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Tree Fruit Technology Roadmap Update
Since the beginning of 2004, this call for federal support has expanded to include several fruit crops.
WHEN the National Tree Fruit Technology Roadmap was first launched in 2001, its main focus was on reducing production costs in tree fruit by 30% by 2010. However, the program has since evolved to include all rosaceous crops, including peaches, almonds, berries, and even ornamentals, in addition to tree fruit.
This past June, USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) announced a $4 million national research initiative program, which started with a workshop in California in July that brought rosaceous crops under the umbrella of the Roadmap. Later in the year, USDA's Risk Management Agency awarded $750,000 in risk management funding to regional winegrape and tree fruit organizations.
The march towards federal funding support for cost-effective fruit production methods continues in 2005. In March, following Capitol Hill visits by the U.S. Apple Association, the Cherry Marketing Institute, and the National Peach Council, Roadmap Steering Committee members submitted a $7.6 million funding request for the 2006 budget, covering research into fruit quality based on consumer preferences, biorational pest management, cherry genetics and genomics, and automation and precision agriculture.
"The efforts we have made this past year are a result of strong organization among several industry partners," says Jim McFerson of the Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission. "This would not have been possible without their support."
For more information on the Technology Roadmap, go to
www.treefruitresearch.com/
and click on "Technology Roadmap."
E-mail questions or comments about this article to
afg.edit@meistermedia.com
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