A RENEWABLE NECESSITY

NECESSARIES FROM A Renewable Resource

By G.B. Crawford, Director of Public Relations

WHAT BEGAN AS A RUMOR on social media in February quickly sparked a panic buying spree. Consumers rushed to grab toilet paper from store shelves as the COVID-19 health crisis spread worldwide under a fear that the product would not be available.

Timber provides the renewable raw material used to make bathroom tissue and paper towels.

Government stay-at-home orders added grist to the belief. In Florida and across the nation retailers began limiting purchases, escalating the quest to stockpile rolls.

But the shortages that occurred were store inventory problems, not production issues. U.S. manufacturing plants – the facilities that make most of the toilet paper purchased in this country – actually increased their output in a collective attempt to meet the demand.

According to the American Forest and Paper Association, domestic manufacturers shipped out more than 22,000 tons of bathroom tissue and paper towels per day in February and March – a record total.

The Georgia-Pacific mill near Palatka helped to create that record. A unit of one of the largest three tissue paper manufacturers in the nation, it raised production to meet a surging demand. Eric Abercrombie, spokesman for Georgia-Pacific, said the Florida plant along with other company facilities have increased overall volume by 1.5 million rolls per day.

Products from the Palatka mill are well known consumer items. Angel Soft and Quilted Northern bathroom tissue and Brawny and Sparkle paper towels made at the plant can be found in many retail establishments.

Bathroom tissue and other finished papers are manufactured by using wood pulp made from trees that are mostly grown in the surrounding region. These renewable resources have supported jobs as well as the production of bathroom tissue for generations.

Dillon Stratton, a forester and logger, is one of the primary suppliers for the Palatka plant. He cuts logs for the mill in timber stands that are generally within 50 miles of the mill. His family’s business has been growing trees and supplying wood for various purposes since 1958.

On average, Stratton’s firm hauls 30 truckloads per day to the mill. With the emergence of COVID-19 and the increased demand for tissue paper, the daily volume peaked at more than 40 truckloads.

“Georgia-Pacific has spent a lot of money to improve their mill,” Stratton said. “We are greatly appreciative that we have a mill there and we can produce the wood for them.”

The plant is a mainstay for the local economy. A team of nearly 1,000 employees is needed to keep the mill in operation 24 hours a day. It supports more than 1,700 other jobs in the surrounding community and generates a total annual economic impact of almost $330 million.

According to a study by the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, forestry operations in the sixcounty Northeast Florida area span more than 145,000 acres and provide work for more than 33,000 residents.

Brian Bergen, vice president of economic development at the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce, agreed that the mill company’s investments have been a special boon to local forestry operations. “Having both the pulp and paper operation in the county significantly adds to the value of the raw material our farmers produce, keeping those dollars in

(PHOTO COURTESY OF GEORGIA-PACIFIC)

U.S. manufacturing facilities like the Georgia-Pacific plant in Palatka set a daily production record in February and March.

Forestry operations in Northeast Florida support more than 33,000 jobs.

Putnam County and the regional economy,” Bergen said.

The mill’s development has also served as a continuous stimulus for jobs outside the facility in Palatka and elsewhere in the county. “The Georgia-Pacific plant is an invaluable asset to the community,” he added.

Improvements at the plant have introduced innovative methods of resource management and sustainability, giving Palatka residents other reasons to favor its presence there.

“We use a range of wood pulp based on the available supply and the desired properties in the finished product – softness, strength, absorbency, etcetera,” said Abercrombie. “We use almost every part of the tree, whether it is wood chips that are left over from lumber operations or using the waste from wood pulping to generate steam energy.”

Biomass from wood provides nearly 50% of the mill’s energy needs, substantially reducing the demand on the electric power grid.

Ninety percent of the water used in the paper manufacturing process at the plant is treated and returned to the surrounding natural watershed.

The ability to make a product consumers use every day in much larger quantities, with the same quality, has been a source of pride for the mill’s workers during the COVD-19 crisis, Abercrombie said. This shared sentiment may become a legacy.

“It’s really been a team effort and that collaboration and pulling together will be a significant outcome of these past few months,” he predicted.

SUSTAINING A

With acreage in four Florida counties, Thomas Produce Co. is a vital source of vegetables.

