Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/603228
www.goodfruit.com Good Fruit Grower DECEMBER 2015 9 $2 million awarded for food safety research T he Center for Produce Safety has awarded nearly $2 million for 11 research projects relating to food safety practices for fruits and vegetables. Recipients with projects relevant to tree fruit pro- duction include Kelly Bright, University of Arizona, for studies to identify indicator organisms to determine the risks of fecal contamination in irrigation water, and Steven Pao, California State University of Fresno, to eval- uate sanitizing treatments for sizer carriers in stone fruit packing houses. Funding comes from contributors to the Center for Produce Safety and the California Department of Food and Agriculture's Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. Projects will begin in January. COURTESY BRUCE GREGORY Bruce Gregory meets with a farmer in Tajikistan. Farmer-to-Farmer exchanges D ear Good Fruit Grower: It was really nice to read that other Washington state fruit growers are doing some out- reach to Kyrgyzstan fruit growers ("Faraway regions form a growing relationship," October 2015 issue). I have done two Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) exchanges with growers in Kyrgyzstan (Kyzyl- Alma cooperative and Gulbaar village in southern Kyrgyzstan) and two more in Tajikistan, Khatlon Province. The issues for both groups are similar: No tools, no ladders, no knowledge (or very little) of pruning, propagation, nutrient management, irriga- tion…you name it. I would encourage any grower who has an inter- est in helping these growers in Central Asia to tap into the various non-governmental organizations in the United States, such as ACDI/VOCA or Winrock International and keep in touch for various F2F vol- unteer opportunities in these poor but eager coun- tries. The people are wonderful and so thirsty for information that will help them move forward and out of the mid-70s, post-Soviet agricultural model. Regards, Bruce Gregory Friday Harbor, Washington In the Box Write us at 105 S. 18th Street, #217, Yakima, WA 98901 or email growing@goodfruit.com