Crop Protection
Specialty crops sector investments touted
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing in programs designed to support the U.S. specialty crops industry, including promoting exports and funding a maximum residue limits (MRL) database. The launch of the Assisting Specialty... more »
Drone workshop to help growers scheduled
The University of Arizona (UA) is scheduling a workshop designed to help growers considering using drones. The Easy Drone Use for Better Farms Workshop is scheduled for Jan. 31. The workshop will be presented in-person... more »
Fresh produce advisory committee meets in February
The USDA Fruit and Vegetable Industry Advisory Committee (FVIAC) is preparing for its next meeting. The committee will have a virtual meeting from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern on March 4-5, 2024. The USDA... more »
Robots perform field work at FIRA USA
Allowing growers to watch the latest AgTech products operate in the field was a big part of FIRA USA. Through demonstrations and static displays at the Sept. 19-21 event in Salinas California, technology providers focusing... more »
Autonomous tech invades the ‘Salad Bowl’
Despite a limited number of robots and automated machines being deployed in some grower fields, more buy-in is needed by venture capital (VC) firms that fund AgTech products. The challenge of making robotics and smart... more »
Urban grower’s plots help feed neighborhood
Edwin “Craig” Thomas Jr. took his knowledge of growing vegetables, which he learned from his father, to help address food insecurity in Savannah, Georgia, in one of the oldest free Black neighborhoods in the South.... more »
Avoiding errors helps Leger & Son successfully grow watermelons
Before Leger & Son can harvest a single watermelon, there are many considerations: soil health, pests and disease challenges, and water availability. Nearly six decades after the family began farming watermelons, the third-generation company grows... more »
UGA leads research into silverleaf whiteflies with USDA
In 2017, an outbreak of a small, white bug — about a millimeter in size — swept through south Georgia, causing widespread damage totaling more than $150 million to the vegetable industry that year. Now... more »
