The wine world has been left reeling as France makes a serious 'grape-grab'.
In a stunning move that will have wineries worldwide grappling with the ramifications for years, a French law firm has successfully lobbied its government to formally adopt a form of appellation rights to six individual grape varieties, with more varieties likely on the cards.
While the exact upshot of this is unclear, it effectively grants France property rights over the use of the name of the grape on any bottle worldwide. Just as the word Champagne is regionally designated and protected, so now are Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir (as well as Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris – but not "Pinot Grigio"), Syrah and Sauvignon Blanc.
It is still not known whether or not France will push for an outright international ban of the use of the names of the grape varieties on wine labels or whether it will demand a small fee – effectively a royalty – paid by wineries using those grape names on their labels. The latter is considered by experts to be the most likely option, given the already ubiquitous use of varietal labeling and the potential revenue the French coffers stand to draw.
Talking exclusively to Wine-Searcher, one of the legal team, which initially presented the case to a mixed hearing of the INAO (France's governing appellations body), the DGCCRF (the French anti-fraud bureau) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, said there would be a gentle rollout of the plan over the next year.
"Look, in a few cases, there is little to fear," said Jean-Philippe Poisson, one of the lead lawyers with Cabinet Davril, the legal firm which brought the case to the French courts (who is backing the case, however, is unknown). "If you look at names like Shiraz or Meritage, for instance, these are untouchable – although, of course, there is nothing stopping the Australians or the Americans from protecting those terms themselves. We can only wait to see how the government, led primarily by the Ministry of Agriculture, will proceed. We think it is likely there will be some form of royalty payment."
When asked whether this would damage the reputation of France internationally, Poisson was quick to state that his firm was only interested in the protection and defense of France and the country's heritage, or 'patrimoine'.
"These grapes are French," he said. "How long has it taken us to be rid of American 'Chablis' or Australian 'Burgundy'? We are simply doing the same with grapes. It is not the fault of France if our grapes travel well."
"The rest," he added, "is between the French government and the WIPO [the World Intellectual Property Organisation] – we are covered under Madrid, Paris and Lisbon." The latter are founding treaties in international intellectual property and appellations laws.
The impact has the potential to be huge. Indeed, famed Swiss grape geneticist, José Vouillamoz, was unavailable for contact. Wine-Searcher understands his office continues to be inundated with calls.
"They will be getting calls for numerous reasons," one industry insider told Wine-Searcher. "Firstly, people will be asking if it cannot be proved that, say, Syrah isn't actually from Iran or something. The problem is that will only move the problem somewhere else. This is because, secondly, we all need to find out exactly which variety comes from where and not everyone is calling because they're worried – some smell opportunity. Just imagine how many grapes Italy can claim, for instance."
Pinot Grigio is thought to be a potential sticking point although Wine-Searcher understands the French government is likely to leave the variety to Italy. While many European countries will no doubt begin to stake their claims (Spain and Tempranillo, Italy and Nebbiolo, for instance), others, such as Cornalin (a name found in both Switzerland and Italy) will doubtless be the subject of protracted legal wranglings.
One Texan viticulturist, who did not wish to be named, was fuming. Given most vines are planted on rootstock originating from American vines, it might have been possible for the US to capitalize on this new state of affairs. However, few rootstocks carry their original name.
"I mean, we [the USA] could have nipped this all in the butt," he said. "But they had to go and give most all our rootstock a number for a name. I mean, for sure I want the Bureau of Tax and Trade to register 'Riparia' but we ain't got a hope in hell with things like 3309."
While the French ministers and bureaucrats mull their next move, Poisson has confirmed Davril will work with the government on further grapes. "Let's not be cynical – we need to protect Picpoul de Pinet or Len de l'El as much as we do Sémillon, Malbec or Viognier."
He would not be drawn on the contents of the next round of grapes to be so protected. According to one source in the French Agriculture ministry, however, it is unlikely all 'French' grapes will be covered. "Yes, of course," said the source, "we will attempt to protect the likes of Gouais Blanc – more for patriotic reasons than anything [it is parent of numerous French grapes, including Chardonnay, although its origins are far from clear] – but, Madeleine Angevine? Well, the English can have that for free."
One EU official, however, was quick to point out that what is known in England as Madeleine Angevine is, in fact, Madeleine x Angevine 7672, which was bred in Germany. But even greater issues are at stake.
"Sure, an umlaut might be enough for the Germans to protect 'Gewürztraminer' and the French 'Gewurztraminer' but that's not the worst," said the official in Brussels. "Who is going to claim Riesling? My God. It's not like the area between Alsace and the Mosel has a history that is devoid of argument, shall we say."
The French government is expected to make an announcement later today.
U.S. farmers will plant lower corn and soybean acreage than the trade expected, according to the USDA.
As a result, the CME Group’s corn market hit its daily limit up (25¢) trading prices.
At the close, the May corn futures settled up its daily limit of 25¢ at $5.64 1/2.
July corn futures settled up its daily limit of 25¢ higher at $5.47 1/2.
New crop December corn futures closed up its daily limit of 25¢ at $4.77 1/2.
As a result, corn's daily trade limits will expand to 40¢ tomorrow.
May soybean futures finished up its daily limit of 70¢ at $14.36 1/2.
July soybean futures ended up its daily limit of 70¢ higher at $14.27 1/2.
New crop November soybean futures settled up its daily limit of 70¢ at $12.56 3/4.
As a result, the soybean market's daily limits will expand, tomorrow, too $1.05.
May wheat futures closed 16¢ higher at $6.18.
May soymeal futures settled $25.00 short term higher at $423.20.
May soy oil futures closed 2.46¢ higher at 52.92¢ per pound.
In the outside markets, the NYMEX crude oil market is -1.33 lower (-2.20%) at $59.22. The U.S. dollar is lower, and the Dow Jones Industrials are 42 points higher (+0.13%) at 33,109 points.
Anything above 180.3 million acres breaks the 2017 total acreage record.
In its March Prospective Plantings Report Wednesday, the USDA pegged the 2021 U.S. corn acreage at 91.1 million, compared with the trade’s expectation of 93.2 million and the USDA’s previous estimate from the Outlook Forum in February of 92.0 million.
For soybeans, the USDA sees 2021 acreage at 87.6 million vs. the trade’s expectation of 89.9 million and the USDA’s Outlook Forum estimate of 90.0 million.
All wheat acreage is pegged at 46.6 million vs. the trade’s expectation of 44.97 million and the USDA’s Outlook Forum estimate of 45.0 million.
March 1 Grain Stocks
The USDA estimates both the amount of grain stocks on and off-farm as of March 1.
In its report, the USDA pegged the March 1, 2021, U.S. corn stocks at 7.7 billion bushels vs. the trade’s estimate of 7.76 billion bushels.
