WASHINGTON — Laoban, an Asian frozen dumpling brand, is expanding its product line to include frozen bao buns.
Founded by Tim Ma and Patrick Coyne, Laoban Dumplings began as a dumpling shop in Washington in 2017. Ma and Coyne later created a line of restaurant-inspired frozen dumplings in 2021.
The bao buns are formulated with chicken, pork, beef and shiitake mushrooms.
To prepare the buns, consumers may put them in the microwave for one minute, providing a convenient, on-the-go meal.
“Our buns tap into the two greatest reasons consumers turn to us — the unique combination of high-quality convenience and delectable flavor,” Coyne said. “We want to change the way consumers think about the frozen aisle by making quality frozen food like our buns part of your weekly, or daily, routine.”
The buns come in a four pack and include flavors of Chinese style barbeque pork, spicy beef and sesame chicken.
The buns will roll out in Whole Foods Market locations nationwide this month.
“I’m so excited for Laoban’s new Bao Buns to hit freezers nationwide,” Ma said. “We’ve spent the last year working on the recipes to make sure we’re bringing the restaurant experience straight to your home kitchen. The final recipe gives me visceral memories of eating bao buns as a child with my family, and I hope it evokes that same feeling for everyone who eats them.”
With the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Chevron deference—a long-standing judicial standard that required courts to defer to agency interpretations of ambiguous laws—there is now a renewed focus on legislative authority and its implications for regulatory practices. Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Chevron, Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) is leading an initiative to reassert legislative authority over administrative agencies. By introducing the Separation of Powers Restoration Act (SOPRA), Schmitt and his colleagues aim to solidify the shift away from agency deference. The House passed the same bill earlier in this session of Congress.
SOPRA proposes a de novo standard of review, meaning that courts will evaluate the merits of legal arguments without granting deference to agency interpretations. This change could help businesses, including the cold chain, that have been subject to increasingly stringent and burdensome regulations. Senator Schmitt’s efforts also include forming a working group of Senators dedicated to examining the impact of the recent Supreme Court decision on regulatory practices and exploring further legislative measures to limit what they view as an overreach by federal agencies.
GCCA appreciates the efforts of Sen. Schmitt and the working group and will continue to work with Congress and like-minded partners to address regulatory burdens.
The index for food eaten at home is up 1.1% from July 2023.
Consumers continue to see significantly more inflation eating out. The index for food eaten away from home, which is significantly affected by labor costs, rose 0.2% in July and has increased 4.1% over the past year.
Inflation at the supermarket is expected to continue decelerating into 2025. USDA’s Economic Research Service is forecasting that grocery prices will be up 1% in 2024 over 2023 and only 0.7% in 2025.
ERS projects that the cost of food eaten at home will be up 4.3% this year and another 3% in 2025.
Some food categories continue to see significant inflation. Egg prices, which have been significantly affected over the last several years by outbreaks of avian influenza, rose 5.5% in July and are up 19.1% over the past year.
The price of beef, which remains elevated due to tight cattle supplies, rose 1.2% last month and is 4.5% higher than a year ago. Meanwhile, the price of chicken rose just 0.1% in July, and the cost of pork was down 0.2%.
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The index for dairy products also was down 0.2% in July but that was in part because lower prices for ice cream helped offset a 1.9% price increase for milk and a 0.3% cost increase for cheese.
The overall index for fruits and vegetables rose 0.8%, led by higher prices for tomatoes and citrus that contributed to a 1% increase in the overall cost of fresh produce.
The index for cereals and bakery products was down 0.5% in July, led in part by a 1.1% drop in the cost of bread.
Even as it moderates, food inflation continues to be an issue in the presidential election. Republicans blame federal spending under President Joe Biden, while Democrats say corporate market power is at fault.
Andy Harig, vice president for tax, trade, sustainability and policy development at FMI-The Food Industry Association, which represents major supermarket chains, said the July CPI for food at home shows “the pace of year-over-year inflation continues to moderate, with food prices remaining a bright spot in the data relative to other sectors like shelter and transportation services.”
The report “demonstrates that eating at home continues to be an economical way for families to manage their food budgets.”
Kongsberg Maritime has launched a new Rim-drive Azimuth Thruster, the RD-AZ-2300.
The RD-AZ-2300, with a propeller diameter of 2,300mm, sits between the existing RD-AZ-1900 and RD-AZ-2600 models and is suited for vessels operating in demanding environments such as offshore wind farms, where precise maneuverability and low noise levels are crucial.
