This study investigates consumer preferences for a marketing system that improves integration of farmers into a local food system. Attribute-based methods are used to estimate consumer willingness to pay for a locally grown product that is bundled with a local food bank (LFB) donation. Estimates reveal that, on average, households are willing to pay 11% more for locally grown relative to nonlocal agricultural products. When the locally grown product attribute is combined with a donation to support a LFB, the premium nearly doubles. Results suggest that the proposed system could provide resources to strengthen local food distribution networks.

Over 90 percent of interstate produce movements are by truck. In recent years, concerns have been raised regarding the adequacy of motor carrier services. Reasons for these concerns include the possibility of increased costs or service erosions resulting from relaxed economic regulations, an eroding road infrastructure, increasing congestion, more stringent safety regulations, demographic trends suggesting the onset of an increasingly severe driver shortage, and declines in rail capacity devoted to produce haulage. In this study, trends in the adequacy of trucking services for trucking during the 1980s was examined employing data sets developed by the USDA regarding haulage from five growing areas to six metropolitan areas across the United States, and a case study based on over 9,000 interviews with drivers hauling Rorida produce, conducted between 1982 and 1989. The results of the study suggest that there have been no erosions in service adequacies.

We examined multistate outbreaks attributed to raw tomatoes in the United States from 1990 to 2010. We summarized the demographic and epidemiological characteristics of 15 outbreaks resulting in 1959 illnesses, 384 hospitalizations, and three deaths. Most (80%) outbreaks were reported during 2000–2010; 73% occurred May–September. Outbreaks commonly affected adult (median age 34 years) women (median 58% of outbreak cases). All outbreaks were caused by Salmonella [serotypes Newport (n = 6 outbreaks), Braenderup (n = 2), Baildon, Enteritidis, Javiana, Montevideo, Thompson, Typhimurium (n = 1 each); multiple serotypes (n = 1)]. Red, round (69% of outbreaks), Roma (23%), and grape (8%) tomatoes were implicated. Most (93%) outbreaks were associated with tomatoes served predominantly in restaurants. However, traceback investigations suggested that contamination occurred on farms, at packinghouses, or at fresh-cut processing facilities. Government agencies, academia, trade associations, and the fresh tomato industry should consider further efforts to identify interventions to reduce contamination of tomatoes during production and processing.

The purpose of this study was to predict Hispanic consumer's willingness to buy ethnic produce grown on local farms. Specifically, this result analyzes and compares the effects of Hispanic consumers' socio-economic characteristics and their expressed value judgments on their willingness to buy locally grown ethnic fruits and vegetables. The survey instrument asked respondents whether they were willing to buy ethnic produce grown on local farms, and based on this, an ordered probit model was developed to predict the willingness to buy ethnic produce grown on local farms. The model has significant explanatory power with 80% overall model prediction success. According to the survey results, overall, 80% of the Hispanic respondents were willing to buy locally grown ethnic produce, 13% of them were indifferent and only 7% of them were less willing to buy. The high positive percentage indicates the intensity of consumers' interest toward willing to buy locally grown produce. The study results indicated that growing demand for Hispanic ethnic produce provides a potential opportunity for farmers in the region.

Foodborne outbreaks from contaminated fresh produce have been increasingly recognized in many parts of the world. This reflects a convergence of increasing consumption of fresh produce, changes in production and distribution, and a growing awareness of the problem on the part of public health officials. The complex biology of pathogen contamination and survival on plant materials is beginning to be explained. Adhesion of pathogens to surfaces and internalization of pathogens limits the usefulness of conventional processing and chemical sanitizing methods in preventing transmission from contaminated produce. Better methods of preventing contamination on the farm, or during packing or processing, or use of a terminal control such as irradiation could reduce the burden of disease transmission from fresh produce. Outbreak investigations represent important opportunities to evaluate contamination at the farm level and along the farm-to-fork continuum. More complete and timely environmental assessments of these events and more research into the biology and ecology of pathogen-produce interactions are needed to identify better prevention strategies.