Vegetable Powerhouse

By Susan Salisbury, Correspondent

THOMAS PRODUCE CO.,

headquartered west of Boca Raton, has been a vegetableproducing powerhouse in Florida since 1959.

Acreage peaked at 17,000 acres around 2008, and today the familyowned and operated company grows bell peppers, specialty peppers such as jalapenos, squash, cucumbers and green beans on 7,500 acres in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Hendry counties.

It packs and ships three million boxes a year and employs 500 during the peak winter vegetable season.

“At one time Thomas had 2,000 acres of tomatoes,” said Thomas “Tommy” LaSalle Jr., chief operating officer and grandson of founder John J. Thomas. In 2008 tomatoes were completely dropped from the lineup due to competition from ramped-up Mexican imports under the North American Free Trade Agreement. Other acreage has contracted gradually since 2008.

John Thomas died in 2018, but his legacy lives on. He came to Palm Beach County from North Collins, New York, outside Buffalo, and began growing green beans on 800 acres.

“My great-grandparents came here from Italy in the 1900s and started farming outside Buffalo. We visited the farm there every summer. We had strawberries and corn,” LaSalle recalls.

“Getting on a tractor there, that is where I got my love for farming. When you are a kid, work seems like fun.”

LaSalle joined the company after graduating from the University of Florida with a degree in Food and Resource Economics in 2005.

Thomas Produce is owned by his uncles John Thomas Jr., Norman Thomas, Stephen Thomas and Jeffrey Thomas. His cousins, John Thomas II, Brandon Thomas and Tiffany Thomas, also work there.

“We are known for our green beans. We grow beans in Hendry County south of Lake Okeechobee, beans and sweet corn are grown in western Palm Beach

Tommy LaSalle Jr., chief operating officer, has worked in the family business since he graduated from the University of Florida in 2005.

County and peppers in the east. We have both,” LaSalle said. “That makes us a little unique.”

In normal times about half of Thomas’ produce is sold directly to major grocery store retailers and the other half to food service including restaurants and cruise ships. The COVID-19 pandemic changed that as sales to restaurants and cruise ships stopped.

“During the pandemic, that is the part of the business that really got hurt. Those relationships with the Krogers, the Publixes and the Walmarts really helped because they were looking for produce. We had to change how we pick things, make some adjustments and walk away from some crops,” LaSalle said.

About 140 acres of green beans and 60 acres of cucumbers and squash were left in the fields.

In normal years the cruise ships take the produce that is not pretty enough to please picky supermarket shoppers. The foods they buy is chopped up in salads for passengers. Although that market was lost due to COVID-19, most retailers were flexible in their choices because they wanted to make sure they had ample supplies.

“We did have a glut of product that would have gone to food service,” LaSalle explained. “We donated some of it through Feeding Florida. Over the past 10 years we have donated 25 million pounds of produce. Even the food banks got to the point where they were overwhelmed. It’s a perishable product.”

By the season’s end in May, pricing once again became profitable. “We ended up making the best we could out of the situation,” he said.

Norman Thomas, the company’s CEO, had wanted

Vegetable bins are loaded during the peak harvest season.

to start direct-to-consumer box sales for years, and during the shutdown, the timing was perfect. Taking advantage of the opportunity, the family members started up their retail Mobile Green Markets – a big hit with consumers, selling an estimated 40,000 boxes of vegetables at $10 and $20 each. The company plans to start the box sales again by Nov. 1.

Thomas Produce may one day expand its acreage again if there is a trade agreement to protect Florida’s producers from cheap imports.

“It is too much capital risk to be putting it out there, to have all that money tied up in the crop and not knowing if you are going to get it back. Mexico could start dumping produce on our markets at way below our production costs, and even below their production costs.

“You have spent four generations building something. You don’t want to lose that in a few years with some bad markets. We are trying to be smart. We have good chain store business, good retail business and good partners,” LaSalle said.

The Thomases will continue to farm sustainably. “We use cover crops such as sorghum, on all of our acreage to build up the organic material and break up the soil,” LaSalle said. “A lot of the fertilizer we have moved to is a slow release fertilizer. During a big rain, it will not leach phosphorus. We are also moving forward with drip irrigation on all our family-owned property.”

