News Stories - Page 26

Interest in preserving food can be driven by several factors, ranging from the pursuit of a hobby or recreational activity to continuing a family tradition to saving money. But does preserving food at home really save money? There are several variables involved, including the availability of raw materials such as produce and ingredients, equipment, resources and time.

A University of Georgia agribusiness major and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences 2023 Georgia Legislative Intern, Reilly Grady plans to pursue a career in agricultural policy after graduation. Each year a CAES student spends 12 weeks at the Georgia Capitol, working full-time to help legislators craft policies that will impact the state’s largest industry, agriculture.

Six alumni from the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences were recognized at the 67th annual CAES Alumni Association Awards banquet on April 29. Two Georgia agricultural leaders were honored with induction into the Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame at the event, hosted at the UGA Tate Center Grand Hall.

Another school year has come and gone, and with this passing, a new group of Bulldogs are about to gain their titles as University of Georgia alumni. The College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences will hold its convocation ceremony at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 11, at The Classic Center Theatre in downtown Athens. 

Each year, millions of people are infected by Plasmodium and exposed to an even more debilitating — and often deadly — disease: malaria. Malaria is one of the deadliest diseases known to man. More than half the world’s population is at risk of contracting the disease, and those who develop relapsing infections suffer a host of associated costs.

When Rosalba Mazzotta was in the midst of her internship at a firm in the energy industry, the fourth-year biochemical engineering major took the opportunity to brush up on some of her research. She counted the number of employees of color. She also counted the number of white employees named John. They were the same. Four.

The shape of a tomato is more important than many of us realize. While some breeding programs focus on disease resistance, higher yield or drought tolerance, University of Georgia plant geneticist Esther van der Knaap and her research team are one step closer to elucidating the protein interactions that regulate the fruit shape of tomatoes.

Near the University of Georgia Griffin campus, Jordan Knapp-Wilson walks into a peach orchard equipped with a myriad of laser-equipped scanners, targets and tripods. He’ll spend the next few hours using data collection tools with the potential to change the peach industry.

While we had an early start to the growing season, it was followed by colder conditions in March that slowed things down quite a bit. Since that time, we have seen periods of very warm weather alternating with much cooler conditions. As soil temperatures rise and fall, it has been tough for farmers to know when to plant. The big player in the weather the rest of this growing season and next winter is the rapidly developing El Niño.