In adherence to DNV’s Silent R classification, the RD-AZ-2300 also provides significant advantages to underwater research vessels by reducing underwater radiated noise (URN) below sea levels, says Kongsberg Maritime.
Dairy co-operative Fonterra has forged a partnership with biomass fermentation company Superbrewed Food and precision fermentation firm Nourish Ingredients to develop animal-free protein, fats and lipids.
This makes Fonterra the latest major dairy company to explore fermentation-derived protein production following similar commitments made by Danone and Leprino Foods, respectively.
Superbrewed Food manufactures a biomass fermentation-derived protein ingredient that has been approved for use in the food industry by the US Food and Drug Administration. (The company has also filed market authorization applications with EU, British and Canadian regulators.) More recently, Superbrewed struck a manufacturing partnership with ingredients producer Döhler GmbH to increase production capacity for the fermentation-derived protein ahead of launching its first retail products.
The US firm’s ingredient contains more than 85% protein content – with 60% being the minimum requirement for use as a food ingredient – and also boasts ‘a high content’ of essential and branched chain amino acids as well as minerals and vitamins such as iron, zinc, phosphorous and B12, making it a whole food ingredient rather than an isolated protein source. Applications include dairy and sports nutrition, meat, confectionery, and bakery and snacks products.
Besides Fonterra, the Bel Group entered a strategic collaboration with Superbrewed back in 2021 with the view to develop a new line of dairy-free cheese.
With Nourish Ingredients, Fonterra will work on animal-free fats, which can provide enhancements to non-dairy categories such as bakery that traditionally rely on dairy lipids. According to the New Zealand co-op, Nourish’ precision fermentation-derived lipids boast the ‘authentic creamy taste, aroma and mouthfeel of dairy foods’ and is suitable for applications including cheese, cream, and butter.
Jeremy Hill, Chief Science & Technology Officer at Fonterra, said the company first tasted Nourish’s proprietary product in January 2024. “Nourish Ingredients is taking a unique approach that aligns perfectly with Fonterra’s focus on leadership in dairy innovation science and being at the forefront of such innovative new food ingredients,” he said. “By partnering together, we can explore new ways to help meet the growing global demand for great-tasting, texturally appealing products, that deliver exceptional experiences to customers.”
“Dairy will always be at the core of our business, now and in the future,” he added. “At the same time, ingredients produced through emerging technologies can work seamlessly in and alongside our dairy products, expanding the range of products and choices we can offer to customers and consumers.”
From R&D to climate targets
What is biomass fermentation?
According to The Good Food Institute’s 2023 State of the Industry Report, biomass fermentation leverages microorganisms that can grow fast and harbor high levels of protein to produce protein at scale. Microorganisms that can be used in the process include yeast, fungi or microalgae. Companies that leverage biomass fermentation include Quorn and Meati.
Biomass fermentation is not to be mistaken with precision fermentation, where microbes are programmed to produce specific functional ingredients, such as enzymes, proteins, vitamins and fats.
The two partnerships will help Fonterra meet both demand for increasingly sought-after sustainable ingredients while also allowing the organization to hit its climate goals.
The co-op has committed to reducing its emissions from dairy by 30% per ton of fat and protein-corrected milk by FY2030, a target that was recently validated by the Science Based Target Initiative. As Fonterra’s Gillian Munnik, global sales & marketing director for global markets, told DairyReporter in March, the co-op’s clients are demanding transparency about the impact of products sourced from the dairy major.
“We know that for many of our customers, we are a large part of their scope 3 emissions,” Munnik said. “They quite rightly need to understand the emissions profile of the dairy products they purchase from us and the plans and actions we have in place to reduce our emissions, therefore what impact this may have on their own targets.”
And in addition to producing climate-friendly ingredients that do not compromise on taste and functionality, Fonterra stands to gain additional value-added benefits through the Superbrewed partnership in particular. Besides tapping into the fermentation sector – which has in H1 2024 surpassed plant-based in investment terms after experiencing a 32% deceleration in YoY investment in 2023 – Fonterra would be able to use Superbrewed’s platform to ferment multi-feedstocks and develop animal-free protein solutions, such as lactose permeate.
Chris Ireland, GM, Innovation Partnerships, at Fonterra commented: “Partnering with Superbrewed Foods is a fantastic opportunity. Their cutting-edge technology aligns with our mission to provide sustainable nutritional solutions to the world and respond to the global demand for protein solutions thereby creating more value from milk for our farmers.”
