The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a report on its investigation of the Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak that caused 31 reported illnesses and four hospitalizations in the U.S. between June and August 2021. The FDA worked with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state partners to investigate the outbreak, which was linked through epidemiology and traceback to packaged salad …

The National Watermelon Promotion Board (NWPB) will hold a nomination teleconference on Wednesday, February 16th, 2022 at 8:00 A.M. (PT) for district 4 and Wednesday, February 16th, 2022 at 10:00 A.M. (PT) for district 5 to nominate qualified watermelon producers and watermelon handlers to fill open positions as directors of the Board. District 4 — The States of: Connecticut, Delaware,Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, …

Moonshadow, a deeply pigmented purplish-red, oblong tomato, was bred using traditional crossing methods and derived from a cross between a black grape tomato and a high-flavor orange grape tomato. It is now available for pre-order, for spring 2022 planting, from High Mowing Organic Seeds. Moonshadow is the sixth variety in the Galaxy Suite, a colorful, multishaped group of medley grape tomatoes bred by Phillip Griffiths, associate professor in the …

USDA ARS — Adding cooked black beans to a high-fat diet improved sensitivity to insulin and other measures often related to diabetes and restored gut bacteria balance in obese mice, according to a USDA Agricultural Research Service study. As little as the mouse-size equivalent of a single serving a day of black beans—about a half cup for a human—lowered insulin …

We have all felt the seismic shift from the pandemic and its impact on our lives and livelihoods. Throughout the pandemic farmers and farm workers have worked diligently and continually to deliver healthy and safe fruits and vegetables to consumers. But the pandemic further exposed the tight margins of farming and the intense cost pressures being faced in agriculture today. The Grower …

As you start to plan for your Thanksgiving dinner, sweet potatoes are likely on the menu. Whether roasted and savory or topped with marshmallows, they’re a fall staple. Despite being beloved by most, sweet potatoes are often misunderstood. They’re unrelated to potatoes, for starters. And they’re even different from yams. Yet we can’t get enough. U.S. farmers have been increasing their production …

California Farmland Trust (CFT) is proud to announce the permanent protection of 327 acres of farmland two miles east of Los Banos, California. Farmed and owned by Bowles Farming Company, the addition of the Lone Tree Ranch agricultural conservation easement (ACE) exceeds 17,000 acres of total farmland protected by CFT. Bowles Farming Company is a 160-year-old family farm, with agricultural …

The U.S. Agency for International Development will provide a base $15 million investment over the next five years, with up to $34.5 million total funding possible, to support a global research program led by the University of California, Davis, that advances fruit and vegetable production, handling, and consumption. The Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Horticulture will work with and …

No weigh? Weigh! Bring it on burly, beefy, bodacious behemoths! The excitement is building in Pumpkintown as the World’s Greatest Gourd Growers and their mind-blowing, Volkswagen-sized orange orbs hope to squash the world record on Monday, October 11 at the 48th Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off — the “Super Bowl of Weigh-Offs” — in the World Pumpkin Capital of Half Moon …

The FDA is releasing the findings of a sampling assignment for which FDA collected and tested romaine lettuce from commercial coolers in Yuma County, Arizona during February and March 2021. The agency tested the lettuce for Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), specifically enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC), and Salmonella spp. This assignment was part of the FDA’s ongoing surveillance following multistate E. coli O157:H7 outbreaks of foodborne illness in recent years …