For soybeans, March 1 stocks totaled 1.56 billion bushels vs. the trade’s estimate of 1.54 billion bushels.
USDA sees U.S. wheat stocks, as of March 1, at 1.31 billion bushels vs. the trade’ estimate of 1.27 billion bushels.
Trade Response
Jack Scoville, PRICE Futures Group, says that the USDA released a wild report and that the uptrend is back.
"The stocks report was mostly in line with trade guesses, a little less in corn and a little bigger in wheat with soybeans dead-on guesses. Not much there. But the Prospective Plantings report was wild, much below trade guesses for corn, beans, and wheat," Scoville says.
"I'm not sure why the U.S. farmer is not going fencepost to fencepost, but he was not planning to when he was surveyed. Plus, there was a lot of prevent plant area last year that was expected to get planted this year. So, I am not sure I believe the numbers, but they are what we got and we have to ride with them. Limit up now and probably locked up for today. We could be higher tomorrow. Maybe we go down a bit tomorrow, only to go higher later. The uptrend is back," Scoville says.
Jason Roose, U.S. Commodities, says that today's USDA report is telling the story of tight stocks.
“Grains are adding back price premium with a flurry, after today's all important USDA Acres and Stocks reports. The acres set the stage with less than anticipated acres for both corn and soybeans. Larger acres are felt to be needed with stocks at multiple-year lows, with a margin of error tight going into spring," Roose says.
Roose added, "Spring weather will be closely watched and will acres be added in with higher prices, and will exports stay competitive with a stronger dollar,” Roose says.
US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Friday that Mexico’s GMO corn ban won’t apply to animal feed, and that processes are in place to protect feed producers
“As I understand it, based on my conversations recently with Secretary Villalobos [Mexico’s secretary of agriculture], the importation only relates to corn used for food products. It does not include corn used in feed,” Vilsack said.
The Mexican government announced on December 31, 2020, its plan to ban GMO corn and phase out GMO corn imports and the use of glyphosate, a broad-spectrum herbicide, by 2024 in an effort to contribute to food security and sovereignty. In January, Mexican government officials met with supply chain and agriculture producers and further discussed that domestic supply to the livestock sector will be promoted, reducing the level of imports.
U.S. farm groups have pressed Vilsack about the announcement as well as other deteriorating trade conditions with Mexico. However, Vilsack stated that it is essential to understand precisely what Mexico has suggested it is thinking of doing.
“It’s important to distinguish between what Mexico is currently thinking about doing and the fact that it’s not going to have as great an impact as it would if it was everything all at once, all now,” he said.
Vilsack added that there is a process under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to resolve these issues, and he and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai have addressed the plan with Mexico. He is confident these conversations will continue to happen and concerns will be voiced.
“There are processes that could potentially be used,” Vilsack said. “We’re not anywhere near there yet.”
Building better opportunities
Mexico depends on imports of mostly GMO yellow corn from the U.S. for livestock feed. U.S. corn exports to Mexico in 2019 were US$2.7 billion, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agriculture Service data, making Mexico the U.S. feed industry’s largest export destination.
Vilsack added that the USDA is focused on the Build Back Better Program, the Biden administration’s economic recovery plan for working families, with the intent to transform the U.S. food and agriculture system into a system for farmers that creates more, new and better markets.
“As far as the better markets, we’re still committed to an export opportunity. We still think there is tremendous opportunity for the United States to have sales overseas. The key is to deepen our presence in all of those markets,” Vilsack said.
Hermosillo Sonora, Mexico March 30th, 2021 — The Sonora Grape Growers Association (AALPUM) projects 21.5 million 18 lb. (8.2 kg) cartons to be packed and shipped between early May and mid-July, 2021.
AALPUM association president Marcos Camou, AALPUM general manager Juan Laborin and FPAA BB #:144354 grape division chairman John Pandol presented the crop estimate via Zoom on March 30. This estimate is 2% less than the 2020 harvest and 11% less than the 2019 crop.
The largest volume is white seedless varieties at 44%, followed by red seedless varieties at 43%, then black seedless varieties at 7% and then ‘other’ 6%, which includes Red Globes and specialty varieties like Cotton Candy.
Sonora is the only growing area supplying North America that produces a majority of green seedless. Between 3 and 5% of the grape crop is certified organic.
The harvest season is subdivided into four sections:
Preseason — 10% everything prior to May 15 including other early areas
Early Season — 16% May 16-30
Peak Season — 53% May 31 – June 20
Late Season — 21% post June 21 into July
Shipping will continue from Nogales and other forward distribution points will continue until mid-July. A promotion calendar with load dates ex-Nogales were included in the presentation.
The estimate had a new look that reflects changes in the industry. Not long ago 80% of the volume was three varieties. Today 40% is over a two dozen newer proprietary varieties.
“To give a rundown of individual varieties, each with beginning and end of harvest date for each growing area is no longer a useful description of the crop,” said FPAA grape division chairman John Pandol. “The purpose of giving an estimate is so our supply chain partners; operational service providers, government agencies and commercial partners can prepare”
“It is always exciting for American consumers to get their first fresh crop grapes of the spring. This year’s Mexican grape harvest will provide great opportunities for promotions,” said FPAA President Lance Jungmeyer.
AALPUM estimated the following carton packout, compared to last season:
2020 packout
2021 estimate
Early greens
4,492,581
4,260,611
Red seedless
9,488,920
9,320,105
Mid greens
5,198,653
5,271,696
Red globe
458,380
365,000
Black grapes
1,641,040
1,551,132
Cotton candy
753,310
726,490
TOTAL
22,034,884
21,495,034
AALPUM general manager Juan Laborin addressed rumors of a light crop circulating in the industry.
“There are reports of vineyards or parts of vineyards with very low yield prospects. While those cases exist, it is far from the norm and not representative of the majority of vineyards. Over the years AALPUM has developed a robust methodology to create the crop estimate. The numbers that come out of the statistical model at the end of March predict within +/- 5% the final crop.”
A recording of the virtual presentation will be posted on AALPUM’s social media sites: https://ift.tt/3cFyPXQ or YouTube Mexico Table Grapes, and FPAA’s website www.freshfrommexico.com
AALPUM About the Mexican Table Grape Growers Association:
This Association was founded in 1977 thanks to the initiative of a small group of growers who saw the importance of being united, and found in the vine a new alternative to the existing crops on the coast of Hermosillo, such as: grains, orange and cotton, among others.
It is important to highlight that the Association has 98% of the producers’ register in the Hermosillo area, and that thanks to this, we currently represent 78% of the national table grape production; In this way, the state of Sonora (Hermosillo and Caborca) represents 95% of the total production, thanks to the great coordination and leadership that the same Association has in collaboration with the Local Association of Producers of Fruits and Vegetables of Caborca, related body, with which it works in a coordinated and constant way to achieve these goals.