Superbrewed Food CEO: ‘Our protein is different’
Bryan Tracy, CEO of Superbrewed Food, told us the partnership with the New Zealand co-operative is about developing ‘a second version’ of the company’s postbiotic cultured protein.
“Superbrewed’s already commercial, Postbiotic Cultured Protein is the first ever FDA-notified, bacteria-derived biomass ingredient that offers healthy, sustainable, and non-GMO nutrition that does not compromise on flavor, texture, or affordability,” he explained. “It works well as a complement to animal and plant proteins in numerous food and beverage formulations. Our partnership with Fonterra aims to bring forth a future version that is manufactured off the fermentation of dairy, lactose permeate.”
“We are at the very early stage of the collaboration,” he added. “A successful collaboration will result in a high-quality, sustainable protein which could potentially be sold in the US and then globally in time. Our current version is currently being introduced into the US market.”
On what sets the Superbrewed product apart from the rest, Tracy said that many of the other fermentation-produced proteins ‘are replicas of dairy proteins that are produced in genetically-engineered yeasts and isolated and extracted from complex fermentation broth’.
“The most notable example is GMO-derived beta-lactoglobulin,” he explained. “Our Postbiotic Cultured Protein and what we are also developing with Fonterra is very different. Postbiotic Cultured Protein is a whole, inactivated microbial biomass (i.e., postbiotic) that is over 85% protein, with a high content of essential and branched-chain amino acids. It is a whole food ingredient, as opposed to a protein isolate; thereby it also contains beneficial minerals and vitamins, such as iron, zinc, phosphorous and B12, which deliver nutrition and health benefits beyond protein.”
So how can your platform be adapted to ferment other inputs, such as lactose permeate? Tracy explained the company is working with Fonterra ‘to determine the right microbe and to identify any adjustments and opportunities’. “Superbrewed has a library of incredible microbes that play a central role in human and animal nutrition,” the CEO explained. “This library also has broad diversity in ability to ferment different inputs, namely carbohydrates. Thus, we are searching deeply into our library of microbes to discover those that can efficiently ferment lactose permeate into next generations of nutrient-rich, highly functional Postbiotic Cultured Protein.”
In early May 2024, Producer & Roaster Forum announced it will host the first-ever PRF: Farm Summit on 17 & 18 October in Santander, Colombia. Unlike previous editions, the event will take place entirely on a coffee farm with a specific focus on regenerative agriculture and organic farming practices.
PRF will host two events per year. In addition to the two-day forums in major cities across Latin American producing countries which attract thousands of visitors, the all-new Farm Summit will bring together a maximum of 1,000 attendees in more rural regions.
The goal of the new event format is to improve producers’ success and profitability in the long term by adopting more holistic farming practices. In line with this, PRF has announced a speaker line up that will provide valuable and actionable insight for all attendees, while also creating a more hands-on approach to industry events.
Read on to learn more about who will speak at the inaugural PRF: Farm Summit and how you can attend.
The first Farm Summit will take place at Hacienda Cafetera La Pradera in Santander, Colombia – a Cup of Excellence award-winning coffee farm that also operates wet and dry mills.
La Pradera was handpicked to host the event given its strong focus on organic farming. In addition to growing shade-grown coffee, generating its own solar energy, and implementing crop diversification strategies, the coffee farm also produces its own biochar fertiliser.
Similar to the intimacy of the Sourcing Trip Experience at previous PRF events, Farm Summit will allow attendees to share practical hands-on knowledge. Roasters and traders from Germany, Japan, Ireland, the US, Poland, the UK, Hungary, Spain, Nigeria, the UAE, Croatia, Australia, and Indonesia will attend to engage with producers from over ten different origins.
Henry Wilson is the founder of PRF. He explains how the new event format will provide attendees with opportunities to build stronger relationships with prospective clients and industry peers.
“For producers, Farm Summit is a valuable platform to not only sell green coffee, but to establish alliances with farmers from different origin countries and leverage their experience,” he says. “Roasters, meanwhile, can see what other brands have achieved in the organic and regenerative agriculture markets, as well as sourcing coffee from like-minded producers and experiencing farming practices firsthand.”
Why regenerative agriculture and organic farming?
Each Farm Summit will have a focus based on feedback from previous editions. This year, it will be on regenerative agriculture and organic coffee production.
Achieving and retaining organic certification can be costly, particularly for smallholders, so PRF will welcome producers who are already certified, as well as those who are interested in these practices and want to know more.
