Researchers divided tomatoes into three groups. They refrigerated one group and kept a second one at room temperature. They dipped tomatoes in a third group in 122-degree water for five minutes to stimulate blanching, a process that makes tomatoes easier to peel.

Governor Terry McAuliffe issued this statement announcing that Virginia Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Todd Haymore will become the next Secretary of Commerce and Trade in Virginia.

The number of Virginia honey bee colonies declined between the winter of 2015 and the winter of 2016, but a warm winter may have helped more bees survive this year.

When the weather warms up, mosquitoes will get more active very quickly, so it’s time for horse owners to think about vaccinating their horses against mosquito-borne illnesses such as West Nile Virus (WNV) and Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE). The presence of an infected horse in the area indicates that mosquitoes carrying the EEE or WNV viruses are present, and those insects pose a threat to humans and horses. Therefore, in addition to vaccination, everyone needs to think about mosquito control to keep down populations.

Governor Terry McAuliffe and other Virginia officials are on a weeklong trade and marketing mission to attend Hannover Messe in Germany, the world's largest industrial fair, and conduct 40+ meetings there, in Belgium and the United Kingdom to bring new jobs and economic activity to the state.

Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced that the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) is accepting applications until May 20 for loan repayment grants for veterinarians willing to serve in parts of Virginia with moderate to critical shortages of food animal vets. Several rural counties in Virginia lack adequate access to veterinary services for food supply animals.

Jim Gehlsen has initiated what he calls a “grow-op,” for customers who want to come to his Evergreen Acres farm in Nokesville once or twice a week and buy organic produce direct from the farmer. The grow-op idea grew out of many discussions he had with a woman whose diet is exclusively organic foods.

Any pesticide chemical residue found on samples of various foods tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture were below levels that could pose a safety risk, according to the 2014 Pesticide Data Program Annual Summary.