Craig Kahlke
Team Leader, Fruit Quality ManagementCCE Niagara County
4487 Lake Ave.
Lockport, NY 14094
phone 716-433-8839
cell 585-735-5448
fax 716-438-0275
email Craig
Areas of Interest
Fruit Quality and factors that affect fruit quality before, during, and after storage,
CropsBlueberries, Raspberries / Blackberries, Strawberries, Apples, Apricots, Cherries, Nectarines, Peaches, Pears, Plums
Craig Kahlke has been an Area Extension Specialist for the CCE-Lake Ontario Fruit Program for the past six years. He specializes in Fruit Quality Management, which expands his interests to include applied research in the myriad of factors that can affect final fruit quality. Craig's primary responsibilities include harvest maturity testing of apples, postharvest storage and technology of tree fruit/berries, along with marketing of fresh produce. Food safety has been a major emphasis of his programming for the past 3 1/2 years. Craig has an M.S. in Plant & Soil Science from Texas A&M University-Kingsville and a B.S. in Biology from SUNY Geneseo. Craig has worked in agriculture-related positions in research and extension for most of the past 18 years.
Apples
Apricots
Asian Pears
Blueberries
Cherries
Currants
Gooseberries
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Plums
Raspberries / Blackberries
Strawberries
Unusual Fruit
Upcoming Events
2025 Apple Social
July 17, 2025 : Wayne County - Apple Social
Please join us at this casual networking event for all apple industry folks from Western NY, proudly sponsored by Valent. There will be a brief introduction of the Lake Ontario Fruit Program, and from attending specialists.
July 24, 2025 : Orleans County - Apple Social
Lyndonville, NY
Please join us at this casual networking event for all apple industry folks from Western NY, proudly sponsored by Valent. There will be a brief introduction of the Lake Ontario Fruit Program, and from attending specialists.
2025 Cornell In-Depth Fruit School Recordings
April 8, 2025
July 31, 2025
: Recording Available for 2025 Cornell In-Depth Fruit School
Access to the 2025 Cornell In-Depth Fruit School recordings are now available for purchase.
3rd Annual Western NY Fruit Growers Tour, Featuring Wayne County
July 31, 2025
Registration open!
We are excited to announce the 3rd annual Western New York Fruit Grower Tour, the premier fruit tour of the northeast brought to you by Cornell Cooperative Extension's Lake Ontario Fruit Program and Lake Ontario Ag Consulting, LLC! Located in Wayne County, this orchard field day will highlight new and existing products, chemistries, practices, technologies & equipment that shape the orchard industry today. The Western NY Fruit Grower Tour will again combine two past orchard tour events, the LOF Summer Fruit Tour and the Wayne County Fruit Grower Tour, giving industry members the opportunity to conveniently showcase their product offerings to ONE unified group at ONE time and place!
* Schedule subject to change.