The Fruit Growers News - February 2003

Two years ago I wrote a very poignant column about the Michigan Apple Committee. Being the editor of a national trade publication, I don’t normally meddle in things like this, but being a fourth generation Michigan apple grower and cutting a check each year to the committee, I felt it was my place to take a stance. I feel I have an equal responsibility to tell you when things are going in the right direction – and they are. Two years ago I said the Michigan Apple Committee had not embraced the changes facing the industry and had instead retreated and stayed with its comfortable old ways. I referred to the book “Who Moved My Cheese,” where two mice and two little people who live in a maze get used to going to the same place for their cheese every day. One day the four show up and there is no cheese, so they have to go out and search the maze. Sniff, sniffs out change early and Scurry, scurries into action. Haw learns to adapt in times when he sees change leads to something better. Hem denies and resists change, as he fears it will lead to something worse. Two years ago the Michigan Apple Committee was Hem, but now the board of directors has had the courage to make the structural changes necessary to embrace change and get the industry back on track. I commend the board members for spending hours and hours of their personal time to get a handle on the problems and start to fix them. Soon they will be picking a new manager of the apple committee and I have confidence they will find a leader who will take the industry forward. In March growers will be asked to renew the Michigan Apple Committee for five more years. I’m urging growers to vote yes for this renewal and give the committee a vote of confidence for the future. At the same time Michigan growers will be asked a separate question of whether or not to levy up to an additional three cents per cwt. (about a penny per bushel) to help pay Michigan’s USApple membership dues. The USApple question will be of national significance. Some past leaders of the Michigan Apple Committee said Michigan apple growers didn’t support being a member of USApple. I think they were out of touch with the growers, because my feedback has always been that we must be members if we want to continue farming in the future. Look at what USApple has done for growers. • Brought $269 million in direct assistance to U.S. apple growers, with $32 million going to Michigan alone. That’s an average of $32,000 per apple orchard in the state. • Saved Guthion and Imidan from being banned under immense pressure until 2005. USApple is working to extend that date even further. • Helped to initiate and see through the successful apple juice-dumping suit against the Chinese. • Saved Lorsban from being banned as a trunk spray for dogwood borer, • Fought environmental groups who wanted to ban all OPs and carbamates, let alone every other pest control apples have. On the 10th anniversary of Alar one of these radical environmental groups tried to get press coverage that apples were still unsafe – but USApple was able to squash the story with its crisis communication program. • Worked with all of the major food and women’s magazines on getting better exposure for apples.
The future battles are just going to become more complicated. USApple is the only group that can speak with one unified voice for apple growers. Some of the other battles brewing include: • Keeping the Chinese juice industry at bay will be hard enough, but fresh apples are now knocking at the door. They’ve already gotten a few shipments into Canada, but USApple is working diligently to keep them out of our country. • Sure, Michigan got into Mexico, but then the country slapped tariffs on Red and Golden Delicious apples, snuffing out the hard work. Now its USApple’s turn to get the heat on and get that market open again. • It’s been 10 years since NAFTA and the tariffs are now gone on fruit and vegetable exports (see story on page 11) – but wait. Canada and Mexico continue to use other methods of keeping our fruit out. USApple has this as a top priority. • The EPA and environmental groups are pushing a zero spray drift policy that could put orchardists under increased scrutiny. The environmentalists have made it their highest priority. EPA was trying to put the zero drift policy on Guthion and Imidan labels for this season, but USApple got it stopped. Sanctions for not following a federal label are huge – growers don’t need this. • The environmentalists got the pressure put on OPs and carbamates, but you know they won’t stop until the world is pesticide free. USApple needs the funding to fight the battle in Washington, D.C. And just so you know how big of a battle we face, look at the war chests of the environmental groups: Sierra Club - assets $128.9 million; People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) - assets - $6.4 million; The Wilderness Society - assets $23.1 million, and the Earth Justice Legal Defense Fund - assets $32.4 million. All other major states have agreed to increase their assessment to USApple more than a year ago. Michigan has dragged its feet because of past leaders and a money crunch due to a small crop and a major processor and fresh shipper being behind on assessment payments to the Michigan Apple Committee. But, other states said they would pay more to USApple, only if all other major apple-producing states were on board. Well Michigan growers - they are all on board and here we sit becoming more and more alienated. Now is the time to show that Michigan wants to help lead this industry into the future. Now is the time to make a statement that Michigan is on board and ready to fight. Now is the time for Michigan to act like it’s one of the big three apple producing states. Now is not the time to dig a hole and hide. Let’s put the debate over the support of USApple behind us. I will be voting yes for both questions on the ballot and I urge you to consider doing the same. Matt McCallum is publisher of The Fruit Growers News. Please e-mail your comments to him at email.