The biggest marketing change for the business in the last five years has been more direct sales to retailers without first transporting the crop to distributors.

“The stores get fresher stuff. They get to deal with the farmer directly, who has the real investment in the crop. They like that. They like coming out and seeing the dirt and seeing the crop grow,” LaSalle said.

TOWARD CONTROLLING A Threat To Honeybees

By Scott Elliott, USDA/ARS

An Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientist in the Pacific Northwest has joined the hunt for the infamous Asian giant hornet (AGH).

The Asian giant hornet has been found in Washington State and British Columbia. This insect is a major threat to honeybees.

(PHOTO COURTESY OF WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE)

The hornet is a threat to honeybees in its native territory and could also endanger honeybees in the United States if it becomes established here. AGH is also a health concern for people with bee or wasp allergies.

Jacqueline Serrano, an insect chemical ecologist with ARS’s Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research Unit in Wapato, Wash., is investigating the AGH, dubbed the “Murder Hornet.” A few AGH specimens were discovered last year in Washington State and Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

Despite its ominous nickname, AGH is more dangerous to insects than anything else.

At roughly two inches in length, this invasive species from Southeast Asia is the world’s largest hornet. It has distinctive markings: a large orange or yellow head and black-and-orange stripes across its body. While the hornet’s sting delivers a potent venom that can cause severe reactions – and in some cases, death – in some people who are allergic to bee stings, attacks against humans are rare.

AGH earned its bad reputation from the way it hunts down honeybees and other insects, primarily during the late summer months when it seeks protein to feed its young.

AGH sightings in the United States have been limited to two verified reports near Blaine, Wash., in December 2019, and a single AGH specimen found and verified in May 2020 near Custer, Wash.

The USDA scientist is developing traps used in Japan on a species like AGH by leading efforts to develop attractants for use as bait in AGH traps in Washington.

“There are many different aspects of AGH chemical ecology, including feeding attractants and pheromones, that can be used to develop attractive lures,” Serrano said.

Should her traps collect more specimens, ARS scientists will use those specimens to conduct genomic sequencing as part of the ARS Ag100Pest initiative. This initiative focuses on deciphering the genomes of 100 insect species that are most destructive to crops and livestock.

According to Kevin Hackett, ARS national program leader for crop production and protection, assembling the genome could help scientists fight the hornet in many ways.

“It would help us find pheromones to better attract the hornet and also help us look for targets within the genome that we could attack with RNA to ‘turn off ’ genes.” RNA, ribonucleic acid, carries instructions from DNA to control the synthesis of proteins.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

Members of the Marion County Farm Bureau recently donated $15,374 to the First Step Food Bank. The charitable organization supports 38 emergency food pantries in Marion County.

BERRY DELICIOUS

Florida Blueberry Breakfast Casserole

2 cups fresh Florida blueberries, rinsed and dried 1 lemon, zested 1 loaf bread or 6-8 small rolls (or your favorite, about 5-6 cups) 4 ounces low-fat cream cheese 6-8 large eggs, beaten 1 1/2 cups milk (whole, 2%, or plant-based) 1/4-1/2 cup maple syrup (depending on how sweet you want) ½ stick butter, melted 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 teaspoon cinnamon Pinch of sea salt Nonstick cooking spray

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the bread into one-inch cubes. Cut the cream cheese into small cubes. 2. Lightly spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Place half of the bread cubes in the dish. Evenly place the cream cheese cubes and one cup of the blueberries over the bread. Add the remaining bread cubes and blueberries to the top of the casserole. 3. In a medium bowl combine the eggs, milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, lemon zest, salt and butter.

Slowly pour this mixture over the bread. Loosely cover it with foil and bake for approximately 45-60 minutes. 4. Uncover and finish baking until cooked throughout (center should be set) approximately 10 more minutes or until top appears golden brown. Let the dish cool slightly and serve warm with extra maple syrup on the side.

FRESH TIP: change the menu with strawberries or another seasonal Florida fruit and additional ingredients as desired (such as white chocolate chips, nuts and seeds).

(Courtesy of Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services)

Sensational Summer Meals

Whipping up a fresh cooked meal is one of the true joys of summer, especially when grilled grub is paired with tantalizing sides and tempting desserts. Find more summer meals at Culinary.net.

