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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] another kind of tsunami (News forwarded from another list)

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  • From: Etienne Goyer <etienne AT lejardinduvillage.ca>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] another kind of tsunami (News forwarded from another list)
  • Date: Wed, 06 Mar 2013 10:53:09 -0500

That's interesting. I am in Canada, and thankfully, I have not heard of
anything similar to your GAP going on here. Reading about it on this
list leave me puzzled and ambivalent.

A significant part of my customer base is choosing organic produce over
conventional precisely to avoid dangerous-sounding chemicals in their
food. If using an antimicrobial in washwater was to become a legal
requirement here, I think it would raise quite a few eyebrows. I could
always tell them it's approved for organic agriculture, and cover my
back by saying I have no choice using it, but getting them to accept
that their greens have been washed in a solution that contains peroxyde
(ie, the kind of stuff you would use to *bleach your hair*) would be a
pretty though sell. No amount of "It's for your own good!" would help
either.

So, thanks Dr. Zhong and NCSU for looking into more ... acceptable
solutions. If it ever comes down to it, I would surely appreciate
having an alternative.



On 13-03-06 10:12 AM, ecoponderosa wrote:
>
> (News forwarded from another list)
> ==================================
>
> "If you have questions, please contact Justin Moore @ justin_moore AT ncsu.edu
>
>
> N.C. State, UT scientists secure nearly $2 million grant to improve
> produce safety (March 4, 2013) KANNAPOLIS, NC – A group of scientists at
> the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture and North Carolina
> State University are working together to improve the safety of organic
> produce – naturally.
>
> Their study, “Alternative Post-harvest Washing Solutions to Enhance the
> Microbial Safety and Quality of Organic Fresh Produce,” began last fall.
>
> The four-year, multidisciplinary project is supported by a nearly $2
> million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Organic
> Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) program. Dr. Qixin
> Zhong, an associate professor in the UT Department of Food Science and
> Technology, leads the initiative.
>
> “The goal of the project is to provide safe, alternative, sustainable
> and effective treatments to reduce foodborne illnesses caused by E.
> coli, Listeria and Salmonella contamination in organic produce,” said Zhong.
>
> The group hopes to provide those effective treatments in the form of
> alternative organic antimicrobials — naturally occurring substances such
> as organic essential oils that fight pathogens like E. coli — added to
> postharvest wash water.
>
> “To improve microbiological safety of organic produce, there is an
> urgent need to develop washing practices that not only enhance
> sanitation effectiveness but also fulfill the requirement of organic
> fresh produce,” said Zhong.
>
> As part of the project, the researchers also will evaluate the economic
> feasibility of their work and impact on the shelf life of various types
> of organic produce.
>
> “The research team is very eager to make sure the outcomes from this
> project will be applicable to organic growers throughout the United
> States,” said Faith Critzer, a UT Extension specialist and faculty
> member of the UT Department of Food Science and Technology.
>
> To achieve that goal, researchers partnered with a group of organic
> produce growers who will provide feedback throughout the study. In
> addition, the team will share research findings through webcasts,
> written fact sheets and a series of workshops held in Tennessee and
> North Carolina.
>
> The UT Institute of Agriculture provides instruction, research and
> public service through the UT College of Agricultural Sciences and
> Natural Resources; the UT College of Veterinary Medicine; UT AgResearch,
> including its system of 10 research and education centers; and UT
> Extension offices in every county in the state.
>
> North Carolina State University’s project team includes an
> interdisciplinary group of faculty from the Plants for Human Health
> Institute, N.C. Cooperative Extension and the Department of Food,
> Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, all of which are part of the
> university’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS). CALS’
> mission is to improve the economic, environmental and social well-being
> of North Carolina and the world.
>
> Project partners include Dr. Qixin Zhong, associate professor in the UT
> Department of Food Science and Technology; Faith Critzer, UT assistant
> professor and food safety extension specialist; Dr. P. Michael Davidson,
> UT professor of food microbiology; Dr. David Lockwood, UT professor and
> extension specialist in fruit and nut crops; Dr. Annette Wszelaki, UT
> assistant professor and commercial vegetable extension specialist;
> Jonathan Baros, farm and agribusiness management with PHHI; Dr. Jeanine
> Davis, NCSU associate professor and extension specialist in organic
> crops; Dr. MaryAnne Drake, NCSU professor in sensory analysis and flavor
> chemistry; Diane Ducharme, GAPs program coordinator and extension
> associate in horticulture and food safety with PHHI; and Dr. Penelope
> Perkins-Veazie, professor and postharvest physiologist with PHHI.
>
> # # #
>

--
Etienne Goyer - Le Jardin du Village
http://lejardinduvillage.wordpress.com

"Changer le monde, une betterave à la fois"





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