Center For Produce Safety Awards 10 New Research Projects

Woodland, CA – The Center for Produce Safety (CPS) today announced 10 new research awards valued at over $2 million.  The awards are for research projects directed at answering critical questions in specific areas of food safety practices for fruits and vegetables; pre-harvest, harvest and post-harvest handling; and food safety and the environment.  The objective is to provide the produce industry with practical, translatable research data that can be used at all levels of the supply chain.

"This year perhaps more than any other, the role that CPS can play in bringing the industry, government, and the scientific and academic communities together is clearly visible," said Tim York, President, Markon Cooperative, Inc., and Chair for the CPS Board of Directors. "The funding for this year's projects comes from a combination of contributions to CPS' Campaign for Produce Safety and state block-grant funds. We recognize the responsibility CPS has to assure these funds are managed prudently to provide scientific tools that support fresh produce food safety programs for our customers and industry."

"We are excited to team with CPS because CPS helps to link fundamental research with real-world practice, and helps us as researchers to access industry

input to maximize our project's impact," said Dr. Kyle Bibby, University of Pittsburgh and a first-time CPS award recipient. "Our research will begin developing an indicator for viral pollution in irrigation water that is more reliable than the indicators that are currently available. We know how vital irrigation water safety and quality is to growers, and to public confidence in the safety of fresh produce."

The awards were made possible by funds provided by the Center for Produce Safety's campaign contributors, the California Department of Food and Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.

2016 RFP Grant Recipients (projects will begin January 2017):

Ana Allende, CEBAS CSIS Spain

Establishment of operating standards for produce wash systems through the identification of specific metrics and test methods

Mary Anne Amalaradjou, University of Connecticut

Listeria monocytogenes growth and survival on peaches and nectarines as influenced by stone fruit packing house operations, storage and transportation conditions.

Kyle Bibby, University of Pittsburgh 

Developing Cross-Assembly Phage as a Viral Indicator for Irrigation Waters

Linda Harris, University of California, Davis

Characterization and mitigation of bacteriological risks associated with packing fresh-market citrus

Gerardo Lopez, University of Arizona

Cyclospora: Potential Reservoirs and Occurrence in Irrigation Waters

Xiaonan Lu, University of British Columbia

Detection, validation, and assessment of risks implied by the viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state of enteric bacterial pathogens in fresh produce

Trevor Suslow, University of California, Davis

Resolving postharvest harborage sites of Listeria protects Zone 1 surfaces

Keith Warriner, University of Guelph

Significance of the dormant state in the persistence, interaction with growing plants and virulence of Shiga Toxin producing Escherichia coli

Martin Wiedmann, Cornell University

Remotely-sensed and field-collected hydrological, landscape and weather data can predict the quality of surface water used for produce production

Meijun Zhu, Washington State University

Control of Listeria monocytogenes on apple through spray manifold-applied antimicrobial intervention

To date, CPS has funded 120 projects valued at over $20 million.  To view additional information on projects that have been funded by CPS, click HERE.

Save the Date  – October 20, 2016    

Call for research pre-proposals and announcement of research priorities

Details will be posted on the CPS website.

About CPS

The Center for Produce Safety (CPS) is a 501(c)(3), U.S. tax-exempt, charitable organization focused exclusively on providing the produce industry and government with open access to the actionable information needed to continually enhance the safety of produce.

Source: The Center for Produce Safety (CPS)