Cook Up Kabobs

As one of the most versatile main courses that can be grilled, kabobs offer nearly endless opportunities for customization. From protein to veggies, soaked wooden skewers can be loaded with just about any favorite flavors before hitting the grates. Consider these options for kicking your kabobs up a notch:

INGREDIENTS:

• Steak, cut into chunks • Chicken, cut into chunks • Bratwurst or sausage, cut into slices • Ground beef, shaped into balls • Lamb • Shrimp • Salmon, cut into chunks • Bacon, cut into small pieces • Sliced onions • Sliced bell peppers • Sliced jalapenos • Sliced mushrooms • Sliced cucumbers • Cherry tomatoes

Strawberry Cream Cheese Tartlets

Take advantage of summer favorites like Florida strawberries and raspberries. Find more sweet recipes at wellpict.com/recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup water • 2 tablespoons lemon juice • 3 tablespoons lemon zest • 2 tablespoons gelatin • 4 cups Well•Pict Strawberries, sliced, divided • 1/3 cup honey • 2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese • 1/2 cup sour cream • 1 cup ice cubes • 2 cups graham cracker crumbs • 1/2 cup melted butter • 1 cup Well•Pict Strawberries, rinsed, for garnish • 1 cup Well•Pict Raspberries, rinsed, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

• In a blender, mix water, lemon juice, lemon zest and gelatin until frothy. Add two cups of strawberries and honey; blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl and chill the mix for 15 minutes. • In a blender, mix cream cheese, sour cream and ice cubes while incorporating strawberry mixture. Mix in the remaining strawberries. • In a blender or food processor, mix graham crackers and melted butter to crumb consistency. Lightly grease two medium muffin pans and pack the graham cracker mixture at the bottom of each opening. Pour the strawberry mixture over the graham cracker mixture and chill until set. • Gently pull the tartlets from muffin tins and place on a serving tray. Garnish with strawberries and raspberries.

CREATING A BETTER Home Garden

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Soil Biology Group has a number of suggestions to help homeowners improve their veggie gardens.

Compost can improve soil structure and its water holding capacity. Compost will also provide nutrients for your gardens soil microbes and plants and add to a garden each year.

Soil is alive and teeming with microbes. It is this biology that drives the breakdown of organic matter, release of plant-available nutrients and protection against plant pathogens.

Although biology is critical to plant health, it is also important to consider the soil pH, organic matter, nutrients and moisture. A well-structured soil with lots of organic matter provides the essentials.

In the movie “Field of Dreams,” a voice tells Kevin Costner, “If you build it, he will come.” Soil biology is similar: If you build a good habitat, soil microbes will flourish. Create a healthy soil habitat (pH, soil structure, organic matter) to promote beneficial soil microbes.

Building organic matter, maintaining optimal pH and managing deficiencies in critical nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorous and sulfur are important for both your plants and soil microbes.

Micro-manures help gardens grow. All the tiny creatures that live in soil need to eat, and after eating they poop out nutrient-rich micro-manures that help build soil organic matter. The most famous micro-manure is worm castings.

Hungry plants crave nitrogen, which can often be in short supply. Grab some nitrogen from the air by using legume cover crops in the fall or spring.

A cover crop such as beans or rye can protect and nurture your garden soil over winter.

Mulch and cover crops can also reduce weed pressure and chemical applications while preserving garden soil.

OTHER TIPS

• When watering your garden, it’s best to use drip irrigation or a soaker hose instead of a sprinkler.

The leaves stay dry, minimizing diseases reducing evaporation. • For small areas, consider container gardening. Containers fit well on patios or decks, and tomatoes, greens and squash can grow in them. • Tomatoes are a popular vegetable to grow in just about every backyard. When planting tomatoes, select transplants 6-10 inches tall and plant in the ground up to the 2nd or 3rd true leaves. • If garden veggies aren’t growing well, a soil test may be necessary. Check with your local Extension office for assistance.

USDA/ARS APPS

• The LandPKS (Land-Potential

Knowledge System) mobile app provides information about local soils and climate. Free download from: LandPotential. org, Google Playstore and the iTunes App Store (by searching

“LandPKS.”) • The Plant Hardiness Zone Map enables gardeners and growers to determine which plants are most likely to thrive at a location across the United States. Simply input your zip code.