Sacramento, California - The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is pleased to announce that three projects submitted by California were selected for funding for the 2017 Specialty Crop Multi-State Program (SCMP). The SCMP is a federal grant program offered by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service.

The SCMP strengthens food safety; seeks new ways to address plant pests, disease, and other crop-specific issues; and increases marketing opportunities for fruits, vegetables, tree nuts and dried fruits to horticulture and nursery crops, including floriculture. Funding is awarded competitively to state departments of agriculture that partner with stakeholder organizations in two or more states.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture will partner with:

• The University of California's Western Institute for Food Safety & Security and Oregon State University for a food safety project to support food safety and honey bee health through veterinary education. Awarded $483,278.
• The University of California and Oregon State University for a pest and plant health project to optimize phasmarhabditis nematodes for mitigating invasive gastropods in the western United States. Awarded $770,356.
• USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Washington State University and the University of California-Davis for a pest and plant health project to better understand esca trunk disease in multiple grape-production systems. Awarded $410,985.

Additional information about the SCMP can be found on the USDA and CDFA SCMP websites. https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/Specialty_Crop_Competitiveness_Grants/SCMP.html