Grants Offered for Produce Supply Chain Research

The Center for Produce Safety and the California Leafy Greens Research Board are accepting applications for grants to provide the leafy greens produce industry practical, translatable research data that can be used at all levels throughout the supply chain.

Research areas include:

1. Environmental effects on growth and survival of human pathogens in soil amendments and composted fertilizers.
2. Cultivation practices and growth or survival of human pathogens in soils.
3. Seasonality and other correlating factors.
4. Human pathogen reservoirs and vectors.
5. Transference of human pathogens to leafy greens during harvest.

Any individual or group affiliated with a university or governmental agency that has appropriate research capabilities is eligible and is encouraged to submit proposals.

California Food and Ag Code stipulates that research funded by the California Leafy Greens Research Board will be awarded to PI's in the University of California system. One half of the funding for this RFP will come from the California Leafy Greens Research Board.

Awarded grants will not be in an amount larger than $125,000 per year.

For more information, contact:

• Bonnie Fernandez, executive director, Center for Produce Safety, Davis, Calif., 530/757-5777 or bfernandez@cps.ucdavis.edu
• Mary Zischke, executive director, California Leafy Greens Research Board, Salinas, Calif., maryz@calgreens.org