Food-management.com

From plantings to pickles: new greenhouse project flourishes at Massachusetts College

What was once an old, unused greenhouse connected to a dining hall is now teeming with life and lots of cucumbers. Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts’ Venable Hall greenhouse project is mutually beneficial to the Environmental Studies department, the campus sustainability committee, and the Aramark…

Jason Phox / 90.5 WESA

New greenhouse in Wilkinsburg will train urban farmers

Gardening education non-profit Grow Pittsburgh opened a new community greenhouse in Wilkinsburg this week. All of the farm’s electricity will come from solar panels atop the 2,800-square-foot Garden Dreams Urban Farm & Nursery, which sits along Holland Avenue. Greenhouse manager Hanna Mosca said the…

Hawthorne

CAN: Gardening company opens doors to new greenhouse to fight community hunger

To help combat the hunger facing thousands of their fellow neighbors, The Hawthorne Gardening Company, a subsidiary of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, today announced that it has opened the doors to a 4,000 square-foot greenhouse on the grounds of the company’s world headquarters in Vancouver,…

Harvest of California chili peppers has kicked off

It's California chili pepper season and Progressive Produce is back with Jalapenos, Anaheim and Pasilla peppers. “We’re excited about the quality of our crop this year,” says Gabriel Andrade, sales manager for Progressive Produce. “The plants are packed with beautiful, healthy, large-sized chili peppers to…

Uni student gets hands-on with horticulture research

For Nettie Baugher, NC State’s online Master of Horticultural Science program offered the best of both worlds.  Baugher’s undergraduate degree is in horticulture, and she currently works in horticulture as a commercial horticulture area agent for Gates, Chowan, and Perquimans Counties with NC Cooperative Extension.…

Florida blueberry growers part of national survey on pollinator use

It’s National Blueberry Month, a time to savor the fruit’s flavor, reap its health benefits — including fiber and vitamins C and K — and appreciate how it grows. For example, most blueberry farmers use pollinators, such as bees, to help their plants blossom. A national group of scientists that includes…

Bluelab

The pros and cons of using pH testing strips for growing

For most growers, tending plants for pests and weeds is a common exercise that is usually done on a regular basis. But did you know that measuring the pH (potential Hydrogen) of your soil or hydroponic solution is just as important?  Measuring pH (potential Hydrogen) is important to help you maintain optimal…

Bayer Reinforces Commitment to Increasing Fruit and Vegetable Consumption

Bayer reaffirmed its commitment to promoting increased worldwide consumption of fruits and vegetables with the announcement of new portfolio innovations and a business strategy for horticulture. The strategy focuses on activities that deliver tailored solutions to the farm, advance sustainable…

Belgian and Maltese agricultural ministers visit BelOrta

David Clarinval, Belgium's Minister of Agriculture, recently visited the fruit and vegetable cooperative, BelOrta. That was along with Maltese Minister of Agriculture Anton Refalo. They are part of the European Agriculture Council. The two men discussed topics like sustainable cultivation and innovative…

Nickel-free basil with added selenium

The new nickel-free basil line with added selenium has been developed and produced by Orto Ricci in Anzio (Rome) and will soon become available in leading Italian retail chains. Testing was conducted for a year and a half in collaboration with Alessandro Cinelli from Agronova. "Nickel-free basil with added…

Ghana's largest producer and exporter of vegetables has big plans

Felix Kamassah is Ghana's largest producer and exporter of vegetables. The former economist is also the Chief Executive Officer of Maphlix Trust Farm. He left the banking…

Hatch chile season sees earlier than usual July start

This year’s Hatch chiles got a jump on the season. “We’re harvesting hot and medium Hatch chiles and have been since last Monday. It’s the earliest start we’ve ever had for our company. Usually, we start around July 15th and this year it was July 5th so 10 days earlier than normal,” says Preston Mitchell…

© Olga Lupol | Dreamstime.com

A ray of (UV) light at the end of strawberry pest tunnel

For a number of years, University of Florida plant pathologist Natalia Peres has used an ultraviolet light system to thwart strawberry pathogens. Peres even published a study this year that showed the system helps control powdery mildew. Two fellow researchers with the UF Institute of Food and…

Introducing organic baby hemp greens

Field Fresh Farms, a grower/shipper of conventional and organic produce, will introduce its new baby hemp greens product at PMA Foodservice at booth 506 in Monterey, CA on July 21-22. Available as a baby leaf offering and as an ingredient in leafy green mixes to both foodservice and retail, this…

USDA PACA updates

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has imposed sanctions on Southern Produce Distributors Inc. (SPD), Faison, NC, for violating the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA). These…

EU countries commit to having 25% organic farming by 2030

The European ministers of Agriculture from the 27 EU countries have unanimously committed to the goal of having 25% of the bloc's agricultural area dedicated to organic…

“Prices should go up again”

As a key player of the fruit and vegetable sector in the Loire Valley, Fruidis, based in Loire-Atlantique, is currently in the middle of its ratatouille vegetable campaign. The pepper, eggplant and tomato productions have been severely affected by aphid attacks, but the season is going quite well. “The season started on a high…

Transporting goods at more than 600 km/h

At the beginning of July, the American company Hyperloop TT presented its freight transport concept capable of carrying merchandise “at the speed of a plane and the cost of a train,” which is more than 600 km/h. The “HyperPort” project would make it possible to transport up to 2,800 containers per day. A…

Morocco plans to create a logistics platform in Poland to have better access to European markets

