What comes to mind when you think of Hawai'i? Paradise, right? Sun, sand, surf, warm breezes . . . I'm with you.
Okay, but what about Hawaiian food? My top three: pineapple, macadamia nuts, and poi. (Not that I've ever had poi, but too much television has undoubtedly shaped my perceptions.)
But Hawai'i is no longer paradise for the pineapple. That industry, so closely tied with many Americans' vision of Hawai'i, is showing signs of struggle.
In 2006, Del Monte planted its last crop of pineapple, citing the expense of growing in Hawai'i as the prime reason for shutting down operations after 90 years in the islands. Their departure leaves just two pineapple companies in the state, Dole Food Hawai'i and Maui Pineapple Co.
But last year, the latter shuttered its pineapple cannery, the last one in the U.S. The closure brought an end to an era for many Hawaiians, but the company remains, redirecting its attention to fresh fruit and juice in an effort to stay profitable.
The bottom line talks loudly. Growers in Thailand, the Philippines, Brazil, China, India and Costa Rica can produce the fruit more cheaply, thrusting these countries to the top of list of suppliers worldwide (XLS|41 KB). As a result, the pineapple might become more symbol than reality in Hawai'i. Only time -- and the market -- will tell.
But in honor of pineapple's long, deep history in Hawai'i, and in conjunction with Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, let me point you to a couple of unique resources from the Center for Oral History at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa that celebrate this fantastic fruit and the people who've brought it to us for decades.
The first, a short video clip (Quicktime | 4.4 MB), shows Venicia Guiala, a former pineapple field worker, demonstrating how she prepared for work in the hot, dusty pineapple fields. If you prefer, you can read the transcript, but I heartily recommend the video. Seeing Mrs. Guiala putting on her scarves, goggles and hat conveys more strongly than the words how difficult and uncomfortable that job must be.
The second provides a short introduction to the Center's oral history project on Women Workers in Hawai'i's Pineapple Industry, a combination of narrative and oral history excerpts.
But for a more contemporary twist on pineapple processing, check out this clip from YouTube. The music makes it an almost mesmerizingly peaceful experience. (Though I'd appreciate someone telling me what the song "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" has to do with peeling and coring pineapple.)
Finally, if you haven't given much thought to the role Asian-Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders have played and continue to play in our country's agricultural endeavors, jump over to NAL's site on Asian Pacific Americans in agriculture. Among many other things, you can learn from the resources there the unique niche Chinese immigrants filled in 1850s California; the key role Filipinos played in the formation of the United Farm Workers; and the impact of Alien Land Laws on Japanese immigrant farmers.
Lively discussions and different opinions are encouraged within the bounds of respectful civil discourse. Questionable language, personal attacks, off-topic comments, and gratuitous links will either be edited or deleted. Comments are moderated and will not appear on InfoFarm until they have been approved.
This blog does not represent official communications from the National Agricultural Library, the Agricultural Research Service or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
It's not often that we get two thought-provoking documentaries on agriculture and farming in the same week, but PBS is serving up a couple of conversation starters, beginning tonight.
"King Corn," a film looking at the corn's central role in American agriculture and food production, makes its television debut in just a few hours on the Emmy award-winning series Independent Lens, PBS's showcase for independent films. Not all PBS stations will be airing the show today, however, and many will be repeating it as well, so be sure to check your local listings for air times. You still might be able to catch it.
Here in the Washington area, Independent Lens will also be re-broadcasting "The Real Dirt on Farmer John" later this week, a 2006 film that follows an Illinois farmer, John Peterson, as he tries to transform his family farm in a way that is at odds with his community. Hopefully, this film too will crop up where you're at in the coming months, so keep checking those local listings.
If PBS lets you down, or you'd just rather watch on your own timetable, "The Real Dirt on Farmer John" is already available on DVD, and "King Corn" will be released later this month.
I haven't seen either film yet, so I'm very interested in seeing what they're about. And, of course, I'd love to hear your take on things. Once you've watched either or both, come back and let us know what you thought. I'm sure our community of readers can get a good discussion going.
Lively discussions and different opinions are encouraged within the bounds of respectful civil discourse. Questionable language, personal attacks, off-topic comments, and gratuitous links will either be edited or deleted. Comments are moderated and will not appear on InfoFarm until they have been approved.
This blog does not represent official communications from the National Agricultural Library, the Agricultural Research Service or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Did you notice that President Bush had a new cabinet member in the audience for last night's State of the Union address?
