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FARMS Leadership Advanced 2017-2018: Food Safety | December 12, 2017, UCCE Kern County
University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Kern County hosted a group of high school students for a one-day learning and discussion forum on major food safety issues. The students are part of the Center for Land-Based Learning FARMS (Farming, Agriculture, and Resource Management for Sustainability) Leadership Program. This problem-based learning program provides students with the opportunity to meet with industry to research, collect data, develop critical thinking and communication skills to solve an Agricultural issue. Students were posed with this question for the 2017-18 year to analyze: “How can agriculture assure the consumer that their food is safe?”
Michele Jay-Russell joined Julie Finzel, Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor, UCCE Kern County, by webinar to present “What’s on your Plate? Keeping Food Safe from Farm to Fork.” Other presentations ranged from pesticide safety to genetically engineered crops and animals to consumer food safety. The students will also participate in Field Days during the upcoming year. Their schedule can be found here.
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In order to support livestock producers facing new regulations, Michael Payne, Dairy Outreach Coordinator, with the help of Greg Wlasiuk, WIFSS Curriculum Designer, recently completed the development of a series of short informational videos for dairy producers. The goal of this video series is to raise awareness about the facts around antibiotic resistance and describes how to implement sustainable livestock medication practices. Benefits to updating farm protocols potentially include reducing medication costs and preserving treatment effectiveness on the farm. This video series is available online. Read complete story.
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Produce Safety Alliance Grower Training | December 7, 2017, Exeter, CA
Michele Jay-Russell served as a certified co-trainer with Trevor Suslow, Extension Research Specialist and Director of the UC Postharvest Center , to deliver the PSA Grower Training Curriculum for citrus industry growers, food safety professionals, packers and handlers. The training was sponsored by Sunkist, and included approximately 100 participants. Upcoming grower training courses can be found here.
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Visiting Professor | December 2017 - November 2018
WIFSS welcomes Professor Wang Jin from Jiangsu Vocational College of Agriculture and Forestry. Professor Wang teaches courses in College English, Listening and Speaking English, and English Interpretation at Jiangsu. Wang’s research focuses on English technical communication and intercultural communication. She has several publications including, “From the view of A Dream in Red Mansions to understand the Subjectivity of Translation Researchers.”
While on board at WIFSS for a one-yr sabbatical Wang will assist with course development, participate in translation of relevant information for One Health Center for Food Safety program, provide translation for vocational colleges from China, and develop a Cooperation of Agreement between UC Davis and Jiangsu Vocational College of Agriculture and Forestry.
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Professor Wang Jin (Center) is welcomed by WIFSS staff Emily Kunz, Bennie Osburn, Heather Johnson, and Robert Pattison
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Visiting Students
Three graduate students (Master’s) from the College of Life Science of Ningxia University of China are visiting the WIFSS laboratory. The objective of their visit to UC Davis was to learn about food-producing animal agriculture and food safety in California. They are interested in WIFSS food safety research programs related to antimicrobial resistance. After completion of laboratory safety training, the students participate in laboratory research of detection, isolation and identification of foodborne bacteria from agricultural and food samples. Specifically, the students are working on isolation E. coli, Enterococcus, Campylobacter, and Salmonella from dairy samples; testing bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics; and preparation genomic DNA libraries in order to identify resistomes by sequencing at the UC Davis Genome Center. The students will also visit other departments and conduct literature studies during their short-term visit.
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Students (left to right) are : Xixi Wu; Jia Luo; Wen Zhang
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