FPAA About the Fresh Produce Association of Americas:
Founded in 1944 in Nogales, Arizona, the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas has grown to become one of the most influential agricultural groups in the United States. Today, the FPAA provides a powerful voice for improvement and sustainability by serving the needs of more than 100 North American companies involved in the marketing, import, and distribution of produce.
The global Grape seed oil Market is estimated to grow approximately at a CAGR of 11.05% during 2018 -2023.
United States is the largest production of the grape seed oil market and it is also the larger consuming country followed by the China. Grape seed oil market is estimated to witness a huge progress due to growth, availability and advanced chemical components. Grape seed oil is continue to gain a good demand specially in cosmetic and health care industries due to its components which can be used as an in production of various products.
Market Research and Market Trends of Grape seed oil
Most Cosmetic Company are using the grape seed oil in skin care and hair care products because the grape seed oil contain Vitamin E and Omega 6 fatty acid. Vitamin E helps to battle the radical and improve skin. The oil contains the flavonoids called procyanidin oligomers. it is powerful antioxidant which induce the hair growth and helps to lose the dead skin and restore the moisture.
GSO is rich in oleic and Linoleic and it is extracted by applying a solvent which is later refined and it is used as editable oil and ahead the grape seed oil is mixed with the linseed oil and used as a surface coating products.
The new development in the grape seed oil. The Extracted oil results in form spray showing the excellent properties of fuel that can be used in production of various fuel oil.
GSO contains the large amount of phenolic compound like flavonoids, carotenoids, tannins etc. because of these components present in grape seed oil it has the high antioxidant and neruproctective properties which can be used as prevention in some chronic disease.
The companies referred in the market research report includes MediacoCrac, Tampierp Group, Borges Mediterranean, Olitalia, Gustav Hees, Pietro Coricelli, Food & vine, Seed oil Company, Mazola Sophim, Aromex Industry, Jinyuone
The report incorporates in-depth assessment of the competitive landscape, product market sizing, product benchmarking, market trends, product developments, financial analysis, strategic analysis and so on to gauge the impact forces and potential opportunities of the market. Apart from this the report also includes a study of major developments in the market such as product launches, agreements, acquisitions, collaborations, mergers and so on to comprehend the prevailing market dynamics at present and its impact during the forecast period 2018-2024.
Key Takeaways from this Report
Evaluate market potential through analyzing growth rates (CAGR %), Volume (Units) and Value ($M) data given at country level: for product types, end use applications and by different industry verticals.
Understand the different dynamics influencing the market: key driving factors, challenges and hidden opportunities.
Get in-depth insights on your competitor performance: market shares, strategies, financial benchmarking, product benchmarking, SWOT and more.
Analyze the sales and distribution channels across key geographies to improve top-line revenues.
Understand the industry supply chain with a deep-dive on the value augmentation at each step, in order to optimize value and bring efficiencies in your processes.
Get a quick outlook on the market entropy: M&A's, deals, partnerships, product launches of all key players for the past 4 years.
Evaluate the supply-demand gaps, import-export statistics and regulatory landscape for more than top 20 countries globally for the market.
Gus Clemens, Special to the San Angelo Standard-TimesPublished 2:56 p.m. CT March 30, 2021
CLOSE
After securing land, the next decision is deciding on the grape. That decision influences decisions on trellising/vine training, irrigation, and overall success of your enterprise.
In this exploration of what goes into the making of the glass of wine, we primarily will look at red grapes. Many decisions are the same red or white, but red grapes involve more steps before you pull a cork and thus covers more of what goes into winemaking.
Different grapes do better in different places. In wine, place often is referred to as “terroir.” It is a French term, so—of course—it cannot be easily translated into English. Essentially, it means “place.” But only in the most expansive meaning.
Terroir means soil. Terroir means topography. Terroir means climate—macroclimate, mesoclimate, and microclimate. Terroir means the total of the natural environment. The key is belief a vineyard has a distinctive wine characteristic that cannot be duplicated anywhere else. The challenge to the vineyard manager is to match grape variety or varieties to the terroir.
There may be 10,000-plus varieties of wine grapes. Terroir borders on the infinite. There are those who claim to be able to discern differences between rows of pinot noir grapes in a Burgundy vineyard. We paint with a wider brush in this exploration of wine.
Among the many variables, temperature affinity and vineyard elevation are two of the most important. And, especially for this 30,000-foot survey, among the easiest to grasp.
Some grapes — pinot noir and cabernet sauvignon — do best in cooler climates. They do best in Bordeaux, Burgundy, northern California, Washington State, Oregon, New Zealand. Warm days and chilly nights are ideal. Other grapes — tempranillo, shirah/shiraz, malbec — tolerate heat better. They do well in warmer terroir — Spain, Italy, Rhône region of France, Australia, Texas.
Altitude influences grape skin. The higher the altitude, the more the UV light. Thick-skinned grapes do best at altitude — measured in thousands of feet above sea level — because thicker skins protect them from UV. Thin-skinned grapes do better at lower altitude — measured as sea level or hundreds of feet above sea level. Temperature and altitude also interact. Higher elevations get more sunlight and can have higher temperatures, but altitude also can engender lower night temperature—the famed diurnal shift. Warmth encourages ripeness; low temperatures encourage acidity. Great wine is a balance between rich, ripe fruit flavors and balancing acidity, which diurnal shift engenders.
Next week: The vineyard.
Last round: Never trust an atom. They make up everything. Including wine.
Email: wine@cwadv.com. Facebook: Gus Clemens on Wine. Twitter: @gusclemens. Website: gusclemensonwine.com.
It's finally spring! Weather is warming, snow is diminishing, and it's time to get back to planting and growing a crop.
With spring, also comes the annual USDA acreage and stocks reports, with acreage intended by far the most important factor as we look ahead to the new year. This is the time when the focus moves from South American (SAM) production to the U.S./Northern Hemisphere. With the U.S. the world's largest exporter of all crops, it becomes an important factor for the market. It looks like the U.S. will have an early planting year, as weather is warming and drying up which will allow the corn belt to get going on planting early this year. We could have most of the corn planted in April.
Weather is calling for below normal precip and above normal temps over most of the U.S. the next 2 weeks. Specifically, it will be driest in the northwest 75% of the corn belt, and more normal precip in the southeast 25% the next 7 days, and then the 8-14 day has below normal precip in the northwest half of the corn belt, and normal in the southeast half. Temps will be mostly above normal the entire 14 day period in the corn belt - with only the southeast seeing some normal temps in the next 7 days as the heat moves in from west to east.
