January 2023 - 28

INDUSTRY NEWS
New CEA members aid
group's mission
The Controlled Environment
Agriculture Alliance (CEA) has
elected new board members.
The association, which
represents vertical farms and
greenhouse producers growing
fruits and vegetables in controlled indoor production
environments, welcomed eight new members to the
association at its Dec. 21 annual membership meeting.
New board members include producer members Local
Bounti, Mastronardi Produce and Upward Farms. New
business service provider members are Jiffy Group,
Qfresh Labs and
Unfold. New retail/foodservice members are Brookshire
Grocery and UNFI.
During the meeting, AeroFarms' Marc Oshima, CEA
Alliance chairman, presented a " State of the Association "
report. He cited the organization's 2022 transition
from a leafy greens food safety organization to a multicommodity
group supporting the CEA sector in public
policy, sustainability, education and market growth.
U.S. apple holdings decline 7%
Fresh and processing apple inventories are reported
lower this year from the previous December, according
to a Dec. 1 report from the U.S. Apple Association.
The total number of apples in storage on was 134.2
million bushels, 7.1% smaller than last December's total
of 144.4 million bushels and 11.5% less than the 5-year
average for that date, according to the USApple report.
Fresh apple holdings this December totaled 93.4
million bushels, 6.8% less than the inventories reported
for December 2021 and 14.5% lower than the December
five-year average. Processing holdings were 40.8
million bushels, 7.7% less than the previous year on
Dec. 1 and 3.8%
down from than
the December
five-year
average.
Washington's
Pollinator habitat grants
awarded to Midwest schools
Endangered insect pollinators and monarch butterflies
in five Midwestern states will receive aid from high
school students.
Sand County Foundation is awarding pollinator habitat
grants to agriculture and science programs at 21 high
schools in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and
Wisconsin. Each school
district or FFA chapter
will receive prairie
seeds and seedlings, a
consultation and $1,000
to support project
expenses.
" Students will
germinate and grow
native plants in late
winter, and plant them outside in the spring as an
experiential learning opportunity, " Haley Diem, Sand
County Foundation school grant program coordinator,
said in a news release. Sand County Foundation
is a national non-profit that champions voluntary
conservation practices by farmers, ranchers and
forestland owners to improve soil, water, and
wildlife habitat.
28 | JANUARY 2023
total storage
declined from
114 million
bushels in
2021 to 101.9 million bushels in 2022. This compares
to the 121.6 million five-year average. For the second
month of the seasonal report, Michigan gained in apple
holdings. On Dec. 1, the state recorded 12.2 million
pounds in total storage, up from 7.5 million pounds the
previous year and higher than the 8.0 million bushel
five-year average.
New York remained was 9.6 million bushels for 202223
compared to 10.7 million the previous year and lower
than the 10.9 million five-year average. Pennsylvania's
storage was 5.4 million bushels in 2022/23 compared
to the previous year's 6.7 million bushels and similar to
the 5.1 million bushel five-year average. Virginia storage
for 2022-23 is 1.8 million bushels, down from 1.8 million
bushels the previous year and lower than the 2.4 million
bushel five-year average.
California's inventories declined from 2021-22's
295,973 bushels to 2022-23's 213,191 bushels. That
compares to the state's 385,287 bushels five-year
average. Oregon and New Hampshire recorded storage
increases while other states, including Maryland, West
Virginia, North Carolina and Idaho, witnessed declines
in storage.
Virginia Tech drone research
wins national kudos
Virginia Tech faculty have been nationally honored for
a multistate project that helped accelerate the use of
January 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2023
