Jun. 08, 2011
Criminals beware! The California Avocado Commission is hoping to deter stealing fruit by increasing anti-theft rewards. The CAC board of directors voted to up the amounts for its avocado anti-theft program, with a maximum reward of 5-thousand dollars for information leading to an arrest and conviction in a felony case. President Tom Bellamore commented, “The Commission’s board of directors determined that it is now time to increase the monetary rewards of the program to encourage individuals to step forward and provide information leading to the arrest, recovery and conviction of persons involved in California avocado theft.”
According to the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, nearly 7.2 million pounds of onions were produced in the U.S. last year! So, should new standards for grades of frozen onions be established?The department is hoping industry representatives will voice their opinion on the issue after the American Frozen Food Institute requested to develop new grade standards for frozen onions. Comments must be received by August 1st and can be submitted at www.regulations.gov.
Here’s one more reason to consume Acai: A new clinical trial with Medicus Research investigating the health benefits of the fruit suggests certain heart benefits. In the study, researchers had 10 overweight participants eat 100 grams of Sambazon acai frozen fruit pulp twice daily before meals for four weeks without changing the rest of their normal diet. Dr. Jack Bukowski, a member of Sambazon’s Scientific Advisory Board stated “The initial clinical trial results were overwhelmingly positive and show the potential of whole açaí fruit pulp to reduce risk factors associated with metabolic disorders in mildly overweight adults.” Meanwhile, Dr. Jay Udani, CEO and medical director of Medicus Research explained, “These positive results are in line with prior studies and warrant further study on the açaí berry’s ability to promote cardiovascular and metabolic health.”
