August 24, 2007

After a year of intensive pressure by the United States Potato Board (USPB) and American Potato Trade Alliance (APTA), the Japanese government removed the US from the list of countries with commercial GMO potato production. The US potato industry was greatly assisted in this effort by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) office in Tokyo and by the US Trade Representative's office. It is important to note this is the first time Japan has ever changed the GMO designation of a country under its GM labeling regulations.

The change in designation means US potatoes and products are no longer required to meet the IP handling regulations in order to avoid being labeled as GMO. “Meeting these requirements has been a huge cost to the US potato industry and put our product at a disadvantage to other producers such as the EU, which is not listed as producing commercial GM potatoes,” noted John Toaspern, USPB Vice President, International Marketing. It is expected this change will take some time to become fully implemented.

In order to gain this change, the US industry and USDA had to first prove no GM potatoes are being commercially produced in the US. Secondly, the US industry had to prove all volunteers have been eliminated from the system through testing, field rotations and winter freezes. Toaspern concluded, “The Idaho Potato Commission and Oregon Potato Commission were instrumental in hosting a delegation to Idaho from Japan, whereby we were able to demonstrate that these claims are in fact true.”

HEALTHY POTATO PR CAMPAIGN IN MEXICO DELIVERS THE POSITIVE POTATO MESSAGE TO CONSUMERS

During the April - June quarter, the USPB's representative in Mexico sent out three press releases focusing on the healthy aspects of potatoes. The press releases were entitled "Diet and Cancer", "Tell Me What You Eat" and "The Potato, America's Contribution to World Nutrition". These releases resulted in an initial four articles in women's and consumer magazines, with more to come once the editors have time to include the information in their publications.

US potatoes got additional positive press in Mexico through inclusion in four cooking shows. The shows had a total audience of 2,124,074 and were on three different networks. US potato recipes featured were a Spanish omelet, Mediterranean salad, Noquis of potatoes in cheese sauce and a quick potato snack.

For the July 2006 - June 2007 marketing year, the USPB's positive potato profile PR program in Mexico resulted in 20 placements in magazines with a total circulation of 1,546,605 and 3,402,531 readers. The magazines range from parenting to active lifestyles and all are focused on the middle to upper income families targeted by the USPB's program in Mexico. Often, in addition to positive information on US potatoes, the articles will include recipes for potato dishes made with fresh, frozen or dehy US potatoes.

INTERNATIONAL SEED SYMPOSIUM & TOUR SPOTLIGHTS US SEED POTATOES; CONNECTS BUYERS & SELLERS

The USPB held its annual International Seed Symposium and Tour, July 30-August 3. During the week the USPB hosted 25 international participants made up of growers, importers, researchers, a chef and a retailer from Honduras, Uruguay, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and Sri Lanka. The Symposium and Tour are designed to bring international participants to the US to gain a better understanding of the US seed potato industry by meeting US growers and visiting seed growing regions throughout the United States.

The US Seed Symposium was held July 30th as a forum for information exchange and for US growers to meet the international participants. During the symposium participants learned about the USPB’s role in the US potato industry and it’s programs, the State National Harmonization Program; the US seed certification system; cutting seed and US potato uses and the USPB’s retail Best in Class program. Each country delegation also gave a presentation on their country, the growing areas and their production. Not only did the country presentations provide great insight for the US attendees, but it also gave the international participants a chance to learn from one another. 

After the Seed Symposium, the international participants were divided into three groups to travel to Idaho, California or Maine & New York to gain first hand experience by visiting potato fields and observing laboratory testing and field inspections. Throughout the week participants were able to meet with seed growers to see US seed potato varieties and to learn how US seed potato quality is created and maintained. After a successful seed tour, the USPB is hoping to see increased export sales from the US to these target countries. 

2ND QUARTER 2007 SALES TOPLINER

The attached PDF top lines sales for the second quarter 2007. Fresh, chip, dehy, frozen retail and refrigerated are UPCed supermarket sales only (only packaged items with UPC codes on the package, loose or bulk items are not included). Also included is frozen foodservice.