According to Hortoinfo, Morocco Foodex - the Moroccan body for the control and promotion of food exports under the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development,…

International supply issues continue to plague horticultural industry

Many hydroponics greenhouses, and growers of all kinds, are being faced with serious delays in many key products. Nutrients, clips, wires, hooks, and growing mediums are just a few of the products that have slowed down or delayed unpredicted time frames, which makes growers frustrated. Most delays are…

Image courtesy of NFU Energy

UK: The practicalities of installing a heat-pump system

A heat pump operating at a coefficient of performance (CoP) of 2.9 or better in order to qualify for the RHI subsidy will produce water at a much lower temperature than an oil, gas, or biomass boiler. As a general rule, most heat-pump systems will produce water up to 50–55˚C. Higher temperatures are…

New method makes vital fertilizer element in a more sustainable way

Urea is a critical element found in everything from fertilizers to skin care products. Large-scale production of urea, which is a natural product of human urine, is a massive…

© Annapustynnikova | Dreamstime.com

US: New institute uses AI to develop next-gen food systems

A $20 million grant has helped launch 16 new research projects in areas such as crop breeding, greenhouse technology and micronutrient research. The Artificial Intelligence Institute for Food Systems got the grant. The new institute is led by the University of California-Davis. Funded by the USDA and the…

Image Credit: Burro.ai demo video

"Farming is finally ready for robots"

While vertical farming companies have received a large share of venture capital dollars, there are many other ag-ech startups emerging in the race to automate agriculture. Some of the ag-tech sub-sectors where the most potential for growth in the next five years can be seen include tiller, weeding, and…

Made in Italy pepper: "prince of Italian biodiversity"

Angello Solarelli is the first snack and seedless sweet pepper on the Italian market. Particularly tasty and delicate, it is suitable for fast, fresh consumption at different times of the day. Ready for salads, aperitifs, and cocktails, it is a healthy and good-looking product. Mini pepper Angello…

NIAB

UK: two new strawberry varieties launched

Two new strawberry varieties bred by the team at NIAB EMR have been officially launched. MallingTM Ace and MallingTM Vitality, expected to reinforce the UK’s reputation for soft fruit production, are the result of the strawberry breeding team, led by NIAB EMR’s Adam Whitehouse, and support of the East Malling Strawberry Breeding Club. Having recently…

Home compostable and recyclable sleeve packaging now on retail shelves

CKF, Inc.’s Earthcycle brand of home compostable and recyclable packaging has expanded its range of sustainable options for its customers to encase their fresh produce by commercializing paper sleeves. New programs with Earthcycle packaging will appear on retail shelves as early as this month.    CKF designed, tested and…

Agreement to promote Spanish fruit, vegetable, flower, and plant sectors abroad is renewed

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, Luis Planas, and the president of Fepex, Jorge Brotons, have renewed the agreement to promote the fruit, vegetable, flower,…

"A good distribution of the roots is highly relevant"

Over the past months, Thwan van Gennip and BVB Substrates have been working together on finding the best-tailored substrates for different raspberry plant varieties at his company. Thwan van Gennip is internationally known for the production of multiple types of soft fruits and the propagation of…

Why Australian growers need to think about cooling in the middle of winter

By now you’ve probably heard about all the issues with shipping that are related to COVID-19: the global scarcity of containers, increased demand from China, union industrial action, skyrocketing airfreight prices, COVID cases at ports, bad steering in the Suez canal, and general profiteering by all…

US: Proposal to exempt plants with additional genetic modifications

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is soliciting feedback on a proposal to add three modifications that plants…

Searchable database of FDA/USDA food recalls launched

The Food Industry Counsel, LLC launched its “FIC Recall Reporter™” business tool, a new, searchable database of all FDA and USDA published Class I, Class II and Class III food…

© Phadventure | Dreamstime.com

Study shows potential skin health benefits of tomato-based carotenoid ingredient

A recent pre-clinical study1 shows that Lumenato, an ingredient from Lycored (Beer-Sheva, Israel), may support skin health by preserving collagen levels in the skin. The ingredient is composed of of 0.55% lycopene, 24.06% phytoene, 6.75% phytofluene, 11.27% tocopherols, 0.61% b-carotene, 3.15%…

Building a better bridge between farmers and consumers

It is that time of the year when farmers harvest their bounty from the farms after months and years of hard work. Unfortunately, amidst the nationwide shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, farmers have been experiencing unprecedented difficulties in selling their produce on time and at fair prices.…

”Alternative to single-use plastic bags for fresh produce”

The awareness of the importance of recycling has increased significantly, starting around two years ago but it has become particularly important in the last year, according to Claus Solberg, Category Manager for fruit and vegetables at Dagrofa Denmark. ”Containers for packaging vegetables, for instance,…

"Crops from the vertical farm have more flavor and a longer shelf life"

"In a closed cultivation cell, you have maximum influence on conditions such as temperature, humidity and light. This allows you to precisely control plant growth, full flavour and aroma", says Lennart Bijl, Operations Manager at Own Greens. "Moreover, the cultivation environment is very clean. Bacteria,…

Scottish Employment and Fair Work Minister writes letter calling for more action to tackle labour shortages

On Wednesday, July 21, Richard Lochhead, Minister for Just Transition, Employment and Fair Work wrote the following letter to Gillian Keegan MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary…

"We’ve continued to invest in this LED platform"

Lumileds, is improving the performance of LUXEON 3030 2D Round. Across all CCTs and for 70 and 80CRI, flux performance increases up to 2.5%. Hot-color targeting at 85°C…