In an effort to boost enrollment and address climate change, the USDA will open enrollment in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) with higher payment rates, new incentives, and a more targeted focus on the program’s role in climate change mitigation. [Read more…]
Vegetable Crops Edition
Seasonal updates and alerts on insects, diseases, and weeds impacting vegetable crops. New Jersey Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations updates between annual publication issues are included.
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April 22, 2021 Wes Kline
Scheduling a USDA Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+ Audit
Before scheduling an audit review the standards to understand what is required. Go to https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/auditing/gap-ghp/harmonized and download the latest versions dated February 8, 2021. There have been changes since the 2018 version so review carefully. Compare the new version with your written food safety plan and make the necessary changes. If you need technical assistance or want to discuss parts of the audit email “Ask the Experts” at onfarmfoodsafety@njaes.rutgers.edu. The on-farm food safety team can be contacted at the same address to schedule a walkthrough to assess your readiness for an audit if requested.
Once the food safety plan is complete and you are ready for an audit email fvinspection@ag.nj.gov to schedule the audit. You will receive an agreement to review and check which audit and audit sections you want audited. You will be asked to send certain documents for review prior to the on-site audit. This reduces the amount of time the auditors are on the farm for Covid considerations. The auditors want to see at least 10 days of records prior to the audit.
Again, this year the Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+ audits in New Jersey will be reimbursed 100% through the USDA Risk Management Agency. Once the audit is finalized, USDA will generate a bill to the auditee which summarizes the cost breakdown of the audit, and then showing a credit for that same amount. A note will be added to the bill stating, “Cost of your 2021 USDA Harmonized GAP Audit covered by a bill credit made possible through a grant from the USDA Risk Management Agency Agricultural Management Assistance Program”. For more details and frequently ask questions visit the AMS website mentioned above and look under resources.
Once the audit is complete it will be reviewed by USDA personnel and a certificate will be sent to the grower. Also, the farm name, address, date and commodities audited will be posted on the USDA AMS website.
April 21, 2021 Megan Muehlbauer
NJDEP Notice to Ag Businesses Regarding Open Burning April 21 2021
Due to the low temperatures predicted this evening April 21, 2021, the New Jersey DEP has issued an Open Burning Permit for Agricultural Businesses.
Please see attached for details. NJDEP Notice to Ag Businesses re Open Burning 21April2021
Note:The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and New Jersey Forest Fire Service caution all farmers and agriculture businesses with respect to the use of open burning in high wind velocity conditions. Please take note that farmers are encouraged to utilize smudge pots is warming as necessary during higher wind conditions. Use of open burning when wind velocity is greater than 5mph is strictly prohibited, may contribute to wildfire risk, and can carry significant penalties.
April 21, 2021 Kris Holmstrom
Allium leaf miner update: 04/21/21
Allium Leaf Miner
Allium leaf miner (ALM) feeding/egg laying scars continue to increase in chive plantings near Milford, Hunterdon County and Lawrenceville, Mercer County as of this Tuesday. Chives in home gardens in central Morris County and southern Cape May County were also found to be infested this past weekend, with adults actively flying in plants. The first (spring) flight of these flies appears well underway. Yellow sticky cards have captured low, but consistent (range 1-5/card/week) numbers of adults in Hunterdon and Mercer County plantings. Foliar insecticide applications temporarily suppress catches on the cards. Growers throughout the state should assume there is egg laying activity in their area currently.
Growers should consider initiating (continuing) the control method of their choice at this time. Affected crops include chives, scallions, garlic, onions and leeks. Look for neat rows of white spots descending from the upper tips of allium leaves (see photo at left). Initial injury often occurs on the tallest leaves. Under warmer, less breezy conditions, adults may be seen near the tips of leaves (see photo of adults at lower right). Click on photos to enlarge the images.
