USDA funds MSU-led examination of blueberry rots

Added on 11 December 2023

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USDA funds MSU-led examination of blueberry rots

A scientist at Michigan State University has received a $3.95 million grant to research blueberry fruit rot. The funding, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), supports the development of strategies for implementing and maintaining effective management practices for this disease.

Timothy Miles, an assistant professor in the university’s Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, is leading a multi-institutional team of researchers in addressing ways to improve the quality of blueberries while limiting their loss before, during and after harvest.

The project, part of the USDA’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI), is called: “BLUE-DYNAMO: An interactive platform to deliver blueberry disease and horticultural management strategies for fruit rots.” As blueberries are sometimes referred to as “little blue dynamos” due to their health benefits, the research team chose this as the title for the project, turning it into an acronym that stands for “Building the Latest Understanding in Extension — Disease Management that Yields New and Meaningful Outputs.”