In this issue:

Welcome!

Spring Insect Updates

Marketing Fruit and Vegetables

Midwest Vegetable Guide - 2003

MFVGA Proceedings Available

Internet Marketing Guide Available

IPM and Sustainable Agriculture Resources

Revised Vegetable Pesticide "Plant-Back" Updates for 2003

Welcome to the 2003 Vegetable IPM Newsletter!

Bill Hutchison, Suzanne Wold, Dept. of Entomology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minn., and Jean Ciborowski, Minn. Dept. of Agriculture, St. Paul, Minn.

Welcome to the first issue of the 2003 Minnesota Vegetable IPM Newsletter. Our primary goal is to alert growers and processors of pest outbreaks, and timely management recommendations. When relevant, we also provide newsworthy topics related to biotechnology and specialty crops, nutritional benefits of fruits and vegetables, food safety, impacts of the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA), produce marketing, and articles of broad interest concerning the benefits of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and sustainable agriculture.

As in previous years, we plan to maintain the newsletter as a partnership among the University of Minnesota Extension Service (U of M), the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA), the Minnesota Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (MFVGA), and the Midwest Food Processors Assoc. (MFPA), Madison, Wisconsin. As noted last year, we received a grant from the USDA Specialty Crops legislation in 2002 to keep the newsletter funded through the end of 2003. The funding provides partial support to our production editor (Suzanne Wold) and necessary costs of printing and mailing the hard copy. The newsletter will continue to be available on the web site, or by going to the VegEdge site,at: http://www.vegedge.umn.edu All previous issues can also be viewed at: http://www.vegedge.umn.edu/mnvegnew/mnindex.htm

We trust that you will find this useful to your enterprise! We wish you the best for a productive and profitable growing season!

Co-Editors: Bill Hutchison, Department of Entomology, University of Minnesota, hutch002@tc.umn.edu
Jeanne Ciborowski, IPM Program, Minnesota Department of Agriculture, jeanne.ciborowski@state.mn.us
Production Editor: Suzanne Wold, Research Fellow, University of Minnesota, woldx018@tc.umn.edu

Disclaimer
Reference to products in this publication is not intended to be an endorsement to the exclusion of others which may have similar uses. Any person using products listed in this publication assumes full responsibility for their use in accordance with current directions of the manufacturer

Last Revised May 22, 2003.
The University, including the Minnesota Extension Service, is an equal opportunity educator and employer.©2002 Minnesota Extension Service, University of Minnesota. All rights reserved. Contact copyright@extension.umn.edu for information on reproduction or use of this material.