What makes the perfect strawberry? Is it the crimson skin, studded with small flecks of seeds, enveloping the juicy red and white core? Or is it the flavor, the balance between the sweet and sour, that make it a favorite for dunking in chocolate or soaking in pools of cream? What makes the perfect strawberry? Is it the crimson skin, studded with small flecks of seeds, enveloping the juicy red and white core? Or is it the flavor, the balance between the sweet and sour, that make it a...

As part of his Farm, Nutrition, and Community Investment Act, a bill introduced in May, Schumer seeks $250 million to be allocated over 10 years to the Agricultural Research Service, an arm of the Department of Agriculture, to study the phenomenon and find ways to restore bee colonies to healthy levels. As part of his Farm, Nutrition, and Community Investment Act, a bill introduced in May, Schumer seeks $250 million to be allocated over 10 years to the Agricultural Research Service, an arm...

Most of the about 75 vineyards in Burns' region range from 30 to 100 acres, making them some of the largest wine-grape producing operations in the state, she said. Unfortunately, many people who want to start a vineyard or winery are focusing on the wrong reasons or are unaware of the challenges they may face, according to Texas Cooperative Extension experts. But the business of wine-grape production and wine-making is much more complicated than most people realize, said Adams. Switzer,...

Mr Viliran says it wants to provide farmers with a better return and hopes to increase its export volume when more cocoa farmers come to them with their produce. Tradewell Limited spokesperson, Levi Viliran, told The National newspaper that since venturing into the trade, the company has exported more than 90 tonnes of dried cocoa beans to overseas markets, including Singapore. He says Tradewell decided to get into cocoa exporting after the success of its merchandising and retailing...

Little by little, he added, the farmers make their way into the forests to stake out new fields: "In these forests, almost half-a-million farmers and their families have established themselves under the complacent gaze of the state. In the region of Korhogo, also in the north, each village has at least one sacred forest, which only the initiated are allowed to enter. It is impossible to cut down trees there for commercial gain, observes Soro, noting that citizens are also concerned with...

Akinwale Ojo, executive secretary of the Cocoa Association of Nigeria (CAN), said the disease was caused by heavy rainfall and a scarcity of chemicals to spray infected trees in the southwest cocoa farming region. LAGOS (Reuters) - Black pod disease has hit Nigerian cocoa plantations, raising fears of a further drop in output already cut by drier-than-normal weather earlier this year, the main growers' group said on Monday. Cocoa trees are vulnerable to pests and diseases, which can often...

Once upon a time I lived in a house that sat on river-loam acreage that had an orchard packed with nearly every kind of fruit tree. That's why, when I recently heard that some friends' apricot trees were loaded to the point where the poor branches were bowed, strained and a couple even snapped under the strain of all those golden little fruits -- they didn't have to ask me twice to come pick. Otherwise all that glorious fruit will plop to the ground where it will become food and compost...

Medical officers of health in Toronto and other cities across Ontario can approve street foods "at their discretion," making sure that items can be stored, refrigerated and heated without raising food safety issues. The new regulations will specifically allow sidewalk vendors to sell salads, fruits and baked goods that have been prepared and packaged elsewhere. While the new regulations will take effect later this summer, it could take more time for local health authorities and street...

Swartz, also a private fruit breeder, hasn't found that fruit yet. Strawberries now rank with bananas and apples among the most popular fruits, with each American eating an average of 4 pounds of the berries each year. Along with a fellow Maryland professor, Swartz is trying to build a better berry a fruit tailored for gourmet markets and different tastes worldwide that also can be grown and harvested more cheaply and efficiently than current methods. He is now working with a potentially...