Agricultural News
Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program Members Busy Comparing Agriculture in Spain With Back Home
Thu, 25 Feb 2010 6:37:12 CST
Several of the Class 14 Members of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program have offered their thoughts on what they are seeing as they continue their travels in the south of Spain this week. AND, we have more pictures- a bakers dozen to be exact- for you to see, click here for our Flickr page that has the collection of pics from the 2010 journey by the OALP Class 14. Our picture here is of some of the Class pushing forward as their internation travel experience rolls on.
Scott Neufeld from Fairview emailed us and wrote about what has jumped out at him as they travel Spain- "Water is still king and issues about who has it, and how much they can have, are priority here too.
"Market access and competition are the biggest issues to profitability. We heard this as we visited a wholesaler, vegetable auction and packaging for distribution center today.
"Government red tape and policies are also challenges. Like us they deal with this issue.
"Their economic climate is in great turmoil with unemployment very high. We've heard between 20 and 25 percent.
"Labor costs are high and food safety is important. The difference in Spain is that they let the market place solve the food safety issues. They don't need to rely on the government to step in and mandate."
Allen Entz offers some thoughts on the marketing of their produce grown under plastic. "The acres upon acres of greenhouses are obviously impressive. The marketing method of the vast amounts of produce is what got my attention. Some produce is sold through cooperatives with approximately 50 percent being sold by auction.
"As I am an auctioneer myself I was excited at our opportunity to experience a live auction. The rapid pace of the auction is very interesting, especially with the absence of an auctioneer!!! The price is shown on a screen and begins to descend automatically. When a bidder pushes the button located on their desk, they are the buyer. Pretty much opposite of what we in the States are used to. They sell anywhere between 200,000 and 380,000 kilos of produce in just a 30 minute auction."
Brandon Winters with PCOM took special interest in the Olive oil processing seen by the group- having as his point of reference the cottonseed, canol and sunflower seed processing done by the organization he works for. "While in Spain we visited an olive oil processing plant producing virgin olive oil. I was really amazed at the way the producers brought their olives into the processing plant. They used small single Axel trailers with manual hand pumps.
"We learned that olives can have between 18 and 24 percent oil and that the remains or meal is sold as a burning agent and cannot be feed to any animals due to toxicity issues. I learned that they can mechanically press around 850metric ton per day. I learned that their vergin oil sells at what I would call a premium to most food grade oil. They run some of the same equipment as American processor's however in a little different fashion."
Clinton Griffiths tells us that their Thursday travels will take them int he direction of Cordoba. Their big ag related stop of the day will be a major livestock cooperative. "We're planning a visit to the Andalusian Cooperative Cattle Raising Corporation of the Valley of the Pedrohess (COVAP). It has 14,000 members and their main businesses are cattle dairy sheep and pigs. They also have a modern dairy plant and two big slaughterhouses for processing meat." Clinton also continues to talk to class members for us- and we have audio on the Listen Bar below of Clinton chatting with Rose Bonjour about what has impressed her as they continue their journey.
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