Peninsula Foodnews Market Updates

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The Market Report is a weekly or monthly snapshot of the commodities that affect all of us operating in the food business.

The reports published on Peninsula Foodnews (www.penfoodnews.com) are compilations of many other reports but rely most heavily on the AMS at USDA Market Reports.

The largest report is the Weekly/Monthly Commodity report and runs approximately 34 pages. There is a ton of information in there covering everything from shell eggs, boxed beef, soybean oil, and much more.

Rather than read 34 pages from cover to cover you can view the visual market snapshot on the first 8 pages. These list the category with a simple up, down, or sideways arrow. Or you can hit “Ctrl” F and type in the key word you are looking for ie Beef.

I had a couple questions about terms from the poultry section this week that I’m passing along.

Georgia Dock When looking at pricing for whole chicken wogs, predictors look towards a compilation of indices. On of the primary indicators is the Georgia Dock. Considered a small bird market quote the Georgia Dock quotes the freight on board dock value on broilers and fryers for full truck load lots of ice packed USDA Grade A sized 2-1/2 – 3 lb birds. According to the Ams (Agricultural Marketing Service) at the USDA, Broilers/Fryers are defined as young chickens less than 12 weeks.

W.O.G. Whole young poultry where the giblets and neck are not included in the bird's net weight. W.O. G. refers to With Out Giblets. They may be split, quartered, or cut into 8- or 9 pieces for the fast food/food service trade.

AMS (Agricultural Marketing Service) is one of 29 agencies within the USDA.

Quick Tip: Traveling and looking for a Farmer’s Market? Check out the Ams website at
http://www.ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets/map.htm
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For More Information Please Call Brian Isaeff, Territory Manager US Foodservice San Francisco (831) 601-6398.
On The Web at www.penfoodnews.com

Neils Waidtlow's Infamous Sweet and Sour Pork Chops

Sweet and Sour Pork Chops (Quick and easy)

3Tbsp. orange marmalade {other jellies work almost as well) 2Tbsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. dijon mustard(course ground) 1/4 cup water

4 pork loin pork chops (1/2 "thick} 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions

In small bowl mix together marmalade, soy sauce, mustard and water. blend well, set aside.

Season pork chops with pepper and salt . Heat small amount of oil in nonstick pan, add chops , chook until

lightly browned (2-3 minutes per side. Spoon marmalade mixture over chops. bring to boil. Reduce heat to low

and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in green onions. place on plates over rice and garnish with orange

slices. Serve with any veggie you like.

Lobster Bisque From Bill

(serves 10)
2 Cups Ribs Celery, Chopped
2 Cups Onions, Chopped
2 Cups Carrots, Chopped
1 Cups of Fennel, Chopped
2 Sprigs of Tarragon
3 Sprigs of Thyme
10 Black Peppercorns

4 Tblsp. Tomato Paste
½ Tblsp. Paprika
½ Cup Brandy
½ Cup White Wine

¼ Cup Orange Juice
1 Cup of Cream

6 Cups Lobster Stock
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Enough Roux needed to thicken.

1. Saute the Celery, onions, carrots, fennel, thyme, and peppercorns together in 2 Tblsp. of oil until soft.
2. Add the paprika and allow to cook until incorporated.
3. Add the tomato paste and stir in.
4. Add the White Wine and reduce by half.
5. Add the Brandy and reduce by half.
6. Add the Orange Juice and Cream and bring to a simmer.
7. Transfer all ingredients to a large stock pot and add the Lobster Stock.
8. Whisk in enough roux until the bisque reaches the desired thickness.
9. Strain through a fine sieve and serve with crème fraiche.

Moscone Going 100% Biodegradable

Zero-Sum Claim: Moscone Going 100% Biodegradable
...interestingly enough, George Moscone, for which the center is named, remains pickled in non-biodegradable formaldehyde in a non-biodegradable box in lovely downtown Colma...

by Jay Nisen

Talk about making waves in reducing environmental waste: the mayor's office has announced that Moscone Convention Center's food and beverage products have gone all biodegradable. When you consider high profile conferences like Macworld, JavaOne, Worldwide Developers Conference, Oracle OpenWorld 2007, and similar, tens of thousands of desk-bound workers, not exactly known for our restrained eating habits, going 100% biodegradable can make a real, quantifiable difference.

The Moscone has long been a leader in environmental friendliness—take, for instance, the solar energy system that was installed in March 2004—one of the largest such city-owned systems in the country. The mayor's office claims that at September's VM World event, the Moscone Center diverted about 40,000 box lunch containers from landfill. It anticipates diverting 60,000 box lunch containers at Oracle OpenWorld in November. Why not green wash the cafeteria ladies?


The deets, in brief, on what's being done by SMG, the city's partner in running the convention center:


1) Purchasing focuses on local products; bakery vendors must recycle empty boxes; organic produce and hormone-free dairy and meats used whenever possible.
2) Only compostable (cornstarch) containers at Moscone’s food service locations/for major catering events.
3) A large portion Moscone’s unused food donated to community services; kitchen-generated waste separated for composting/recycling as appropriate.
4) Dishwashing done with Ecolab’s "Geosystem" dishwashing detergents.

Oven Roasted Halibut With Fresh Tomato Basil Salsa

Sea Harvest Fish Markets have been a customer of mine since 2000. They were a tough nut to crack, as they say. The Derelye Brothers (and sister) have been in the seafood business for years as fishermen, processors, distributors, restaurateurs, and caterers.

Saturday I managed to short Chef Mario at the Moss Landing store 7 of the 8 fryer shortenings that he ordered. I made a drive to Smart and Final to retrieve the Shortening to recover my error, and drove up to Sea Harvest. The parking lot was packed and every seat was full. Chef had 5 separate specials on a chalk board, the most interesting of which was a Monterey Sardine Bruschetta. (I just received a recipe from a friend of mine that I haven't made yet).

After my delivery I brought home a package each of shrimp, scallops, local halibut, and salmon. I figured this should hold me for a couple days.

Tonight I oven roasted the halibut with "just harvested from the backyard" tomatoes, basil, garlic, oregano, zucchini and jasmine rice. (Okay the rice came from a bag.)

¾ Lb Halibut Fillet
2 small tomatoes diced
1 tblsp fresh basil chopped
1 tblsp fresh oregano
2 or 3 garlic cloves minced
1 tblsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste.

Combine ingredients, and spread on top of halibut. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Serve over rice with fresh garden veggies on the side.