Edward T. Schafer, former governor of North Dakota, quietly cleared the Senate confirmation process and was sworn in as the new Secretary of Agriculture by Vice-President Cheney just hours before President Bush stood at the dais in the House Chamber.
That quick action allowed Schafer to walk into the packed chamber among his fellow Cabinet members just a short time later. There, he heard the President address his hopes for his final year in office, making a handful of general points on taxes, trade, immigration, renewable fuels and global hunger that might impact the new Secretary.
Notably, President Bush made no mention of the pending farm bill, a piece of legislation that is likely to keep Secretary Schafer -- and Deputy Secretary Chuck Conner -- quite busy in the coming weeks.
Those negotiations have been moving slowly, and the administration continues to threaten a veto if changes aren't made to the current versions. Deputy Secretary Conner (formerly Acting Secretary) has been pushing for a new formula for financing the farm bill, but an agreement remains elusive.
Can the new guy offer a fresh perspective that might unstick things? I guess we'll see. I just hope he got some sleep after his big opening night. He's gonna need to be sharp to wrestle this steer.
Lively discussions and different opinions are encouraged within the bounds of respectful civil discourse. Questionable language, personal attacks, off-topic comments, and gratuitous links will either be edited or deleted. Comments are moderated and will not appear on InfoFarm until they have been approved.
UPDATE
Just a few hours after I posted the entry above, Secretary Schafer attended a welcoming reception at USDA. If you missed the event, you can read the transcript or watch the video of his remarks online. It runs only about thirty minutes.
Submitted by: Mary Ann on January 31, 2008 03:55 PM
This blog does not represent official communications from the National Agricultural Library, the Agricultural Research Service or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Brolaug developed new varieties of wheat that ultimately transformed grain production worldwide. His breeding methods, coupled with new planting and soil conservation techniques, multiplied crop yield many times over, turning severe food shortages into surpluses and eliminating starvation in some of the most devastated parts of the world. As a result he is credited with saving a billion lives (a billion!), won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970, and earned the title "Father of the Green Revolution." He also founded his own international award, the World Food Prize (the topic of my previous entry).
And if that ain't enough, Borlaug also has his own rap tune. Give it a listen:
I don't know what you been told
about farming and food in days of old,
but listen and take this to the bank:
If there's food in your tummy then you'd better thank
N-O-R-M-A-N
Norman Borlaug, thank you, man. Full lyrics
Not bad for a boy from Cresco, Iowa.
But there's so much more to this man's impressive life and legacy, so take a few minutes and check out the following biographies:
Oh, and the other four winners of the three big honors Borlaug holds: Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela and Elie Wiesel. I'm guessing you've heard of them.
Lively discussions and different opinions are encouraged within the bounds of respectful civil discourse. Questionable language, personal attacks, off-topic comments, and gratuitous links will either be edited or deleted. Comments are moderated and will not appear on InfoFarm until they have been approved.
Hi Mary Ann, I like your blog a lot. Are you a librarian? I'm a librarian at FAO in Rome, and I just added you to my blogroll. It's nice to see other libraries out there in the blogosphere! Check out our blog at: http://lubinlib.typepad.com
Submitted by: Jessica on October 23, 2007 06:09 AM
Thanks for your comments, Jessica, and for adding InfoFarm to your blogroll. I need to expand our blogroll as well. There's a lot of good stuff out there on agriculture, your blog among them.
As for your question, yes, I am a librarian. Maybe someday soon I'll write up an "about" page so folks can learn the rest of the story, but for now, I'll just say that I've worked here at NAL for four years (and counting).
Submitted by: Mary Ann on October 23, 2007 10:07 AM
I can't believe I work for USDA and have not heard of Norman Borlaug! And, I love the rap!
Submitted by: Chris on October 26, 2007 11:29 AM
I'm with you, Chris. I just learned about him myself a couple of months ago. That's why I wanted to do a piece about him. He's a pretty impressive guy, and he's still getting out there to raise awareness, at least as much as his health will allow. As he's quoted as saying in the DesMoines Register article cited above, "Pessimism has no place in action."
Amen, Norman. Amen.
Submitted by: Mary Ann on October 26, 2007 11:41 AM
I must say, I don’t like rap, but that was a remarkable arrangement of words that created a great cap of ones magnificent achievements. It was truly captivating. I played it over and over again. I am ashamed to say I have never heard of this great achiever. He saved Billions of peoples lives with science and technology. That goes to show if one person can accomplish so much one would think with all the knowledge, technology and a abundance of great minds harnessed together we as a country could stomp out hunger and starvation world wide. I feel so uplifted from the mere thought of unlimited possibilities.