The event will explore how holistic farming practices can help producers lower production costs, adapt to the climate crisis, maximise yields, improve profitability in the long term, and differentiate themselves in the market – rather than a simplistic idea that higher prices are the only answer.
“There’s a clear need to discuss alternative models to address some of the biggest challenges that farmers are facing,” Henry says. “But to provide actionable solutions, producers need ownership over their supply chains. Utilising regenerative and organic farming is one of the most valuable ways they can achieve this.
“The common discourse is that these practices are more expensive for producers, but Farm Summit aims to open up the conversation and ensure producers’ voices are front and centre,” he adds.
Simultaneously, the event will address how the growing trend of regenerative agriculture certifications has created vague, catch-all terms that are difficult to define – and, therefore, are at risk of greenwashing. Moreover, with growing concerns about how certifications largely benefit actors on the consuming end of the supply chain, the event will offer solutions for how producers can generate and retain more value.
Announcing the speakers
As part of its overall focus, the event will host a tailored PRF Voices programme.
Hosting the event on a coffee farm allows roasters to more easily engage with producers, and learn more about regenerative agriculture from farmers themselves – thereby placing them at the forefront of Farm Summit.
Attendees can take part in talks and will then get to see and interact with specific topics and areas covered – such as biochar production, crop diversification, and shade-grown coffee systems.
PRF Voices
The PRF Voices programme will feature a carefully curated line up of lectures and panels from both international and Latin American industry experts – including Brazil, Honduras, France, the UAE, the US, and more:
The Carbon-Nitrogen Ratio: Climate-Resilient Strategies in Organic Coffee Production (Oscar Zacarias, Technical Manager at Agrosana, Guatemala)
Coffee for Health: A New Category with Great Potential (Ildi Revi, Chief Learning Officer at Purity Coffee, US)
Innovative Fermentation: Creating Unique Flavour Profiles Through Experimental Processes (Manuel Diaz, founder of ONA consulting, Mexico)
Resilience Through Crop Diversification: The Sancocho Method (Nelson Galindo Collazos, founder of Nelson Galindo Consulting, Colombia)
Certifications: Impact vs Marketing (Martin Mayorga, CEO of Mayorga Coffee, US)
Building and Implementing High Capacity Biofertiliser Factories (Nery Gonzales Hernández, Coordinator of the Technical Assistance, Projects, and Environment Unit at COMSA, Honduras)
Chromatography & Soil Quality Assessment (Tulio Esteban Lozano Vesga, founder of Campo Para Todos, Colombia)
Resilient Systems: Nature as the Coffee Farmer’s Best Ally (Arnaud Causse, Director of Agroecological Transition at Belco, France)
Cascara: Unlocking the Value of Coffee By-products (Andres Bahamón, researcher at Cesurcafé, Colombia)
Optimising Costs with Biochar: Technical Applications and Data-Driven Insights (Aristides José Noriega Hernández, CEOof BioSoils Group, Colombia)
Philosophical Dimensions of Coffee: Beyond Taste to Emotional Experience (Abdulrahman Hayel Saeed, founder of Mokha Not Mocha, UAE)
Strategies for Adapting to Climate Change in Coffee Farming (Juan Luis Barrios, owner of Finca La Merced, Guatemala)
Carbon Footprint in Brazilian Coffee: Measurement and Reduction Strategies(Ana Claudia Silva, Head of Impact at Sancoffee, Brasil)
How Producers Can Capture Value by Roasting Their Own Coffee (Eduardo Choza, Director of Coffee at Mayorga Coffee, US)
You can read more about the speakers at Farm Summit here.