Floating row covers, kept on until this flight ends will help minimize access to plants. Insecticide applications targeting adults may be helpful as well, although weekly sprays have not stopped foliar injury. Spinosyn materials (Radiant, Entrust (OMRI approved)), pyrethroids (Mustang Maxx, Warrior), neonicotinoids (Scorpion, Venom), the diamide Exirel (section 2ee recommendation) and the insect growth regulator Trigard are labeled for leaf miner control.
Adult activity and observations of feeding will be reported on in the IPM Update as they occur. At this time, all growers should continue to respond to the first adult generation. We will attempt to identify the end of the first flight so that growers know when the risk of infestation has abated.
April 21, 2021 Rick VanVranken
Communicating the Value of COVID-19 Vaccines With Your Farm Employees
CDC COVID-19 Vaccine Posters available in multiple languages – “Vaccines (shots) are one of the tools we have to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.”
In an effort to increase participation in the COVID-19 vaccination program among farm workers, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), through the national Extension Foundation, is working with Cooperative Extension across the country to help spread the word about the importance of getting vaccinated. Rutgers Cooperative Extension Director Brian Schilling has enlisted a team of County Agents and Specialists to answer the call from the CDC to participate in this EXCITE program. Through a variety of communications channels we will be providing informational posters and other educational materials in several appropriate languages that you can hand out or post in locations where your workers can easily read them (like on or near your Worker Protections Standards bulletin boards or in your labor camps).
“Vaccines (shots) are one of the tools we have to fight the COVID-19 pandemic” posters from the CDC are now available on the COVID-19 page of the Rutgers NJAES On-Farm Food Safety website <https://onfarmfoodsafety.rutgers.edu/covid-19-information/> with the direct links to these multiple language editions:
You can also share this Spanish language video <https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/un-rayo-de-esperanza> from the US Dept. of Health and Human Services with your workers to help explain where they can get more information about COVID-19 vaccines. There are several other informational videos available at https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/filter/format/Video, as well as posters/fliers from https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/filter/format/Poster%20%E2%80%93%20Flyer (mostly English), and factsheets at https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/filter/format/Fact%20Sheet.
April 20, 2021 Wes Kline
New Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+ standards go into effect May 1
This is the time of year when growers start to think about scheduling there USDA Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+ Audits. There have been changes to both audits which take affect May 1. Growers should download the latest versions from https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/auditing/gap-ghp/harmonized. The Harmonized Audit is version 2 dated February 8, 2021 and the Harmonized Plus+ with the same date is version 3. If anyone is still getting the GAP/GHP audits there are no changes.
There are changes to both the Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+. New questions for the Harmonized Audit include: G-8.2, G-10.7, G-12.1, G-12.2, P-3.1, P-8.2 and P-8.4. Amended questions include: G-3.2, G-10.1, G-10.3, G-10.6, G-10.8, G-10.10, G-10.12, G-10.16 and G-10.19. All of these apply to the Harmonized Plus+ in addition to four new questions: F-8.2.c, P-6.5.a, P-3.1.a and P-9.4.a. Two questions were also amended: G2.2.2 and G-6.1.a.
Other than the new questions which must be reviewed and addressed in the food safety plan there are certain things audits will be stressing this year. One is G-3.2 related to documentation and protection of those documents. Documents must be maintained for two years and be available for review. The one document which has not been assessed in the past is the portable toilet record. This year they will be checking for it. There are two ways growers can comply. First make sure the starting and ending dates are on your contract for the portable toilets. Also, take a picture of the log inside the toilet door at least at the end of the season. It may make sense to do it mid-season and at the end. Maintain those photos with your other documents.
The second is F-8.2 related to cleaning and sanitizing equipment, vehicles, tools and utensils and their storage. There needs to be a schedule for those activities and records must include the date and method of cleaning and sanitizing. One thing that gets overlooked at times are knives for field harvesting of vegetables and herbs. These must be included, and the auditors will be looking for the logs this year.
Example templates are being updated on the Food Safety website https://onfarmfoodsafety.rutgers.edu/ that will include most of what would be needed for an audit. These can be modified to fit any operation.