South America (SAM) is seeing mostly below normal precip in the southern 75%, but normal in the northern 25% (the Amazon area). Temps will be mostly below normal in Brazil and above normal in Argentina - not good weather for the late, second crop corn.
Finally after nearly a week, the Suez Canal is cleared. Takes only one ship to block an entire important port. I'm sure all the terrorists have taken notice, unfortunately. What if the ship was loaded with explosives?
Wednesday, March 31 we get the much anticipated USDA March 31 acreage and stocks report. There likely will be some surprises, but the difficult thing is predicting the unpredictable USDA - what will they get right this time, and what will they get wrong?
Farmers are planting more of everything - wheat, corn, and soybeans but mostly corn and soybeans.
With wheat prices sagging recently, Pro Ag will bet USDA will miss some of the shifting from HRS wheat to corn/soys. With early planting likely in the coming few weeks of warm/dry weather, corn acreage might be higher than USDA guesses this time.
Private estimates are showing higher corn and soybean acreage than the Feb. USDA estimates as well. It's likely acreage will be above the Feb. USDA numbers as prices have remained high another 1.5 months since that report.
Bottom line is planting is likely to be early given the forecast, and early planting means higher corn, soybean, and HRS wheat yields.
Also, more acreage planted (less PP) and possibly more corn and less soybeans with early seeding. Also, the weather improved tremendously since mid-Jan in both the U.S. and SAM. So, the supply outlook has improved which is why prices are now drifting lower. I expect more of the same - unless a drought kicks in after planting. If 2-5% more is planted, but yields are 5-10% less - supplies are still down. The one constant so far is demand remains strong (China).
Ray can be reached at raygrabanski@progressiveag.com.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ray is President of Progressive Ag Marketing, Inc., a top Ranked marketing firm in the country. See http://www.progressiveag.com for rankings and link to data from Top Producer Magazine and Agweb.com.
This material has been prepared by a sales or trading employee or agent of Progressive Ag Marketing, Inc. and is, or is in the nature of, a solicitation. This material is not a research report prepared by Progressive Ag Marketing's Research Department. By accepting this communication, you agree that you are an experienced user of the futures markets, capable of making independent trading decisions, and agree that you are not, and will not, rely solely on thiscommunication in making trading decisions.
DISTRIBUTION IN SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY BE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. PERSONS IN POSSESSION OF THIS COMMUNICATION INDIRECTLY SHOULD
INFORM THEMSELVES ABOUT AND OBSERVE ANY SUCH PROHIBITION OR RESTRICTIONS. TO THE EXTENT THAT YOU HAVE RECEIVED THISCOMMUNICATION INDIRECTLY AND SOLICITATIONS ARE PROHIBITED IN YOUR JURISDICTION WITHOUT REGISTRATION, THE MARKET COMMENTARY IN THIS COMMUNICATION SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED A SOLICITATION.
The risk of loss in trading futures and/or options is substantial and each investor and/or trader must consider whether this is a suitable investment. Past performance, whether actual or indicated by simulated historical tests of strategies, is not indicative of future results. Trading advice is based on information taken from trades and statistical services and other sources that Progressive Ag Marketing believes are reliable. We do not guarantee that such information is accurate or complete and it should not be relied upon as such. Trading
advice reflects our good faith judgment at a specific time and is subject to change without notice. There is no guarantee that advice we give will result in profitable trades.
Dani Sakran contributed to the reporting for this story.
Melkamu Woldemariam has the best of both worlds.
His position as an assistant professor of biology at The College of New Jersey affords him the opportunity to do the two things he loves—teach and conduct research.
Plainsboro resident Melkamu Woldemariam with the corn plants he is using in his research at The College of New Jersey.
Last month, Woldemariam was the recipient of a major boon that will allow him to step up his activities in both areas.
The Plainsboro resident has been awarded a $1 million joint grant from the National Science Foundation and the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
The funding will be used by Woldemariam, 41, a plant biologist who specializes in molecular and chemical ecology, to support his research program and to engage undergraduate research collaborators in his work.
Woldemariam’s research involves comparing the chemical composition of corn varieties and how we can better prevent against insect attack, as well as revealing the genetic causes for the variability in plant chemical defenses.
Each year, a sizable fraction of global agricultural productivity in crop plants is lost to insect and pathogen attacks.
“It’s an awesome feeling to know that the work we do here at TCNJ is viewed very favorably by talented researchers in the field,” Woldemariam said. “I am thrilled to be able to give my students the opportunity to participate in this project with potential national and international significance.”
Woldemariam was born in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, and he grew up in a small town called Jimma, which is about 300 kilometers southwest the capital.
After graduating from high school, he attended Addis Ababa University, where Woldemariam says he shaped his academic life.
While there, he earned a degree in biology. After graduating, he got a job at the university as a graduate assistant. During that time, he taught and was also leading laboratory projects, which made him fall in love with academic processes.
I said, “okay, teaching and doing research is the best of both worlds.”
He went on to earn a master’s degree at Abbis Ababa University and then went on to teach at the school for four years.
He then went to Germany and earned his Ph.D. at the Max Planck Institute.
“That’s where I got introduced to the world of plant-insect reactions,” Woldemariam said. “So I studied there for about four years and got postdoctoral training.”
He then came to America to study at the Boyce Thompson Institute, which is an independent affiliate of Cornell University. Four years later, in 2018, he accepted a position as a professor at TCNJ.
* * *
Editor Bill Sanservino and editorial intern Dani Sakran recently conducted an interview over Zoom with Woldemariam to discuss his life, career and the research project that won him the grant. Below is an edited version of that interview.
Bill Sanservino: Can you tell me how you became interested in biology when you were younger?
Melkamu Woldemariam: Biology is the only place in science where you can seriously inquire about this beautiful process called life. Right? So, I couldn’t find any other place where I can inquire about life and then spend my life literally asking questions and then finding a way of answering these questions. So, that was a life-changing moment.
That is one thing that really made me fall in love with biology. The second thing is the application part, right? Every study that you do in biology in one way or another affects the life of millions of people, and that aspect is very attractive to me. I think these two probably sum it up.
BS: Growing up, what did your parents do for a living?
MW: I grew up with my grandparents and my grandad was a teacher. And, probably, he influenced me to be a teacher myself. He was at the age of retirement when I was born, and, of course, since he retired he didn’t have anything to do but inspire me to be a knowledge seeker. So, I must have taken some of his footsteps.
BS: When did you start actively pursuing research projects and especially research projects in this particular area?
MW: This particular area started when I was a Ph.D. student. As a Ph.D. student, you are always given a project to work on so that you earn your research, but in my second year of my research, I knew that I would be in academics.
I knew that I would be a researcher, so I was always thinking about, “what would I do when I graduate,” right? Coincidentally, I ended up identifying corn as a very interesting plant motor system and here we are. I ended up studying and then falling in love with corn.
