Food Safety
FOOD SAFETY CATEGORIES
Lake Ontario Fruit Webinar Recording & Video Links
LOF Fruit Bites
See details to check out quick "how to" videos on a variety of fruit and orchard topics.
Organizations Offering Respirator Fit Testing
Partial list of organizations offering respirator fit testing compiled by the New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health (NYCAMH)
When inquiring, ask these organizations about their fee structure, whether or not they will come to you, and if they can test the brand and model of your mask(s). Note that this list is evolving and may change over time.
Listeria - Why is it Not Going Away? - Part II
Craig Kahlke, Team Leader, Fruit Quality Management
Lake Ontario Fruit Program
Follow up to Part I article. The original part II article appeared in Issue 3 of the Fruit Notes newsletter, March 22, 2017.
Listeria - Why is it Not Going Away? - Part I
Craig Kahlke, Team Leader, Fruit Quality Management
Lake Ontario Fruit Program
This is Part I of an important article on Listeria monocytogenes contamination on fresh produce. Included are descriptions of the deadly Jensen Farms outbreak on cantaloupe from Colorado in 2011 along with the Bidart Brothers (California) outbreak on fresh and caramelized apples in 2014 that also hospitalized and killed several people.
Some of the biology and the persistence of this deadly pathogen is discussed, as well as detection methods and possible places that can harbor Listeria and allow it to grow. How to reduce risk of Listeria contamination in the packinghouse is introduced.
Part II of the article is in the Second Issue of the Fruit Notes, Volume 17, Issue 2.
Microbial Water Quality Profile Calculator for Surface Water (FSMA requirments)
Craig Kahlke, Team Leader, Fruit Quality Management
Lake Ontario Fruit Program
One of the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act is water testing for surface and ground water. Those growers using surface or ground water in production (pre-harvest) for crop protectant sprays or irrigation need to develop a Microbial Water Quality Profile (MWQP). This requires 20 water tests per surface source in the 2-4 years PRIOR to compliance dates. Large business (>$500K annual fresh produce sales over 3 years) need to be in compliance for the water requirement by January of 2020. The tests need to be quantified generic E.coli. The easiest way to develop your MWQP is to perform 5 tests each growing season from 2016-2019. Alternatively, you could do 6-7 tests per year from 2017-2019, or 10 tests/yr in 2018 and 2019. See the Excel spreadsheet below for the Western Center for Produce Safety at UC Davis's MWQP die-off calculator. Instructions are in the firs tab.
Food Safety Resources
Craig Kahlke, Team Leader, Fruit Quality Management
Lake Ontario Fruit Program
The Produce Safety Alliance is your Link to stay updated on Food Safety as it applies to growers and packers. This includes updates of future requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
Click here: The Produce Safety Alliance is your Link to stay updated on Food Safety as it applies to growers and packers. This includes updates of future requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
Click here: producesafetyalliance.cornell.edu/
Presentations - 2015 Winter Tree Fruit Schools
Presentations given at the 2015 Commercial Tree Fruit Schools in Lake George (LG) and Kingston in the Hudson Valley (HV) are available by clicking on the following links.
Apples
Apricots
Asian Pears
Blueberries
Cherries
Currants
Gooseberries
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Plums
Raspberries / Blackberries
Strawberries
Unusual Fruit
Upcoming Events
2022 Virtual Orchard Meetup webinar series - Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
June 2, 2022 : Part 1 Labor - Grower Experiences
2022 Virtual Orchard Meetup webinar series. Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
A four-part webinar series on Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
Part 1 Labor - Grower Experiences
June 16, 2022 : Part 2 Labor - Specialist Panel
2022 Virtual Orchard Meetup webinar series. Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
A four-part webinar series on Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
Part 2 Labor - Specialist Panel
June 30, 2022 : Part 3 Technology - Grower Experiences
2022 Virtual Orchard Meetup webinar series. Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology. A four-part webinar series on Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
Part 3 Technology - Grower Experiences
July 14, 2022 : Part 4 Technology - Specialist Panel
2022 Virtual Orchard Meetup webinar series. Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology. A four-part webinar series on Orchard Efficiency: Labor and Technology.
Part 4 Technology - Specialist Panel
2022 SAP Analysis
July 15, 2022
Peel sap sampling/collection ended for Western NY/Finger Lakes regions on July.
LOF Summer Tour 2022
August 9, 2022
Please join us for the 2022 LOF Summer Tour on Tuesday, August 9th!
Stop 1: Kast Farms, Inc. Hosted by Brett Kast and family. Topics include herbicide trial updates, soil health, fire blight, mating disruption, and comparison of NY1 on G.41 vs. M.9-337 rootstocks. Stop 2: Fish Creek Orchards, LLC. Hosted by Jose Iniguez and Jason Woodworth. Topics include an introduction of the SCRI "Precision Orchard Management for Apple" project, and overviews by 3 companies working with us and growers under this umbrella - Moog, Vivid, and Dropcopter, who are working with Green Atlas for the cartography. Stop 3: Lunch at the Carleton Fire Hall & Rec Center. Lunch will be provided by Frank Penna Catering. Growers and other tree fruit industry folks will have the opportunity to visit with sponsors and likely view several demonstrations of new precision crop load management technology. Stop 4: Orchard Dale Fruit Farm. Hosted by the Brown family and employees. LOF's precision pruning work with our SCRI grant, and crop load management research with Farm Vision and Fruit Scout will be featured. Stop 5: Nesbitt Fruit Farms. Hosted by Shane Nesbitt and family. Topics include bloom thinning results on Honeycrisp with the use of the Pollen Tube Growth model, and grow-through on-farm nursery production. Note: There may be some minor changes to the itinerary.
1.75 NYSDEC Credits will be offered in categories 22, 10, and 1A.