ࡱ> 574%` bjbj .$̟̟ d   $^h     "   %  4 0d z1 dz z 8,4 C d $ News Article for Wednesday July 9th, 2008 By: Chuck Browne One day last week, I was talking with someone about how we were already halfway through 2008. We both could not believe how fast time was passing and how certain habits, practices and situations have altered our lifestyles since the beginning of the year. The first and most obvious one that affects everyone is the high price of fuel. The price of goods and services are rising to cover the costs of production and transportation of virtually everything we use and consume. If a carrier delivered this newspaper to your house early this morning, think what has happened to his or her gasoline bill in the last few months. How about that home pizza delivery we all like to have? What about all the fresh produce in the grocery store that we all have become dependent on? With food prices, transportation is not the only part that is rising. Production costs have skyrocketed in the last couple of years. Diesel fuel for farming equipment used to prepare the soil, plant, perform routine management practices and harvest has doubled in the last year. Fertilizer needed to grow a crop has increased at least 5 and 10 times the amount of what it cost 2 years ago. With the last two years droughts during the growing season, more agriculture producers are irrigating which adds costs whether they use diesel engines or electricity for the pumps. Anyway you look at it, food costs are going to rise and there are no signs of a reverse trend. As recent as 40 to 50 years ago, there were lots and lots of small farms stretched out all over this country. As consumer desires changed towards uniform production of all food products, so did the operation of the American farmer. People demanded same size, same shape, same color, same taste, same texture, same price (low) and same packagingevery time they purchased food. As more people turned toward supermarkets for their food, large chains began purchasing all the fruits and vegetables, from just a few larger growers who could deliver a constant supply of a uniform product to all their stores. Precooled, boxed or packaged, uniform, unblemished produce was what the consumer demanded and so that is what we got. Often times, it meant shipping it hundreds or thousands of miles from the farm to the grocery store. But now, shipping costs are causing distributers, produce managers and consumers all to re-evaluate this issue. Plus, throw in some tainted spinach or salmonella tomatoes that no one can trace and weve got a new ballgame. I saw something Monday that made me keenly aware of how our food supply situation is changing. And, I believe it is related to exactly what got us to where we are today, and that is consumer demand. I received an email from one of my colleagues over in Chilton County where there are a lot of larger commercial vegetable production farms. A representative from one of our very large supermarket chains is looking to supply his Alabama stores with as much local grown produce as possible. With the recent food scares and the educated consumer questioning where this fruit or that vegetable came from, produce departments are beginning to re-think their previous supply polices. While all this sounds good, it creates a whole new set of challenges for the Agriculture producer. A lot of our once good farmland has either been planted in trees or had houses and shopping centers built on it. Its hard to just begin farming on a large scale needed to meet new consumer needs. The high cost of land, equipment and facilities needed is almost prohibitive for someone not already in the business. However, there still are opportunities for farmers and if the current trend of Buy Fresh.Buy Local continues, all Alabamians should benefit. Local Markets Provide Alabama Producers As our larger markets have now realized the importance of a local supply of fresh produce, we have had the opportunity here in Lee County to buy directly from the farmer for quite some time. For years, local farmers have set up under the 10th street bridge in Opelika on Saturday mornings. This is an early market. It begins early, usually about daybreak and ends early as well. I spoke with a couple of farmers who will be there this Saturday and they tell me there will be lots of fresh picked corn. The Railroad Avenue Farmers Market is on Tuesday afternoons from 3:00 pm until 6:00 pm. There is plenty of parking and a wide range of produce is available. Look for the white tents. The Ag. Heritage Park Market in located near the corner of Donahue and Samford Ave. on the Auburn University Campus. Hours are from 3:00 pm until 6:00 pm on Thursdays. Again, look for the white tents. Come by any or all these markets for fresh food products and meet the people who grew it. Lets support Alabama Agriculture. !#%] a j NVE_c˿~nhgh"5CJOJQJaJh"h"CJH*OJQJaJh"5CJOJQJaJh"CJOJQJaJh$RCJOJQJaJh>6CJOJQJaJhCJOJQJaJhgCJOJQJaJhM?CJH*OJQJaJhM?hM?CJH*OJQJaJhM?CJOJQJaJ'*<=A I gN  gd"$a$gd"gdM?$a$gdM?hM?hM?CJOJQJaJh"h"CJOJQJaJ,1h/ =!"#$% @@@ NormalCJ_HaJmH sH tH DA@D Default Paragraph FontRiR  Table Normal4 l4a (k(No List$*<=AIgN  0000000000000000000000000M$N$ O$,?#P$lQ$4R$S$| T$ U$L%V$oW$PX$l?#Y$PZ$ J[$\$lOL]$t_!^$lH_$ԏ`$OLa$             8 *urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsCity: *urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsStreet9*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsState; *urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsaddress=*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags PlaceType=*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags PlaceName9*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsplace   OX{hUV ` c {{{">6$RDuM?ug@{{ b{{`@UnknownGz Times New Roman5Symbol3& z ArialCFComic Sans MS"qhGCFGCF,CF? "? 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