The indiana state department of agriculture (isda) will enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops by leveraging efforts and resources to fund and promote projects which address issues facing…

The indiana state department of agriculture (isda) will enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops by leveraging efforts and resources to fund and promote projects which address issues facing the indiana specialty crop industry. Isda has identified three (3) projects which will improve research, increase educational opportunities, and enhance marketability of specialty crops in the hoosier state. Applicants selected by isda include purdue university department of food science, a land grant university with strong roots in the agricultural sector and slaughter farms, LLC (slaughter orchard cidery), a small but mighty orchard and cidery with training and experience in alternative harvesting methods for the production of cider. Beneficiaries include the residents of indiana. However, all three (3) projects specifically made an effort to engage beginning, socially disadvantaged and underserved, and veteran farmers in the preparation of their proposals, and have developed their projects so that these groups may experience a more meaningful and impactful benefit. Purdue university department of food science has proposed to undertake two (2) separate projects. The first project, led by principal investigator amanda deering, will develop and deliver produce food safety programming and practical, research-based trainings that may be offered at the purdue student farm, the purdue extension food safety training hub, reaching small fruit and vegetable growers across the state. The second project, led by principal investigator senay simsek, will collect honey samples from beekeepers around indiana to develop a fingerprinting methodology utilizing nuclear magnetic resonance to assess quality and authenticate the origins and purity of honey produced in indiana. By fingerprinting indiana honey, producers can certify that their honey is truly high-quality and locally sourced in indiana, increasing the marketability of indiana honey. Slaughter orchard and cidery will demonstrate to orchards, cider mills, cideries, and wholesale buyers that ground harvested apples can be safely and legally harvested, processed, and fermented into hard cider by creating a haccp plan, demonstrating the haccp plan for stakeholders during multiple field days, and writing a position paper explaining how the process can be achieved safely and legally by others in the apple, cider, and hard cider industries.