Ag Insight

BY JIM ERICKSON

European Union Corn: Extreme High Temperatures and Drought Reduce Crop

European Union (EU) (MY) 2022/23 corn production is forecast at 60.0 million metric tons (mmt), down 12% from the most recent forecast, 15% below last year’s crop, and 10% below the 5-year average.

Area is estimated at 9.0 million hectares (mha), down 15% from last month and 3% from last year, but 3% above the 5-year average of 8.8 mha. Yield is estimated at 6.67 tons per hectare, down 11% from recent estimates, 13% from last year, and 12% from the 5-year average.

Searing heat and widespread drought during pollination and tasseling have significantly diminished the EU’s corn crop. The major producing areas in Europe are in the south – Spain, Southern France, Italy, and the Balkans – where conditions have been highly unfavorable. These areas have been under continuous pressure from drought and extreme heat, particularly during the vegetatively sensitive mid-season period.

High temperatures during this period can lead to aborted kernels, while low precipitation and soil moisture results in small grain weight.

Rainfall has been well below normal in these southern regions for several months. In western areas such as Spain and France, the corn crop is two to three weeks ahead of normal due to the heat. In areas of Italy, Spain, and France where corn is normally irrigated, there are water restrictions. Various measures of vegetation health show extensive deterioration in the corn regions.

The percentage of Average Seasonal Greenness (PASG) map vividly depicts summer crop area (corn and sunflowers) to be far below average during the critical month of July in the major producing areas of

Romania, Hungary, Italy, and France.

Estimated corn production is reduced in Romania by 3.0 mmt or 23% from last month to 10.0 mmt. This is 27% below last year and 23% below the 5-year average. Dryness intensified nationwide during July and now covers all of the country’s major growing regions.

Hungary’s corn production was reduced 1.5 mmt to 6.2 mmt as dryness devastated Hungary and the plains around it, causing significant damage to the area. European Space Agency satellite imagery depicts 2022 summer conditions in eastern Hungary to be much worse than in 2021.

The satellite-derived, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) seasonal chart from the NASA MODIS sensor shows a long decline in 2022 vegetation conditions in Hungary due to unfavorable weather. This is a similar trajectory to other EU corn producers this year.

Additionally, France's production was reduced by 1.2 mmt, as heat and dryness have limited development, particularly in the concentrated corn region of its southwest. France’s corn crop – the EU’s largest – is estimated at 12.0 mmt. .

Tips for ensuring the safety of foods packed for school lunches

On your next shopping trip, make sure to include items on your list that will keep any foods for school lunches and other outings, safe.

Because children are particularly at risk for serious foodborne illness, food safety must be at the top of the list when preparing lunches for school and related outings, according to Sandra Eskin, USDA's Deputy Undersecretary for food safety. Consider the following for your shopping list:

Disinfecting materials for kitchen prep surfaces. Clean your prep area before you start that school lunch. A recent USDA study showed that cross-contamination often is prevalent in the kitchen during food prep. Therefore, be sure to wash your cutting boards, dishes, utensils and countertops with soap before and after preparing each food item and before proceeding to the next item. A homemade bleach-based solution of one tablespoon of unscented liquid chlorine bleach to one gallon of water can be used to sanitize surfaces and utensils in the kitchen.

Different colored cutting boards. Separate meat and poultry from ready-to-eat foods (such as fruits, vegetables, cheeses, etc.) to avoid cross-contamination during your food preparation.

Food thermometers for food prep. If you are cooking a frozen item for your child’s lunch, use a food thermometer to check whether a meal has reached a safe temperature to kill any harmful bacteria. Beware: some frozen foods are not fully cooked or not ready-to-eat, but have browned breading, grill marks or other signs that suggest that they are cooked. Make sure they are cooked to a safe internal temperature: meat (whole beef, pork and lamb) 145 degrees with a 3-minute rest; ground meats 160 degrees; poultry (ground and whole) 165 degrees; eggs 160 degrees; fish and shellfish 145 degrees; and leftovers and casseroles 165 degrees.

Insulated lunch boxes and gel packs. Perishable food can be unsafe to eat by lunch time if packed in a paper bag. Keep your meal cool by storing it in an insulated bag. Put in a frozen gel pack, combined with a frozen juice box or bottle of water to keep food cold and to avoid the “danger zone,” temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees where bacteria can multiply quickly and cause illness.

Insulated containers. If hot liquids such as soup, chili or stew are on the menu, use an insulated container to keep items hot at 140 degrees and above. Fill the container with boiling water, let it stand for a few minutes, empty, and then pour in the hot food. Keep the insulated container closed until lunchtime.

Handwashing aides. Hand wipes and 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizers are ideal for children to clean their hands before they eat when water and soap are not available.

Peanut Skins: More than Meets the Eye

America's fondness for peanuts accounts for 65% of all U.S. nut consumption. Per person, that equates to nearly 8 pounds of goobers annually.

But what's to be done with the estimated 40-70 million pounds of peanut skins stripped from the nut in the process of turning it into peanut butter, snack food, candy ingredients, oil and other products?

Researchers with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Raleigh, North Carolina, suggest a range of food and livestock feed uses that could potentially open the door to new, value-added markets for the skins.

Instead of landfill waste, there’s untapped nutritional potential in the paper-thin skins, which are chock full of protein, carbohydrates, fats, fiber and minerals and vitamins. Peanut skins also contain bioactive compounds, including antioxidants that help neutralize cell-damaging molecules in the body called free radicals. On the livestock feed front, researchers are exploring the benefits of adding peanut skins to the diets of poultry with a view to determining the optimal amount that can be added.

Aware of peanut sensitivities in some consumers, the researchers also checked for the presence of allergenic peanut proteins in egg and meat samples produced from birds fed peanut-containing diets. No traces of peanut allergens were detected.

On the functional food front, the researchers are comparing concentrations of bioactive compounds in different colored peanut skins, which range from red, tan and brown, to white, black and variegated. Profiling the nutritional chemistry and properties of peanut skins is a key step towards figuring out how

Poultry consumption growth expected to continue worldwide

Over the past two decades, poultry has become the most consumed livestock commodity in the world, especially in developing and emerging markets where production prospects have been relatively limited.

As demand for poultry products grew in these markets during the period from 2001 to 2021, global imports increased. Poultry is expected to remain the world’s largest imported livestock commodity by volume over the next 10 years.

To meet the rising demand, a number of countries increased domestic poultry production. Brazil, the United States, the European Union, and Thailand emerged as major poultry exporters. Brazil is the world’s leading poultry exporter and is projected to remain in the top position through 2031. The United States, however, is expected to lose market share throughout the coming decade.

In addition, global poultry imports are projected to reach 17.5 million metric tons in 2031, with sub-Saharan Africa projected to remain the top global importer of poultry.

Brazil is projected to remain the top global exporter of poultry, while the United States’ share of the world’s poultry exports is projected to decline from 26% in 2021 to 24% in 2031.