A database on honeybees may help solve the mystery as to why they are disappearing.
Researchers at U.C. Riverside are creating a database consolidating nearly 1-million specimen records from 10 bee collections across the United States.
The project is expected to take three years and is funded by the national science foundation. Honeybees pollinate one-third of the crops that provide our nation's food supply.
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Sacramento leads the nation in direct farm-to-consumer sales.
California Ag Net reports a study done by U.C. Davis found that 14-percent of Sacramento-area farms marketed directly to consumers, compared to just nine percent of farmers nationally.
The research was part of a larger study on food sales. It found that farms in the Sacramento region that marketed directly to consumers averaged a nearly 20-thousand dollar a year income for that marketing channel alone.
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Many of the olive oils lining supermarket shelves are not the top-grade extra-virgin oils their labels proclaim.
Researchers at U.C. Davis analyzed popular brands and found 69-percent of imported oils and 10-percent of domestic oils sampled did not meet the international standards that define the extra-virgin title.
The results come as the U.S.D.A. prepares to adopt scientifically verifiable standards for labels such as "virgin" or "extra virgin," in an effort to clear up concerns about labeling accuracy. The standards will be put in place in October, and are similar to those used by the International Olive Council.