BS: Can you tell me a little bit about how you formulated your current project, how grant process worked and what was it like actually receiving the grant?
MW: I started this project as more or less a paid project when I was a postdoctoral scientist at Cornell. I started asking questions and then doing some parallel experiments, in addition to the main project that I got paid for.
The preliminary data that we collected over the four years gave us very strong impetus to propose something grand—something big. And, that’s how it started.
Right after I joined TCNJ, a couple of my students and I kind of strung these pieces of preliminary data together and that gave us a complete picture of what we needed to explore.
We started working on the grant, and at TCNJ we have a grant writer, which makes life really easy. We worked with her for about 6 months refining the ideas and then writing everything in a way that made the most sense.
My collaborator at Cornell University also chipped in—he’s like a senior personnel on the grant. We then compiled everything and sent it to the National Science Foundation.
BS: What was your reaction when you got the grant?
MW: The news that the project is being funded is very encouraging and I’m very excited for it—especially three things.
The first one is the scientific aspect of it. The grant will give us an opportunity to explore the science in as much detail as we can.
Second, I am so excited about the training opportunity that it brings. Right now, even at the beginning of the grant, I have eleven undergrad students working with me in my lab.
The project will stay for another four years, and you can imagine the amount of high-quality research that I will be able to provide to students of all kinds, from all backgrounds and social and educational backgrounds.
The third opportunity is training somebody at a really high level. I will have a postdoctoral scientist working in my lab, and we have started the hiring process. The postdoctoral scientist will be trained in my lab and they will transition from being a postdoc into a faculty member at another college. That high-level training is something thing that I am so excited about.
Getting the money is really good for the science, but in addition to that, there is a lot of life-changing opportunities for students literally at the very formative stage of their academic involvement. That is simply priceless.
BS: Can you explain to me, I guess for the readers as simplest terms as we possibly can, just exactly what it is you’re researching?
MW: In simple terms, what we’re looking for is mechanisms for protecting corn plants from attack by pests.
Corn is a very important crop. It provides energy, both for directly feeding our population, cattle and the alcohol industry. The energy industry is also fueled by corn.
Unfortunately, because of its nutritional value, is a species that is attacked by more than 90 different types of insect species.
BS: 90?
MW: Yes, 90 different types, and that is actually an understatement—it could be way above that.
What we are trying to do is to find out a natural way of defending corn plants from these attackers naturally.
All plant species in one way or another produce defensive chemicals when they are attacked by herbivores.
The production and the release of these toxic compounds is influenced by a very critical hormone signaling pathway. That hormone signaling cascade is known as the Jasmonate Signaling Cascade.
It is a very critical signaling cascade. If you have that cascade working well, then the plants will produce high amounts of defense compounds when they’re attacked by herbivores, which means they can defend themselves better.
In corn, we don’t know a lot about this signaling cascade. We know very little. So, that is exactly why I’m interested in looking at how this Jasmonate Signaling Cascade monitors the defense responses of corn.
We will be identifying novel genes or novel mechanisms that regulate the defense responses of maize (corn) and once those mechanisms are identified, you can imagine how important that would be, because you can breed them into the corn varieties that we have using natural methods and then go about producing more resistant corn lines.
BS: Have you started the research yet? How far are you?
MW: The preliminary data that we used is really good enough, and we are building on that. For the last six months, despite the pandemic, I was able to sneak in the lab, following, of course, all of the social distancing and masking protocols to do some work.
BS: How did you manage, and how will you manage, to go forward and work on this as the pandemic has progressed?
MW: The pandemic is painful on everybody. The last semesters we couldn’t bring students on campus, so I had to do most of the research by myself.
Fortunately, the early-career faculty like me were allowed to spend a limited amount of time in the laboratory with very strict social distancing protocols.
TCNJ has done a very good job and that benefits me a little bit. Even though I couldn’t involve all of my students in person, I was able to do a good amount of research during the pandemic.
Now, we are almost coming back to normalcy, and a number of students would come to the lab. Of course, you can only have one student at a time in the lab, but given that it’s way better than last semester.
BS: Has the college announced in person classes yet?
MW: No, no. We do have hybrid mode where you have a very limited number of students come in person and the rest join remotely. But, for research, you can only have one student per lab. When that student goes away, another student joins.
So, in a very specially and temporally separated manner we can have a limited number of students for research right now. Next semester we hope that we will be in person, but it is really difficult to make predictions. It all depends on how the pandemic pans out.
BS: Let’s talk a little bit about your home life. How long have you lived in Plainsboro Township?
MW: Three years now. I’m a newcomer.
BS: Relatively. Plainsboro is pretty transient, though so you might be one of the long-timers by this point. How many children do you have and what schools do they attend?
MW: I have two children. A daughter who is 16, she’s almost turning 17 now. She is in grade 11 at High School North. My son is in grade 9, he just turned 15.
BS: Do you have experiences that stick out that may have been important in helping shape your life or your career?
MW: Oh, absolutely. I have a lot of stories, but I think all of them, as far as my academic life is concerned, all of my stories revolve around my students.
I started my teaching career really early, I got lucky. I was selected to be a graduate assistant when I was 23 and a half. Which means, right from college I was a near-professor working in an academic environment.
I built relationships with many of my students early on, and the highlight of my life has been to see most of my students that I taught early becoming professors themselves.
I’m relatively young, but I have students who I taught as juniors or sophomores who are now professors in many universities all over.
That is an amazing feeling. It’s just like your children growing up and becoming somebody. And I was involved in teaching them courses, writing them recommendations and seeing them grow over the years.
Those stories always make me fall in love with teaching. That is a unique thing about my academic life. If there is anything, that would be a story.
BS: So, you’re in a great position. You get to teach students, work with students, train them to be instructors themselves while also, at the same time, get to do research in an area that you have a lot of interest in.
MW: Absolutely. I think that the influence that teachers have is simply an understatement. I mean, we do influence our students in really meaningful ways.
That is why I think this profession in general deserves a lot of respect and recognition. I feel strongly about that.
Another story is probably related to TCNJ. TCNJ is a smaller college, by many standards, but we have a really good project-driven environment.
Every course, for example, in the biology department, remarkably has a strong project-based teaching curriculum. Students are exposed to actual research early on.
Our first course, Bio 201, has three research projects where students will be progressing through and working actively on. It’s not like a theoretical enterprise, but it’s actually based on a research-driven curriculum.
That is one really remarkable thing and it supports your research career too. The second thing is that we are highly encouraged to integrate our research into the classroom.
This is unique in many aspects. For example, I teach two upper level courses, and in both of them my students are actually working on my own research.
They are part of the data collection. So, it’s not like they’re given a tiny project where they start, then they finish, and then that’s it. They know they are involved in something grand. Something that contributes to a bigger picture.
