Research Spotlight

Food Science & Human Nutrition: Thanks in part to the Food Science and Human Nutrition department, Florida is the country’s leader for tomato safety standards. Through the efforts of industry leaders, joined by elected officials, state agencies and the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences and Food Science and Human Nutrition department, the state recently enacted laws requiring tomatoes to be grown and handled according to a best-practices manual. The new laws will reduce the risk of Florida tomatoes being affected by pathogens such as Salmonella bacteria. They will also reassure consumers that Florida tomatoes are a safe product.

Food-safety expert Keith Schneider, Associate Professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition, and Steve Sargent, a Professor of Horticultural Sciences, are presenting live workshops around the state, some of which are being recorded as narrated PowerPoints and will soon be available online. Schneider is also developing online resources to aid training at Extension offices.

Researchers are developing better ways to eliminate surface pathogens on tomatoes, pinpoint locations of bacteria that are likely to grow in plants, and trace shipped tomatoes back to where they were grown.

For more information about tomato safety please contact Keith Schneider.

Previous Research Spotlights