An Oregon State University professor landed a high-stakes food safety grant to study onions.
An Oregon State University professor landed a high-stakes food safety grant to study onions.
It might not sound sexy but this study could make a big difference in Oregon. Onions are among the state’s top 10 crops with an annual production of 1.3 billion pounds and $115 million in sales.
Farmers fear their future could be threatened by a Food and Drug Administration proposal clamping down on microbes in irrigation water. Oregon onion growers, located mainly in Malheur County, rely on surface water for irrigation. Out in the open, it gets contaminated. Growers say harmful organisms are killed when the onions are cured, partly by exposure to ultra violet rays. The FDA isn’t so sure.
Read more at OregonLive.com.