Those are really important things that actually make everyone thrive in TCNJ’s environment. In addition to, of course, having a dedicated office for grant writing and encouraging faculty to be teacher scholars. And, I would like this message to be out there, in one way or another, and that is responsible for my little success I’ve achieved so far.
BS: Can you tell me your wife’s name?
MW: My wife’s name— I think her shortened name would be easier—is Lily. She prefers that one. She has an Ethiopian name which is longer, but Lily is probably easier.
BS: If you look down the road, where do you see your career going?
MW: I have one life mission. I want to do really cool science that can be done in any big universities.
I worked at Cornell and I worked at the Max Planck Institute, where you can do really huge levels of research.
What I see myself doing, is conducting exactly that kind of high level research at TCNJ. That is my life mission. And the grant is enhancing the research capacity of my department.
I want to make sure we have all the tools that we need, all the techniques and skills that we need to do really cool science with undergrad students. Those are, I think, my life missions for the next few years.
BS: That’s awesome. I guess, one other question that came to my mind is generally what do the funds from the grant go towards?
MW: A couple of things. Number one, most of the grant goes into purchasing the tools that are needed towards research. It could be reagents that are needed, it could be paying for services like mass spectrometic services, DNA sequencing services—all of those really pricey things will be covered by that.
A fair chunk of it will go into training the postdoctoral scientists that come to my lab. The postdoctoral scientist swill stay at my lab for two years and we will be training the postdoctoral scientists using the funding.
We will have about two REU students— there is this program called Research Experience for Undergraduates and what we do is send two students every year to Cornell for the summer for an intensive two-month long training.
We will send two students per year every summer for the next four or five years. And these students will be be exposed to really high level research for two months
In addition, there are two students every year that will be trained with me during the summer. Tuition fees and all of the things will be covered for them.
These are the major things (the grant will pay for), but in addition to this, we have two days, which I will be hosting students from the Trenton school district.
The idea is we will go ahead and recruit these high school students and they will come to my lab and see what kind of research we do.
They will actually be involved in learning the tools of the trade and then asking questions that are related to my research. We will have this kind of continuous supply of training opportunities for students from the surrounding areas.
In addition to that, I think I have two students per year who will join me on a National Conference. We will go to scientific symposiums and my plan is to actually put my students up front, so rather than me telling my story, these undergrad students will go to the scientific symposiums, present posters or even give talks.
We do also have funding for that so that the students will be able to network with other students and other professors and actually see what scientific symposiums on a big scale look like. So, these are the major big-ticket items for the research.
BS: Is there anything I haven’t asked or talked to you about that you would like the readers to know about?
MW: I think we talked pretty much well about every aspect. Good questions. Please make sure your readers know how awesome TCNJ’s environment is. For students, it’s an environment where they can come and thrive.
And a big acknowledgement to everybody at TCNJ, the department, the deanship is a very supportive and nurturing environment. And I really, really appreciate the support form everybody.
The Mexican table grape forecast from the key Sonora production region has been pegged slightly lower this season year-on-year, with supplies set to peak in June.
The Sonora Grape Growers Association (AALPUM) has forecast 21.5 million 18 lb. (8.2kg) cartons to be packed and shipped between early May and mid-July, 2021. This estimate is 2 percent less than the 2020 harvest and 11 percent less than the 2019 crop.
AALPUM association president Marcos Camou, AALPUM general manager Juan Laborin and FPAA grape division chairman John Pandol and presented the
crop estimate via Zoom on March 30.
The largest volume is white seedless varieties at 44 percent, followed by red seedless varieties at 43 percent, then black seedless varieties at 7 percent and then ‘other’ 6 percent, which includes Red Globes and specialty varieties like Cotton Candy.
All grape categories are forecast to see small year-on-year drops in 2021, except for Mid Greens, which are set to see a minor rise.
Sonora is the only growing area supplying North America that produces a majority of green seedless. Between 3 and 5 percent of the grape crop is certified organic.
The Mexican table grape harvest season is subdivided into four sections: Preseason, which will be 10 percent of everything prior to May 15 including other early areas; Early Season, which is 16 of volumes from May 16-30; Peak Season, the majority of the crop with 53 percent from May 31 – June 20; and Late Season, 21 percent post-June 21 into July.
Shipping will continue from Nogales and other forward distribution points will continue until mid-July. A promotion calendar with load dates ex-Nogales were
included in the presentation.
The Mexican table grape forecast had a new look that reflects changes in the industry. Not long ago 80% of the volume was three varieties. Today 40% is over a two dozen newer proprietary varieties. “To give a rundown of individual varieties, each with beginning and end of harvest date for each growing area is no longer a useful description of the crop,” said FPAA grape division chairman John Pandol.
“The purpose of giving an estimate is so our supply chain partners; operational service providers, government agencies and commercial partners can prepare."
AALPUM general manager Juan Laborin addressed rumors of a light Mexican table grape crop circulating in the industry.
“There are reports of vineyards or parts of vineyards with very low yield prospects. While those cases exist, it is far from the norm and not representative of the majority of vineyards," he said.
"Over the years AALPUM has developed a robust methodology to create the crop estimate. The numbers that come out of the statistical model at the end of March predict within +/- 5% the final crop.”
The global Grape seed oil Market is estimated to grow approximately at a CAGR of 11.05% during 2018 -2023.
United States is the largest production of the grape seed oil market and it is also the larger consuming country followed by the China. Grape seed oil market is estimated to witness a huge progress due to growth, availability and advanced chemical components. Grape seed oil is continue to gain a good demand specially in cosmetic and health care industries due to its components which can be used as an in production of various products.
Market Research and Market Trends of Grape seed oil
Most Cosmetic Company are using the grape seed oil in skin care and hair care products because the grape seed oil contain Vitamin E and Omega 6 fatty acid. Vitamin E helps to battle the radical and improve skin. The oil contains the flavonoids called procyanidin oligomers. it is powerful antioxidant which induce the hair growth and helps to lose the dead skin and restore the moisture.
GSO is rich in oleic and Linoleic and it is extracted by applying a solvent which is later refined and it is used as editable oil and ahead the grape seed oil is mixed with the linseed oil and used as a surface coating products.
The new development in the grape seed oil. The Extracted oil results in form spray showing the excellent properties of fuel that can be used in production of various fuel oil.
GSO contains the large amount of phenolic compound like flavonoids, carotenoids, tannins etc. because of these components present in grape seed oil it has the high antioxidant and neruproctective properties which can be used as prevention in some chronic disease.
