The Columbian exchange continues with “a future sown thousands of years ago” What better way to start the new year than with a forward-looking celebration of an historical legacy? The UN General Assembly has declared 2013 as the International Year of Quinoa (la...
Sales Swell
Coconut water meets US market’s growing thirst for natural, healthy drinks In the US market for nonalcoholic beverages, sales of sugary, fizzy soft drinks are flat, while consumption of “wellness beverages” is up sharply. (The segment is getting its own trade show,...
October’s Midknights
Walmart promo caps 13th season of US imports of South African summer citrus Walmart, a top US importer of South African citrus, invited shoppers at 32 stores to enjoy a “Taste of South Africa” with samples of oranges from the world’s second-ranked citrus exporter...
In Dispute: Argentina Trade Policies
WTO complaints against (and from) Argentina are rising. Here’s a scorecard. Its trade policies have secured for Argentina the dubious title of the most protectionist country in the world. As reported by the Latin Business Chronicle, and based on Global Trade Alert...
Fair Trade: Sustainable Trend?
Consumers are willing, but divorce divides the movement by Bill Armbruster, blog anchor Poverty has historically been the lot of small-holding farmers in developing countries. The fair trade movement seeks to change that by appealing to global consumers to pay a...
Peru Ramps up Ag Exports
Cultivating what the world wants to eat pays off If you follow FreshPlaza, the portal for global produce news, (and we do) you may have noticed the news on Peruvian agricultural exports is all good. Peru’s export sales of table grapes to newly opened Asian markets are...
CBP’s Bonding Falls Short
DHS report documents multimillion write-off on failures to collect by Peter Quinter, guest columnist The Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a report criticizing US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). In a June...
Trade Beef
US cattleman urges action on FTAs as competitors vie for overseas markets The US agricultural sector pressed its case for ratification of pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea before the US House of Representatives Committee on...
Cluck-cluck Cutlet of the Sea
It’s on menus everywhere, but is tilapia good for you? Americans ate 475 million pounds of tilapia last year the New York Times reports, citing US Department of Agriculture statistics. The so-called “aquatic chicken” tastes bland and, just like chicken cutlets, works...
Japan Fall-out
Radiation fears cause shortages of iodine, drive demand for seaweed While the struggle to stabilize the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plants goes on, reports are coming in from Brooklyn – more than 6,600 miles away from the threat of radiation release – that upscale...