Northern Fruit Crop Hit & New Oil Looks Promising

Northern Fruit Crop Hit & New Oil Looks Promising plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. Northern fruit crops, mainly in Michigan, may have been dealt a damaging blow by last week's cold weather according to USDA's meteorologist, Brad Rippey. RIPPEY: There is expected to be about a 50% reduction in crop yield potential across all fruit crops. Again that's preliminary and it takes a while to access the type of damage that you would see for a fruit freeze but that is a significant concern in that region. Other areas of the north and eastern fruit growing regions have also seen some damage due to cold weather. Monsanto announced Tuesday it has received a Generally Recognized as Safe notification for the use of oil from Vistive Gold soybeans under the intended conditions of use. This notification will allow food companies to develop and test foods containing this soybean oil - advancing the development of foods with reduced saturated fat and reduced or zero trans fats. Monsanto's Global Technology Lead for Oilseeds Roy Fuchs says Vistive Gold could offer farmers and the food industry an opportunity to meet a growing demand for healthier foods. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Lacy Gray. Want to hear the good news or the bad news first? The good news? Okay, recent studies have deduced that unprocessed meat is not a candidate for causing higher heart disease and diabetes risk. Hurray! The bad news, eating processed meats such as hot dogs, deli meats and bacon can raise the risk of heart disease and diabetes. There's a modicum of good news however inside their dire processed meat warning; by eating processed meats in moderation you can reduce your risk factor by a considerable percentage. And there's that magic word again, moderation. By eating processed meats only once or twice a week you have a better chance of staving off certain health risks while still getting to enjoy your bacon, hot dog or sausage. But wait there's more, when probed for further info researchers confided that the real "bad boy" in this particular study wasn't meat but the extra sodium; a disappointment to the anti-meat brigade, a "told you so" from those pushing federal enforced sodium restrictions, and a "well duh" from the rest of us. Contrary to what the food police believe, most consumers are fully aware that moderation in all things is the key. So how many research dollars do we have to waste before scientists figure that out? Thanks Lacy. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.