Submitted by: Curtis on October 27, 2007 04:51 AM
This blog does not represent official communications from the National Agricultural Library, the Agricultural Research Service or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Have you ever heard of the World Food Prize? It honors those "who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world." Given this lofty intent, it is considered by many the Nobel Prize for agriculture.
Of course, if you agree with the basic premise in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs -- that the physiological drive for food, water, shelter, etc. must be satisfied before any higher level needs can be fully pursued -- then you could even argue that the World Food Prize is more important than the Nobel Prizes, just with less press coverage.
Until now.
This blog has uttered nary a word about those other awards in Sweden, but we're devoting today's entry to the World Food Prize and this year's honoree, Dr. Philip Nelson.
The first food scientist to win the award -- all previous honorees came from the food production side -- Dr. Nelson grew from a 15-year-old 4-H "Tomato King" in Indiana to an internationally recognized expert in food science and technology thanks to his development of asceptic equipment and processing methods. This asceptic processing allows tomatoes, oranges and other fruits and vegetables to be held in a pathogen-free environment well beyond harvest without loss of taste or nutritional value. It also removes the element of time from food distribution and processing, making it possible to distribute seasonal foods around the world safely and economically.
Think fresh orange juice in Sweden in July, a half a year and a half a world away from its Florida harvest.
So, consumers have more choices, food stays fresher longer, and products can be imported and exported with limited loss. And the processing and packaging Dr. Nelson developed has improved the reach and effectiveness of humanitarian food programs as well. Even those in the remotest regions of the world feel his impact.
His work has not gone unnoticed. Obviously. The Institute of Food Technologists rated aseptic processing and packaging the No. 1 innovation in food technology back in 1991. Then in '95 he received IFT's prestigious Nicholas Appert Award, and now, the World Food Prize.
So, a hearty congratulations and thank you to Dr. Nelson, who will receive his award tonight at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines.
Or take a few minutes to tell us what you think is the the most important innovation in food technology. Maybe together we can pinpoint next year's World Food Prize winner.
Lively discussions and different opinions are encouraged within the bounds of respectful civil discourse. Questionable language, personal attacks, off-topic comments, and gratuitous links will either be edited or deleted. Comments are moderated and will not appear on InfoFarm until they have been approved.
Nicely done, MA! Thanks very much!
Submitted by: Karl S on October 22, 2007 04:26 PM
This blog does not represent official communications from the National Agricultural Library, the Agricultural Research Service or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
If you haven't set your weekend plans yet, check out the events at your local HerbDay gathering this Saturday, October 13. Since this is only the second annual celebration of herbs, not every state has joined the party, but quite a few have.
Here in the Washington area, our colleagues at the U.S. Botanic Garden are expanding the celebration to Friday, October 12, filling the day with informative lectures and tours on herbal medicines, skin care, and aromatherapy. Their Saturday offerings will also touch upon these topics, along with herbal teas, baths, crafts and cooking.
If you can't hit all the lectures, try to catch Dr. Jim Duke, a retired researcher with USDA's Agricultural Research Service and a star of sorts in the ethnobotanical firmament.
Dr. Duke has traveled the world studying plants and how different cultures have used them, writing numerous books and articles along the way, among them The Green Pharmacy and Dr. Duke's Essential Herbs. He's also, apparently, a bit of a character, a 'Bama born fiddler with a passion for bluegrass that rivals his passion for herbs.
But I can't do Dr. Duke justice. To learn more about his life and work, check out any or all of the following:
Lively discussions and different opinions are encouraged within the bounds of respectful civil discourse. Questionable language, personal attacks, off-topic comments, and gratuitous links will either be edited or deleted. Comments are moderated and will not appear on InfoFarm until they have been approved.
Just came across another great resource on Dr. Jim Duke that you might want to know about.
The National Agricultural Library has in its collection a two-hour oral history interview with Dr. Duke from 1988. Request the tape from the Library's Service Desk. It's Videocassette #629.
Submitted by: Mary Ann on October 25, 2007 01:20 PM
This blog does not represent official communications from the National Agricultural Library, the Agricultural Research Service or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
What comes to mind when you think of Hawai'i? 
It's not often that we get two thought-provoking documentaries on agriculture and farming in the same week, but PBS is serving up a couple of conversation starters, beginning tonight. 
Did you notice that President Bush had a new cabinet member in the audience for last night's 
Only five people have ever won the 
Have you ever heard of the 
If you haven't set your weekend plans yet, check out the events at your local 
