETTER PRICES, MORE

CHOICES, FAST, AND FRIENDLY SERVICE. BUY A DIESEL ENGINE

PUMP UNIT FROM THE DIESEL MECHANIC.

NEW IRRIGATION PUMPUNITS ON TRAILER

• Cummin 4 cyl, 80 HP• Cummin 4 cyl turbo, 105 HP • John Deere, 4 cyl, 80 HP• Cummin 6 cyl, 165 HP-5.9L• Iveco/Cummins, 4cyl, 105HP • Iveco/Cummins, 6cyl, 173HP

Etc., Etc.

Rovatti PumpsBerkeley Pumps, etc.

And many more new or used up to 550 HP.

We build them all big or small.Also couplers, hoses, clamps, forsuction, camlock, ringlock, bauer

etc.

A. KOOLMEESR.R. 1, Otterville, ON N0J 1R0

(519) 879-6878 Fax: (519) 879-6319

1-800-811-6238pfs@reach.netSPRAYING EQUIPMENT

OUR SPECIALITY

NEW . . USED . . SERVICE

YOUR SOURCE FORJOHN BEAN AND

DURAND-WAYLAND

YOUNOW

have beento the rest,

call theBEST!!P

HIL

LIP

SFA

RM

SU

PPLIE

S

ATTENTIONVEGETABLE GROWERS

SOLVE YOUR IRRIGATION PROBLEMS.Do it right with R&WPLANTERS • IN-ROW TILLERS

AIR SEEDERS • REELS • DIESEL PUMPS

SPRAY BOOMS & REELS IN-STOCK

PHONE (705) 458-4003 rwequipment@bellnet.ca www.rwequipment.ca

• Low pressure operation • Available c/w sizes from 13 mtr to 65 mtr• Uniform spray, unaffected by wind • Available on any OCMIS reel

from 140 mtr to 650 mtr • No soil compaction

JUNE 2013 AD DEADLINE: MAY 15

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE B9

MARKETPLACETo advertise phone: 519-380-0118 • 866-898-8488 x 218 • Fax: 519-380-0011

One-Piece and Portable Skid-Mount Systems, Hydro-Coolers, Medical and Process Chillers, Blast Freezers,

Vacuum Coolers, Refrigerated Dehumidifiers.KOOLJET®

Reliable Refrigeration Systems

1-866-748-7786 www.kooljet.com Visit our website to view our complete line

Custom Built Designs • Domestic and International Markets

REFRIGERATION

REAL ESTATE

The 'AQUA Wetland System'“A new breed of constructed wetland”

AQUA Treatment Technologies Inc. designs and installsthe 'AQUA Wetland System' (AWS) for tertiary treatment of many types of waste water including sani-tary sewage, landfill leachate, dairy farm & abattoirwastewater, greenhouse irrigation leachate water &mushroom farm leachate water (i.e. manure pileleachate) and high strength winery washwater.

The 'AQUA Wetland System' is operated out of doorsand can achieve year-round tertiary treatment of waste-water. This sub-surface, vertical flow constructed wetlandconsists of sand & gravel beds planted with moisture tolerant plant species. Water is pumped vertically from cell to cell. There is no open or standing water.Treatment occurs through physical filtration & biological degradation. Plants shade & insulate the cells,cycling nutrients while preventing algae growth. There is no production of sludge.

The AWS has been approved for use by the Ontario Ministry of Environment through over 40 EnvironmentalCompliance Approvals. Recently the Region of Niagara began approving the AWS for treatment of 'smallflow' winery washwater I.e. < 10,000 liters per day. Other agencies who have issued approvals includeHealth Canada, USEPA and OMAFRA. Recent projects include:1) treatment of cider mill washwater at Bennett's Apple and Cider in Ancaster2) treatment of winery washwater at DiProfio Wines and Lincoln Farm

Winery in Niagara3) treatment of pond water at Hihojo Farms for supply of hog drinking waterFor additional information please Contact LloydRozema at: cell. 905-327-4571email. lrozema@aqua-tt.com

WATER TREATMENT

FARM MARKET

Gateway Niagara Welcome CentreLooking for fruit vendor for our existing seasonal 1,500 sq. ft. enclosed outdoor

kiosk. Special consideration given to members of the Ontario Fruit

Growers Association.Please call Paul Dominick at 905-931-9549

Other market type entrepreneurial ventures will be also be considered.

