By Karla Arboleda The National Mango Board (NMB) funded an experiment at the University of Florida (UF) to look for better mangoes. Jeff Brecht, professor of postharvest horticulture at UF, has been testing several mango varieties for their response to the exporting process, their postharvest storage potential and their sensitivity to chilling injury. The goal is to find mangoes better …
UF/IFAS Vice President to Retire in 2020
By Karla Arboleda After serving nearly 10 years as the senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), Jack Payne announced he will retire next year. His last day with UF/IFAS will be July 1, 2020. Payne has overseen Extension offices across Florida and its 12 research and …
Farm Bureau Leader: UF/IFAS Analysis Shows the Destructive Effects of Mexican Farm Imports
Gainesville, Fla. (FFBF) – A new economic analysis conducted by a University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) team has confirmed that Mexican imports have significantly harmed fruit and vegetable producers in the Sunshine State. A steadily increasing surge of Mexican products has entered the U.S. domestic market during Florida’s peak winter seasons since the North American Free Trade …
UF Eyes Butterfly Pea as Natural Food-Color Source
It provides a natural food coloring. It gives nurseries another ornamental to grow and sell, and it might provide health benefits to those who eat it with their food. It is the Butterfly Pea, and University of Florida researchers are studying the flower to see if it will grow in Florida. Much of what we eat every day contains added …
UF Researchers Develop Model to Help Keep Crop Seeds Healthy
Working with international researchers, University of Florida scientists have developed a model that will help protect good seeds, which are necessary to plant healthy crops and determine what areas are at higher risk for unhealthy seeds. In many parts of the world, people lack adequate access to nutritious food because there aren’t enough quality seeds for food production, said Karen …
Industrial Hemp A Featured Topic at UF/IFAS Ag Policy Conference Feb. 26 in Balm
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Industrial hemp may soon be a financially significant crop in Florida, and an expert with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences will discuss some of the challenges and opportunities related to this fledgling industry at the fourth annual Florida Agricultural Policy Outlook Conference in Balm. The conference happens 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. …
AgNet Media Announces Florida Ag Expo Date and UF Publication Project
GAINESVILLE, FL – Vegetable and specialty crop growers have a new reason to attend the Florida Ag Expo (FAE) this year. The University of Florida’s (UF) annual grower gathering is poised for refocus and reinvention as AgNet Media takes over management of the event. It will be held at the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) in Wimauma, Florida, …
UF/IFAS Turfgrass Specialist Gets International Extension Award
As a child in Dodge City, Kansas, Bryan Unruh grew up in 4-H. During his first year in the organization, he attended a lawn mower safety school taught by the county agriculture agent. That summer he mowed three lawns every week. In fact, he calls himself “a product of the Cooperative Extension Service.” In high school, Unruh envisioned himself as …
UF Researchers to Breed a New Variety of Florida-Friendly Hops
APOPKA, Fla. – Researchers with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) have been awarded a two-year grant for $194,000 to breed varieties of hops that can grow in Florida. The researchers, based at the UF/IFAS Mid Florida Research and Education Center (MFREC) in Apopka, Florida, said the grant will help continue their work to bring …
UF ‘Plant Whisperer’ Helps Floridians Keep Produce Lush, Green and Safe
APOPKA, Fla. – Liz Felter gazes at the tomato plant and considers it quietly for a few seconds. Stroking the discolored leaves, she sticks two fingers in the soil and pushes the dirt down. “My gut tells me it’s not Erwinia,” says Felter, a University of Florida IFAS Extension regional specialized agent. The visitor to the UF/IFAS Diagnostic Plant Clinic …