The companies referred in the market research report includes MediacoCrac, Tampierp Group, Borges Mediterranean, Olitalia, Gustav Hees, Pietro Coricelli, Food & vine, Seed oil Company, Mazola Sophim, Aromex Industry, Jinyuone
The report incorporates in-depth assessment of the competitive landscape, product market sizing, product benchmarking, market trends, product developments, financial analysis, strategic analysis and so on to gauge the impact forces and potential opportunities of the market. Apart from this the report also includes a study of major developments in the market such as product launches, agreements, acquisitions, collaborations, mergers and so on to comprehend the prevailing market dynamics at present and its impact during the forecast period 2018-2024.
Key Takeaways from this Report
Evaluate market potential through analyzing growth rates (CAGR %), Volume (Units) and Value ($M) data given at country level: for product types, end use applications and by different industry verticals.
Understand the different dynamics influencing the market: key driving factors, challenges and hidden opportunities.
Get in-depth insights on your competitor performance: market shares, strategies, financial benchmarking, product benchmarking, SWOT and more.
Analyze the sales and distribution channels across key geographies to improve top-line revenues.
Understand the industry supply chain with a deep-dive on the value augmentation at each step, in order to optimize value and bring efficiencies in your processes.
Get a quick outlook on the market entropy: M&A's, deals, partnerships, product launches of all key players for the past 4 years.
Evaluate the supply-demand gaps, import-export statistics and regulatory landscape for more than top 20 countries globally for the market.
The USDA recently released its Grain Crushings and Co-Products production report for March, reporting that corn use for fuel ethanol production in January 2021 was down when compared to both the previous month and January 2020.
Total corn consumed for alcohol and other uses was 466 million bushels in January 2021, down 3 percent from the previous month and down 10 percent from January 2020. January 2021 usage included 91.6 percent for alcohol and 8.4 percent for other purposes.
Corn consume for fuel alcohol production was at 416 million bushels, down 4 percent from the previous month, and down 11 percent from January 2020. Corn consumed for dry milling fuel production and wet milling fuel production was at 90.1 percent and 9.9 percent, respectively.
The volume of sorghum consumed for fuel ethanol production in January 2021 was withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. Sorghum data for December 2020 was also withheld, but a total of 4.967 million hundredweight (cwt) (278,152 tons) of sorghum went to fuel ethanol production in January 2020.
At dry mills, condensed distillers solubles production was at 79,610 tons, up from 74,497 tons in December, but down from 121,740 tons in January 2020. Corn oil production fell to 148,527 tons, down from both 160,259 tons the previous month and 151,877 tons in January of the previous year. Distillers dried grains production fell to 342,557 tons, down from both 364,532 tons in December and 358,478 tons in January 2020. Distillers dried grains with solubles production fell to 1.75 million tons, down from both 1.79 million tons in December and 1.95 million tons in January of the previous year. Distillers wet grains production fell to 1.04 million tons, down from both 1.09 million tons the previous month and 1.41 million tons in January 2020. Modifield distillers wet grains production fell to 415,857 tons, down from 435,648 tons in December and 476,126 tons in January 2020.
At wet mills, corn germ meal production was at 53,242 tons, up from 47,715 tons in December, but down from 68,154 tons in January 2020. Corn gluten feed production fell to 282,163 tons, down from both 309,298 tons in December 2020 and 308,081 tons in January of the previous year. Corn gluten meal production increased to 116,178 tons, up from both 113,754 tons in December 2020 and 93,097 tons in January 2020. Wet corn gluten feed production was at 214,623 tons, up from 185,187 tons in December, but down from 234,181 tons in January 2020.
Carbon dioxide captured was at 193,297 tons, up from 185,563 tons in December 2020, but down from 216,915 tons in January 2020.
Gus Clemens, Special to the Reporter-NewsPublished 5:00 p.m. CT March 30, 2021
CLOSE
After securing land, the next decision is deciding on the grape. That decision influences decisions on trellising/vine training, irrigation, and overall success of your enterprise.
In this exploration of what goes into the making of the glass of wine, we primarily will look at red grapes. Many decisions are the same red or white, but red grapes involve more steps before you pull a cork and thus covers more of what goes into winemaking.
Different grapes do better in different places. In wine, place often is referred to as “terroir.” It is a French term, so — of course — it cannot be easily translated into English. Essentially, it means “place.” But only in the most expansive meaning.
Terroir means soil. Terroir means topography. Terroir means climate — macroclimate, mesoclimate, and microclimate. Terroir means the total of the natural environment. The key is belief a vineyard has a distinctive wine characteristic that cannot be duplicated anywhere else. The challenge to the vineyard manager is to match grape variety or varieties to the terroir.
There may be 10,000-plus varieties of wine grapes. Terroir borders on the infinite. There are those who claim to be able to discern differences between rows of pinot noir grapes in a Burgundy vineyard. We paint with a wider brush in this exploration of wine.
Among the many variables, temperature affinity and vineyard elevation are two of the most important. And, especially for this 30,000-foot survey, among the easiest to grasp.
Some grapes — pinot noir and cabernet sauvignon — do best in cooler climates. They do best in Bordeaux, Burgundy, northern California, Washington State, Oregon, New Zealand. Warm days and chilly nights are ideal. Other grapes — tempranillo, shirah/shiraz, malbec — tolerate heat better. They do well in warmer terroir — Spain, Italy, Rhône region of France, Australia, Texas.
Altitude influences grape skin. Higher the altitude, more the UV light. Thick-skinned grapes do best at altitude — measured in thousands of feet above sea level — because thicker skins protect them from UV. Thin skinned grapes do better at lower altitude — measured as sea level or hundreds of feet above sea level.
Temperature and altitude also interact. Higher elevations get more sunlight and can have higher temperatures, but altitude also can engender lower night temperature — the famed diurnal shift. Warmth encourages ripeness; low temperatures encourage acidity. Great wine is a balance between rich, ripe fruit flavors and balancing acidity, which diurnal shift engenders.
Next week: The vineyard.
Last round: Never trust an atom. They make up everything. Including wine.
Email: wine@cwadv.com. Facebook: Gus Clemens on Wine. Twitter: @gusclemens. Website: gusclemensonwine.com.
KYIV, March 30 (Reuters) - At least 18% of Ukrainian farmers plan to reduce the area sown for corn in 2021 due to drought last summer, while 13% could increase acreage, a survey by agriculture consultancy APK-Inform showed on Tuesday.
Corn is Ukraine's leading grain export and the country is forecast to supply around 24 million tonnes of corn in the 2020/21 season.
The survey showed that the 2021 area under corn could fall by 14% versus 2020 and regions affected by drought in summer 2020 predict the largest decline in the area.
Severe drought in 2020 reduced Ukraine's corn harvest by at least 5 million tonnes.
APK-Inform said farms in Ukraine's central Cherkasy and Kirovohrad regions plan to cut the corn area by more than 50%.