IMPORTANT POTATO FARM AUCTION!!MONDAY JUNE 24 @ 10:30 A.M.

SARANAC LAKE, NEW YORK

Five LOW HOUR Cab Tractors: JD 8220 MFWD, 500 hrs!; JD7430 MFWD Premium; JD 7520 MFWD; JD 7600 MFWD; JD7710 2WD; JD 160C LC Excavator;

Kverneland UN 3200 4-row planter; Better Built 2963 seed cutter;Thomas B88 2-row harvester with JD air head; Thomas 4 and 2row windrowers; Air Tech 90 air boom sprayer; Full line ofTillage Tools; Six potato body trucks including 1995 Mark R 10-wheeler with Haines 22 belt unload body; 2009 Kauffman (48 ft. x102) 25 ton drop deck trailer; Haines double tote bag filler withscale; Haines single bag filler; 48 in. and 36 in. portable graders;Haines 49 ft. bin piler; etc.! Complete Dispersal!

NOTE: Special Open House at Cornell—Uihlein Research Farm atLake Placid also on Auction Day for your convenience from 8:00a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.! Sponsored by EmpireState Potato Growers Inc.

See full ad with details on webpage: www.pirrunginc.com

Owned by Ron and Beth Edgley

PIRRUNG AUCTIONEERS, INC.585-728-2520

AUCTION

JUN

E 2013

Special Focus: GREEN TECHNOLOGY

Editorial:

• Plasticulture proves profitable

• Moving to energy independence in greenhouses

• ONVegetables

BOOK BY MAY 15

PAGE B10 –– MAY 2012

THE GROWER

MARKETPLACETo advertise phone: 519-380-0118 • 866-898-8488 x 218 • Fax: 519-380-0011

NURSERY AND ROOTSTOCK

Howard A. ColcucNursery Manager

R.R. #4 Creek RoadNiagara-on-the-Lake, ON. L0S 1J0

Tel: (905) 262-4971Fax: (905) 262-4404

howardcolcuc@rogers.com

SPECIALIZING IN FRUITTREES & GRAPE VINES &

ELDERBERRIES. VARIETY AND PRICE LISTAVAILABLE ON REQUEST

Alpine

Nurseries

(Niagara) Limited

Strawberry &Raspberry

Plants

Strawberry &Raspberry

PlantsEstablished 1939

yyrrwberwberStraStraStrrawberryy &y &y &rrRaspberRaspber

PlantsPlantsRRaspberr

Pllantsyyrrry

TOP QUALITY VEGETABLE, HERB AND STRAWBERRY PLUG TRANSPLANTSCERTIFIED ORGANIC AND CONVENTIONAL PLANTS AVAILABLE

Tomatoes, Peppers, Brassica/Cole crops, Cucurbit/Vine crops, Lettuces, onions & leek

THE ONLY LICENSED COMMERCIAL PROPAGATOR IN ONTARIO SELLING STRAWBERRY PLUG TRANSPLANTS

***Bank on the benefits of using top quality ACTIVELY growing berry plants***

CONTACT US NOW TO ORDER YOUR STRAWBERRY PLUGS FOR AUG. & SEPT. PLANTING

CARTHER PLANTS “MAXIMIZING YOUR PROFIT POTENTIAL”30627 Jane Rd., RR5 Thamesville, ON N0P 2K0Office 519.695.5445 Cell 519.359.2130Fax 519. 695.5452 scarther@ciaccess.com

Licensed by the University of California. Not recognized under the guidelinesof the Ontario Plant Propagation program due to origin of stock.