Panels and roundtables
In addition to speakers, the event will include a select number of panels:
Role & Importance of Biochar in Coffee
Oscar Daza, founder of Hacienda La Pradera, Colombia
Mildred Daza, founder of Santa Maria Project, Colombia
Amellia Connell, Agricultural Engineer at Purity Coffee, France
Francisco Tamayo, Coffee Adviser at Purity Coffee, Colombia
Certifications and Controversies: Reviewing Regenerative vs Organic Practices
Jeffrey Chean, co-founder of Groundwork Coffee, US
Angela Pelaez Martinez, RGC Coffee, Colombia
Melina Devoney, independent, US
Exploring Subproducts and Byproducts of Coffee and Cacao Production
Yolima Ramirez Gómez, CEO of Indio Ramirez Café, Colombia
Liliana Caballero Rojas, Manager at Cafe Hacienda Casablanca, Colombia
Erica Sanchez, CEO of Somos Cacao, Colombia
Enhancing Soil Through Beneficial Native Microbiology
Ángela Barrero, owner of La Bodega de la Finca, Colombia
Empowering Youth and Women Coffee Producers
María Cecilia Tobar Meneses, Coordinator of the Socio-Organisational Area at Federación Campesina del Cauca, Colombia
Tania Cecilia Landaverde, Organic Coffee Certification Technician at CESAL, Honduras
Irene Villavicencio, producer at MAV Coffee, El Salvador
Collaborating for EUDR Compliance: Producers, Traders & NGOs
Jaromir Hanzal, founder of International Center for the Advancement of Coffee, Czech Republic
Rodolfo Ruffatti, founder of International Center for the Advancement of Coffee, El Salvador
Alongside a specific focus on regenerative and organic agriculture, PRF: Farm Summit will directly address issues related to the European Union Deforestation Regulation.
With medium and larger-sized companies expected to comply with new legislation by 30 December 2024 (and smaller brands needing to prove due diligence by June 2025), it’s essential that producers, roasters, and traders are aware of how the strict regulations will impact their operations. If not, they risk losing access to a market that accounts for over a third of global coffee consumption.
Bringing the industry to a coffee farm
For attendees to obtain as much value as possible, the event will include collaborative workshops and focus groups, such as Introduction to Regenerative Organic Certification for Coffee Farms hosted by Mayacert and a Bird Friendly coffee certification workshop hosted by Smithsonian.
PRF will then collate findings from these activities to pen an open letter to the coffee industry.
Additionally, there will be a number of cupping sessions run by some of Latin America’s finest coffee producers and traders, showcasing the very best that the region has to offer. Hosts will include Café Linaje, Algrano, Osito Coffee, and more.
There will also be a select number of booths for brands interested in regenerative agriculture and organic farming, as well as producers and roasters who already grow and source these coffees.
Competitions
PRF: Farm Summit will also host three competitions:
The fifth Cold Brew Coffee Championship sponsored by Toddy – where competitors must prepare two cold brew-based beverages, including a designer drink
The Cacao Masters Cup for producers to learn more about alternative cash crops, sponsored by Somos Cacao
The first-ever Soil of Excellence competition to assess soil samples from some of the world’s best producers, which is sponsored by Belco
The inaugural PRF: Farm Summit will be held entirely on a coffee farm on 17 & 18 October 2024. Attendees will be able to learn firsthand about holistic farming approaches to understand how these practices can support long term success for producers.
The Sourcing Trip Experience tickets are now sold out, but international tickets can still be purchased here. The PRF team is happy to recommend producers and farms to visit before or after the event, as well as producers who will be in attendance at Farm Summit.
You can stay up to date with all announcements for PRF here or by subscribing to the newsletter here.
Susannah Frost has been named president of Chick-fil-A Inc., effective Oct. 1. Andrew Cathy will retain his role as chief executive officer, leading enterprise strategy and culture, while Frost will focus on core business operations. She will also lead the executive committee.
Chick-fil-A has historically operated with a CEO and president model, and Frost is now the sixth person to hold the president role since its founding in 1967.
“Susannah has demonstrated tremendous leadership throughout the business and has the range of expertise that will help the company continue growing with care and confidence,” Cathy said in a statement. “The timing is right to expand our leadership capabilities to include a president who will work closely with me and our executive committee to steward our domestic and global expansion.”
Frost currently leads restaurant development and field operations for Chick-fil-A, overseeing the company’s real estate portfolio and field operations for more than 3,000 restaurants domestically. Prior to joining Chick-fil-A, she was a real estate attorney at Troutman Sanders, advancing to partner. Since joining the company in 2007, Frost has assumed higher degrees of responsibility within the legal department, restaurant development, and operations.
“The future continues to offer so much potential and promise as we look to grow our opportunities to provide care and great food as well as live out our corporate purpose,” Frost said in a statement. “We have the opportunity to scale care with excellence across 3,000-plus restaurants and international markets.”
Frost holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics from the University of Georgia and a law degree from Emory University. She also completed executive education programs at Columbia University and Harvard University.
Additionally, Cliff Robinson has been named chief operating officer of Chick-fil-A, effective Oct. 1. Robinson currently serves as chief people officer and his responsibilities will expand to include leading field operations and restaurant development. Robinson began working at Chick-fil-A at a young age as the son of a Chick-fil-A restaurant owner-operator. He joined the corporate office in 1990 and has held increasing roles of responsibility, including in field operations, development, and most recently CPO.
