In December 2015 I presented a talk at the Certified Crop Advisors Conference in Indianapolis titled ‘Specialty Crops of Indiana’. The information gathered for the talk was so interesting that I thought I would share it with all the Vegetable Crops Hotline readers as well. Data Sources. Information used to compile this article has been…Read more about Vegetables: An Overview of Production and Economic Significance in Indiana[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
Welcome to a new year of the Vegetable Crops Hotline! Starting with this issue, I will be the new editor of VCH newsletter. If you do not know me yet, I am the horticulture specialist located at Vincennes, IN. I am excited to work more closely with VCH. I also feel responsible to continually provide you…Read more about Welcome to the 2016 Season from the New Editor[Read More]
In November 2015 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published the final version of Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption, otherwise known as the Produce Rule, in the Federal Register. Sixty days later, in January 2016, the rule became law. The Produce Rule is one of several new…Read more about The Produce Rule is Here![Read More]
How many times have you had to explain to a customer how to select, prepare or store a product that you have grown and are offering for sale? Did you ever wonder if more shoppers might buy your product if they had a clear understanding of how to prepare it? How many of us would…Read more about FoodLink is NOW READY for Your Use[Read More]
Winter is coming to a close in about a month, and the coldest of the days should be behind us at this point. Here in Indiana, El Nino usually points to a warmer, drier kind of winter. With the past El Nino being considered one of the strongest on record, how much did the warm…Read more about Weather Update Winter 2016[Read More]
This is the final issue of the Vegetable Crops Hotline for 2015. Now is the time for subscribers who receive a paper copy in the mail to renew. A renewal form is included with this issue. Email subscribers will remain on the subscription list as long as the email address works. IVGA members will have…Read more about End of the Season, Time to Renew[Read More]
Recently the USDA announced the addition of a new third-party auditing service that will be available through the Ag Marketing Service (AMS). The service, called “GroupGAP”, will be available in the spring of 2016. The expansion of the service follows multi-year piloting and testing of the program. Under the GroupGAP program, independent farms may organize…Read more about USDA Announces the Addition of “GroupGap” to its Audit Services[Read More]
Consumers have many choices in today’s marketplace. Whether they are shopping in the your farm market, roadside stand, community farmers’ market or the local grocery store it makes no difference…busy shoppers can choose to buy fresh fruits and vegetables or any number of frozen or otherwise preprocessed (value added) foods. FoodLink, a FREE tool developed…Read more about Foodlink – A New Tool to Increase Farm Sales and Improve Shopper Knowledge about Specialty Crops[Read More]
There is still time to submit a proposal to this grant program. The 2016 Farmer Rancher Grant Program of NCR SARE offers grants for farmer-initiated projects of up to $7,500 for individuals, $15,000 for partners, and $22,500 for groups. Grant applications are due in the NCR SARE office on Thursday, December 3, 2015. To learn…Read more about SARE Farmer Rancher Grant Deadling Coming Up[Read More]
The Southwest Indiana Melon and Vegetable Growers Association will hold their technical meeting and variety trial showcase on Thursday, December 3rd at the Southwest Purdue Ag Center, 4369 N. Purdue Road, Vincennes, IN. The meeting will start at 6:00 P.M., dinner will be served. At approximately 7:00 P.M., the variety trial discussion will begin. Any…Read more about SW Indiana Melon and Vegetable Growers Meeting[Read More]