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Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Tomatoes”
By Clint Thompson The ongoing drought is slowing disease pressure among Alabama vegetables, says Ed Sikora, professor and Extension plant pathologist in the department of entomology and plant pathology at Auburn University. But that doesn’t mean disease pressure is quiet across all vegetables, especially tomatoes. Sikora outlined what tomato diseases are present across the state and what can be done …
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is updating and issuing a Federal Order designed to continue protecting the domestic pepper and tomato industries while safely deregulating tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV)-positive tomatoes and peppers for consumption. Under the new Federal Order, APHIS will maintain its strong safeguards for imported and domestic …
Florida tomato growers should mark their calendars for Thursday, Sept. 5. The annual Florida Tomato Conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Clewiston John Boy Auditorium in Clewiston, Florida. The event attracted nearly 300 attendees last year which led to it being moved to a larger location. The venue will provide a better learning experience …
Ever since Florida farmers have been producing tomatoes, they’ve picked them by hand or hired laborers. It’s painstaking work that might be made easier soon with machine-harvestable tomatoes developed by University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences researchers. Now that the varieties are available, growers in Florida’s $400 million-a-year industry hope they can use mechanized harvesting, but doubts …
MAITLAND, FL – Last week, in response to a lawsuit by a large Mexican tomato exporter, the U.S. Court of International Trade remanded a 2019 decision to the Department of Commerce, which had determined Mexican tomatoes were being dumped in the U.S. market. Importantly, this decision didn’t invalidate the fact that dumping took place but was a procedural decision that …
By Clint Thompson Labor expenses are a costly input for Florida tomato producers and serve as a significant reason the industry is emphasizing research into automated harvesters. Opinions vary on whether that dream ultimately becomes a reality, though University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) tomato breeder Jessica Chitwood-Brown insists there are alternative ways for growers to …
By Clint Thompson Tomatoes possess specific traits that growers desire to attract would-be consumers. These include quality, yield, shelf life, etc. Appearance is one, if not, the most important characteristic, says Jessica Chitwood-Brown, assistant professor of horticulture at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Gulf Coast Research and Education Center in Wimauma, Florida. She spoke …
Florida tomato producers are facing a proposed assessment rate increase for tomatoes produced in the state, from $0.025 cents to $0.035 cents, per 25-pound carton. This comes as a recommendation from the Florida Tomato Committee and would increase the assessment rate for 2023-2024 and subsequent fiscal periods. The proposed rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless it is modified, suspended …
Jessica Chitwood-Brown is the new tomato breeder at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC). Chitwood-Brown coordinates the lab where she earned Ph.D. and conducted her post-doctoral research, in the northern end of Florida tomato country. She’s taken the position of her doctoral adviser, Sam Hutton, at the GCREC. “I really admire Sam, so I have a …
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Rick Scott sent a letter to Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo last week reiterating his request for the immediate termination of a 2019 suspension agreement. Mexico’s tomato imports continue to flood the domestic market. The practice, also known as dumping, hurts local farmers and has forced some to close the farming operations, according to Scott. …