Worth noting:

• Fresh pounds and dollars were down. It was primarily a russet problem which continues to represent the largest share of fresh sales. Bag sizes under 4 pounds, while a small portion of the sales, continue to grow. The largest declines were in the 5 and 10 pound bag sizes.
• Chip sales through supermarkets continued to slip; many attribute it to significant new snack product entries.
• Dehy dollar sales and retail cost per pound increased in Q2, pounds however continued to decline.
• Frozen retail sales continued their pound decline, even with four (4) quarters of flat retail pricing.
• Refrigerated, led by mashed potato offerings from major consumer package goods companies continued to grow in both dollars and pounds. The pound increases are not as dramatic as last year since significant distribution levels were achieved last year.
• Frozen foodservice sales continue to perform well. Q2 represented the 8th straight quarter of pound sales increases. However, dollar increases would indicate significant price increases which could affect pound sales if operators react.

Full reports are available via email upon request. Please contact USPB Vice President, Domestic Marketing, Mac Johnson, macjohnson@uspotatoes.com. Each of the above categories are separate reports; please indicate which category(ies) you are interested in.

Quarterly Sales Topliner 2007 Q2.pdf

YTD Frozen Foodservice Q2 2007.xls

USPB REGISTERED DIETICIAN REVIEWS NEW POTATO PROTEIN EXTRACT WEIGHT LOSS PRODUCT

The USPB’s consulting Registered Dietician, Dr. Katherine Beals, PhD, RD, recently completed a summary and evaluation of a new weight loss product—Slendesta™—made from potato protein extract.

The Manufacturer

Founded in 1961 and headquartered in Iowa, Kemin, Inc., specializes in nutritional ingredients including mold inhibitors, antioxidant systems, enzymes and Floraglo Lutein. Kemin Health is a subsidiary of Kemin, Inc., that manufactures specialty dietary ingredients and serves the dietary supplement industry. 

The Product

The advertisement touts Slendesta as a “safe, natural satiety ingredient for dietary weight loss supplements.” The primary ingredient in Slendesta is Protein Inhibitor 2 (or PI2), a compound found in small amounts in fresh (unprocessed and uncooked) potatoes. In animal studies and one human study, very high doses of PI2 have been shown to increase the secretion of a hormone known as Cholecystokinin or CCK. This particular hormone mediates a number of physiological processes in the body, including digestion and satiety. 

The specific claims for Slendesta include: 

• Enhances CCK release
• Produces fullness sooner and longer
• Helps with portion control
• Helps curb snacking
• Helps decrease energy intake

The Research

Contrary to the manufacturer’s claim Slendesta is well-supported by clinical research, there is actually very little direct scientific support for its efficacy. While it is true CCK is a hormone secreted during digestion that serves to stimulate satiety, it is just one of several hormones that impacts satiety (and may not be the most potent nor important one). Moreover, there are a multitude of systemic hormones and dietary factors that have the potential to impact hunger and satiety. While research has shown PI2 can stimulate CCK secretion and CCK does seem to enhance satiety, there is little evidence to indicate this particular chain of physiological events actually takes place in the human body. In fact,  the “clinical trials” presented in support of Slendesta’s effect on satiety and weight loss are highly suspect as they were both conducted by Kemin’s own inside laboratory (vs. an unbiased, third party institution) and neither has been published in a peer-reviewed journal . The third study presented as “supporting research” was an “open label” trial meaning there was no control group and neither the subjects nor the researcher were “blinded” to the treatment, leading to very biased experimental conditions (and likely invalid results).   

The Bottom Line

This is clearly just another weight loss gimmick that is not backed by credible, scientific research. Moreover, the connection to potatoes is tenuous at best. One might be tempted to assume eating potatoes might afford the same benefit as consuming the potato protein extract. The problem with this reasoning is two-fold:  First, the amount of PI2 in a given potato is significantly less than would be found in a supplement. Moreover, PI2 is inactivated by cooking and processing. Thus, unless large amounts of raw potatoes were consumed (which is not recommended), you are unlikely to get the same effect as consuming the extract. Finally, even the extract has not been sufficiently shown to enhance satiety or promote weight loss.

www.uspotatoes.com ADDS SITE MAP TO IMPROVE NAVIGATION; CONTINUES ONGOING INFORMATION UPDATES

The USPB industry web site, www.uspotatoes.com, continues to undergo major annual content updates and other refinements to increase both the value of the information to the industry and ease of use when accessing the site.

Recently, a “Site Map” tab was added on the home page, http://www.uspotatoes.com/index.html, that when clicked through, will open a text-based page, http://www.uspotatoes.com/interactive-sitemap.html, listing all the sub pages found in the site. We hope this aids all users in finding the information they need about the many global demand-building activities of the USPB.

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