H RAF RO CA

YD F TIUR TRNAIDANA C IL

SEERSETAMI

F RO CA

NAIDANA C IL

SETAMI

ASPARAGUS ROOTSMary Washington

Jersey GiantMillenium

Wrightland FarmRR 1 • 1000 Ridge Rd. Harrow, ON N0R 1G0

Keith: 519-738-6120Fax: 519-738-3358

Phytocultures Field Day, July 13at 1:00 in ClydeRiver, PEI.

Our averagevisit duration is 9 minutes.

Imagine theadvertisingpotential.

www.thegrower.org

Herb Sherwood @ 519-380-0118

THE GROWER

MAY 2013 –– PAGE B11

MARKETPLACETo advertise phone: 519-380-0118 • 866-898-8488 x 218 • Fax: 519-380-0011

ORCHARD SUPPLIES IRRIGATION

· TREE STAKES· TREE TIE MATERIAL· REMA BRANCH

SPREADERS· TWIGFIX ELASTICS· TREE GUARDS· LOPPERS· PRUNING SHEARS· LADDERS· PICKING BUCKETS

SEE US FOR ALLYOUR ORCHARD

SUPPLIES

WARWICKORCHARDS & NURSERY LTD

7056 Egremont Rd. R.R. #8Watford, Ontario

N0M 2S0warwickorchards@brktel.on.ca

Tel: (519) 849-6730Toll free: 877-550-7412

Fax: (519) 849-6731

Pipe& Fittings

for Water Systems• PVC, ABS, Poly, Copper

• Stainless, Brass, SteelProduct Lines

• Drip & Micro Irrigation• Septic & Sewer• Drainage & Culverts• Berkeley Water Pumps

Winona Concrete & Pipe Products Ltd.

489 Main St. W., Grimsby, ON. L3M 1T4

info@WinonaConcrete.com

Phone (905) 945-8515 Fax: (905) 945-1149

or call toll-free

1-800-361-8515P: 519-326-8200F: 1-888-567-1297www.madleyglobal.com

SALESSERVICESUPPORT

LABELS & LABEL MACHINERY

LABELS

For Sale: TurboMist sprayer, 400gal, Turbo steer, excellent condition. IH140 tractor w/cultivator and side dresser. Bothalways stored inside. (905) 765-2027

For sale: 917H Ford flail moweroffset 92” cut, $1000. Asparagusroot digger, $500. 5000 usedBlackmore cell trays, $500.Phone (519) 586-2159

FOR SALE – Farm Equipment:- Ramsay Vegetable Harvest Aid,can be used for various crops,was used for broccoli, 11 bunching machines included.- Kneverland airseeder, with 9twin row units, very good condi-tion, plates and spare partsincluded.- Pik Rite 190 VegetableHarvester, fully loaded, wellmaintained, high capacitymachine- Front mounting platform harvest aid, used for broccoli/cauliflower etc. - Trimble hydraulic platform kitfor JD4X55 series or older orJD8X60 series, $1,500 Pictures available via email.Contact ryan@serkka.com or(519) 809-0615

For sale.15 yr old 1600 litre Ocllorchard sprayer, Last used 2 yrsago, worked great. Parts stillavailable. 3500.00, call (226)268-1975

Estate sale - 75 hp MF 3340FOrchard Tractor 4WD, 1300hr- Industrial Rotovator 4'-18' farm wagon-GB 1500 litre sprayer-Steel roll up garage door 16' x 9'Phone (905) 682-3062

CLASSIFIEDS

classifiedads

866-898-8488x 221

Follow our editor:@karenthegrower 17 AprGood to meet Rob Gerlsbeck, editor, @CanadianGrocer today

in advance of Canadian Produce Marketing Association tradeshow opening tomorrow

THE GROWER

PAGE B12 –– MAY 2013

www.cccabox.org

Proud supporter of the Paper & Paperboard Packaging Environmental Council (PPEC)

IT’S WHAT’S INSIDE THAT COUNTS

Unlike retrippers, corrugate is always new. It does not need to come from or return to washing stations in the USA. Corrugate is the food industry’s packaging of choice because you can focus on what matters – what’s in the box. BRANDED, NEW AND TRUSTED.