On July 11, 2024, civil society organization Beyond Plastics published a report investigating and providing an overview of compostable and biodegradable plastic food packaging. The aim of the report is to clarify misconceptions about these products and offer business owners and individuals guidance on how to navigate the decision-making process for finding plastic alternatives.
Beyond introducing basic terminology, regulations, and systems contexts, the report highlights key challenges associated with bioplastics from certification issues and concerns about toxicity, to complex waste management.
The lack of federal standards for defining and regulating bioplastics in the US leads to widespread greenwashing, the authors believe. While voluntary standards do exist, they are often overseen by industry groups creating conflicts of interest. “[T]he board of the U.S.’s lead certifier of compostable packaging, the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI), includes executives from some of the country’s most powerful petrochemical companies, including BASF, EastmanChemicalCompany, TotalEnergiesCorbion, and DanimerScientific,” the authors found.
Recent research indicates that some bioplastics can be just as toxic, or even more so, than conventional fossil-based plastics due to the various chemical additives used during production (FPF reported). The authors quote Food Packaging Forum scientist Lisa Zimmermann’s study from 2020, which shows that certain bioplastics exhibit baseline toxicity, oxidative stress, and hormone disruption potential. The chemical composition of these bioplastics often includes a mix of identified and unidentified substances, some shared with conventional plastics.
Composting bioplastics also presents some challenges. Many products labeled “compostable” require industrial composting facilities, which are not widely available. Additionally, the report emphasizes that incomplete degradation of bioplastics can lead to increased toxicity of the residual materials, potentially contaminating soil and water resources.
To conclude, the authors encourage transparency from suppliers and manufacturers about their products’ contents and ask for more independent certification. More importantly, however, they note that reusable containers made from inert and safe materials should be prioritized.
Accompanying the report is a short brochure explaining the key points and including a checklist for businesses with questions to ask their suppliers.
The Food Packaging Forum’s fact sheet on bioplastics is an additional resource that addresses common questions and mix-ups around bioplastics, and it can help consumers and retailers make evidence-based decisions.
While campaigning in Michigan Wednesday, GOP vice presidential candidate JD Vance talked up a couple of ways to lower food prices – firing the agriculture secretary and increasing oil and natural gas production.
The topic came up when a reporter asked the Ohio senator what should be done about energy costs to help lower the price of groceries. A member of the crowd then shouted, “Fire Granholm,” a reference to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, a former governor of Michigan.
“The first is we’re going to fire the agriculture secretary. … She’s not doing a very good job,” said Vance, possibly mixing up Granholm with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
Vance went on to argue that lowering oil and natural gas prices could reduce fuel and fertilizer costs for farmers, savings he suggested would be passed on to supermarket shoppers.
“If we ‘drill, baby drill,’ and take advantage of the incredible bounty of this nation, we’re going to lower food prices in a very big way for American consumers. That’s just a fact,” he said.
The average farm share of every dollar consumers spend on food is just under 15 cents, according to USDA’s Economic Research Service. The exact share varies according to the type of food and the amount of processing, shipping and packaging it requires.
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ERS estimates farmers will spend $15.1 billion on fuel this year. Adjusted for inflation that is less than they spent in any year of the Trump administration except for 2020.
On the other hand, fertilizer costs remain elevated. Farmers are expected to spend $31.7 billion on fertilizer this year, up from $31.1 billion last year but down from $33.5 billion in 2021 and $39 billion in 2022, when adjusted for inflation. Previous to that, fertilizer costs had not exceeded $30 billion in 2024 dollars since they reached $32.8 billion in 2015.
ERS is forecasting that grocery prices will be up 1% in 2024 over 2023 and rise 0.7% in 2025. The 20-year average inflation rate for food eaten at home is 2.7%.
Congratulations to Leanne Kesler who was recently awarded the Tommy Bright award by the Society of American Florists (SAF). Leanne is the owner and education director of the Floral Design Institute. This award is SAF’s most prestigious award signifying a lifetime of commitment to education excellence in the floral industry.
Beginning with a tiny vocational school in 1988, training just 45 students a year Leanne Kesler AIFD, PFCI, AAF, FDI has built Floral Design Institute into the largest private floral design training and certification school in America with thousands of graduates and millions of followers worldwide.