The consultancy, however, said that the situation could change later this spring depending on the weather.
The government has said it expects the area sown for corn could total 5.3 million hectares this year compared with 5.4 million hectares in 2020.
Ukraine harvested 30.3 million tonnes of corn in 2020 and the harvest may reach 33.2 million tonnes this year, the government forecasts. (Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Susan Fenton)
ersa.indah.link Wine and grape acreage increased in Michigan since 2016, according to the 2020 Michigan Grape and Hop Inventory. // Photo courtesy of the Michigan Craft Beverage Council
Wine grape acreage increased in Michigan for old-world style vinifera grapes as well as for cold-hardy hybrid varieties since 2016, according to a new report: The 2020 Michigan Grape and Hop Inventory.
There are 3,375 wine grape acres in Michigan maintained by 257 farms, and 670 hop acres maintained by 68 farms. The report shows an increase of 325 acres for grape inventory from the previous survey, which was released in 2016; this is the first year that hops have been included in the report.
Michigan grape and hop farmers were surveyed over several months to obtain acreage and variety data. The statistics are part of the Small Fruit and Hops Inventory conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service for the Michigan State Horticultural Society. The results are a subset of the complete report, which is expected to be released later this spring.
“The incredible growth of Michigan’s craft beverage industry has a lot to do with our talented, creative, and driven entrepreneurs, but it’s also the result of producing unique, high-quality ingredients,” says Gary McDowell, director of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. “Fresh water, rich soils, and diverse microclimates create an ideal environment for growing robust, sophisticated inputs for every variation of craft beverage.”
Riesling continues to be the most planted wine grape in Michigan; there are 670 Riesling acres in the state. Other grapes with notable acreage include Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Franc. In general terms, Michigan’s somewhat mild summers are more conducive to growing white grapes.
On the hops front, there are more than 35 varieties planted in Michigan, but Centennial, Cascade, Chinook, and Cashmere have the most acreage per variety, accounting for 325 acres of 670 total acres.
The Small Fruit and Hops Inventory project was funded by a Specialty Crop Block Grant administered by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service.
The full report is available here. More information about Michigan’s craft beverage industry is available here.
The Michigan Craft Beverage Council is a 10-member, governor-appointed board that is advisory to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. It was established to provide for research, marketing, and promotion of the Michigan agricultural products that are used in the production of Michigan craft beverages.
CHICAGO, IL- Table grapes are an enormous category—and they continue to be a sales driver for retail partners across the supply chain. In order to ensure that the highest quality grapes are making it to market, Hazel Technologies, Inc. offers its patented technology to the benefit of both suppliers and buyers.
“The primary result of using Hazel® technology is stem quality protection. This means that grape stems, also known as racchis, protected by Hazel’s products retain green color and turgidity for a longer period of time,” explained Pat Flynn, Chief Marketing Officer and Co-Founder. “Maintaining healthy stems for longer is important because stem appearance is the #1 factor most consumers consider in determining how fresh the grapes are.”
The ease in which growers can add Hazel’s technology for grapes cannot be overstated, as all it takes is placing the Hazel Tech®sachet in the box at the time of packing. Academically validated, USDA-funded, and extremely easy to use—that’s a must-have solution, if you ask me.
Additionally, new table grape varieties require more care, but with Hazel’s solutions on your side, it’s never been easier.
“The most popular new table grape varieties have an excellent taste profile and are growing each year in market share. One challenge with many new table grape varieties is that they are frequently known to have very delicate stems. As more growers implement Hazel's technology for grapes, they will be able to store and ship varieties with more fragile stems with higher quality,” Pat noted. “This new level of quality ‘assurance ultimately increases grower returns and the consumer eating experience.”
Building out its supply-side partnerships, Hazel Technologies has become a trusted industry partner due to its ability to tailor solutions based on category.
“Our mission at Hazel is to deliver cutting-edge products that improve the quality of food for every person involved, from growers to consumers,” Pat shared. “We break this process into three parts: discover, innovate, and deliver. We were founded by Ph.D. chemists and engineers. We believe in always experimenting and discovering new technology variations with new categories. Once we see interesting results, we partner with leading growers, retailers, and academic institutions to conduct research. Finally, for the technologies with the best industry response, we deliver!”
We’ll continue to hunt down the innovations that will make for buy- and supply-side success, so stay tuned.
The Adler Deutsch Vineyard, in the heart of California’s Napa Valley Wine Country, offers a chance to be close to nature in utter privacy.
The boutique vineyard is owned by husband-and-wife vintners Robert Adler and Alexis Deutsch-Adler. The couple, whose main residence is in Los Angeles, said they bought the estate in 2006 and built the current house, designed by Los Angeles interior designer Richard Hallberg and architect Howard J. Backen, who has offices in St. Helena and Sausalito, in 2012.
The 3-acre estate, planted with premium Cabernet grapes.
Paul Rollins for Sotheby's International Realty
“The property is set on the edge of the acclaimed West Rutherford Bench, which has very rich soil, and produces among the best grapes in the valley,” Mr. Adler said. “We make one wine—a Cabernet Sauvignon—and produce only 350 cases a year.”
Ms. Deutsch-Adler added that the special soil aside, the property, which is at the end of a cul-de-sac, is surrounded by low-lying rolling hills, other vineyards and forests that provide beautiful vistas.
“From the inside of the house, you can almost touch the vines,” she said, “and when I’m swimming, I’m right by them. It’s a romantic space, a happy place. You walk down a country lane and you see your neighbors—maybe.”
The overall feeling of the property, she noted, is one of “being immersed in Bordeaux, France.”
Mr. Adler added, “It’s a wonderful retreat away from everything and everyone.”
The couple—he’s in his 70s, she’s in her 60s—are selling so they can spend more time traveling.
The 3-acre estate, planted with premium Cabernet grapes, includes a 4,322-square-foot house that has three bedrooms, two full bathrooms and one half bathroom. The property has a one-car garage.
Amenities
Surrounded by vineyards, the open-plan house features floor-to-ceiling glass doors that flood the rooms with natural light. The floors are made of wide-plank oak and French limestone. The great room, whose ceilings rise up to 19 feet, features reclaimed Pennsylvania barn-wood beams and trusses that anchor custom chandeliers designed by Richard Hallberg. In addition to a wine cellar and grotto, there is an outdoor pool, a hot tub and a deck.
Neighborhood Notes
St. Helena, which is less than 90 minutes from the San Francisco Bay Area, is a small but chic town, said listing agent Ginger Martin of Sotheby’s International Realty-Wine Country Brokerage. “It has a very laid-back lifestyle; people come to enjoy the finest wines in the world.”
She added that Yountville, which is about two minutes from the estate, is a dining destination featuring five-star restaurants.
“The primary result of using Hazel
