US: Study looks at lettuce grown near livestock
The Packer: Lettuce grown too close to livestock production areas can be at greater risk of pathogen contamination. That’s the conclusion of a recent study by scientists at New York’s Clarkson University, “Bioaerosol Deposition to Food Crops near Manure Application: Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment.”
For the study, which was published in the Journal of Environmental Quality, researchers sampled manure application sites at a dairy farm and their effects on lettuce grown downwind from the farm. As a result of their research, the Clarkson scientists recommend that leafy greens be grown at least 160 meters from manure application sites, and that “additional distance or delay before harvest will provide further protection of public health.”
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Find the full abstract at the Journal of Environmental Quality