Event / Community Calendar

Food Safety and IPM Disease Management Field Day

Jun 20, 10:00 AM - 1:30 AM CT
Delano, MN | $
Food Safety and IPM Disease Management Field Day at Apple Jack Orchards

Location: Apple Jack Orchards, 4875 37th St SE, Delano, MN 55328
Cost: $15 per farm, lunch included. All registered attendees receive insect detection and food safety supplies
Registration: https://z.umn.edu/OrchardIPMGAPsFieldDay Register by June 18, 5:00 pm.

Summer is a great time to learn new strategies to protect your fruits and vegetables. Come to this field day to learn how to use good food safety practices and pest and disease control methods in fruit and vegetable production systems. These practices can reduce the disease burden on your farm and protect your produce from unintentional contamination from human pathogens like E. coli or Salmonella that can cause illness.

Food Safety topics:
• Learn best practices to manage human pathogens of concern on the farm which can contaminate your produce
• Mock GAP audit - what is a GAP audit, and how could it help my farm?
• The FSMA Produce Safety Rule
• Making and safely using manure-based compost
• Postharvest washing and handling, coolers, packshed design and sanitizer demonstrations
• The MN Department of Agriculture will be on hand to conduct a mock GAP audit and walk through production fields, packshed and cooler and storage facilities to provide an overview of what practices and records would be required to pass a USDA GAP audit if desired.

IPM topics:
• Insect pests, foliar diseases, and fruit rots
• Integrated Pest Management (IPM) tactics for pest and disease management including scouting, forecast timed pesticide applications, and cultural controls (e.g., sanitation and variety selection)
• Scouting and trapping tool demonstration