A southwestern Michigan vineyard and winery is the first to prove its environmental sustainability by becoming verified by the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP) under the new Grape*A*Syst program.
More than 600 Michigan farms are MAEAP-verified, but Domaine Berrien Cellars and Winery in Berrien Springs is the first vineyard to complete the comprehensive Grape*A*Syst risk assessment that pinpoints best practices in land, water, fertilizer and pesticide use.

“MAEAP is a great way to show our customers how farmers try to be environmentally sensitive,” owner Katie Maurer says.” It’s important for people to understand how important agriculture is and how important farmers are to the environment as subdivisions move closer and closer to farms.”

Michigan State University (MSU) small fruit educational coordinator Paul Jenkins led the creating of Grape*A*Syst, working with a team from MSU Extension, the Michigan Department of Agriculture, and the National Grape Cooperative.

“This effort is ultimately consumer driven and prompted by the interest of retailers such as Wal-Mart in selling products that are sustainably produced, processed and delivered,” says Thomas Davenport, National Grape Cooperative director of viticulture research. “Behind that interest are increasing numbers of consumers interested in environmentally friendly products and foods produced with worker and consumer safety in mind.”

For more on MAEAP, click here.

California table grapes are joining peanuts and popcorn at AT&T Park as part of an effort to offer healthy food choices at San Francisco Giants baseball games, the Associated Press reports. Jim Howard, vice president of the California Table Grape Commission, says pre-washed, de-stemmed Thompson seedless, red flame and other varieties have been at concession stands for about two weeks and sales are "so far, so good."

Howard says that a growing season that begins in May in the Coachella Valley and extends through the fall in Fresno County just about mimics the baseball season. He hopes to expand sales to parks across the country.

In addition, special promotions are in the works. On Aug. 2, the first 20,000 fans at AT&T Park will receive a free "Grapes from California" T-shirt designed by Giants player Pablo Sandoval, a hard-hitting phenom who has quickly become a fan favorite.

Mettle 125 ME fungicide is now registered with the California Department of Pesticide Regulation, paving the way for a full introduction in the state in 2009, where it is targeted for use on grapes. Mettle is registered in Oregon, Washington, Ohio, and Michigan and is pending in New York and other states.

Manufactured and marketed by Isagro USA, Mettle contains tetraconazole, a broad-spectrum fungicide that provides highly systemic properties resulting in improved fungicidal action. With both preventive and post-infection activity and low active ingredient content to high performance ratio, Mettle provides control of targeted diseases, including powdery mildew, at lower application rates.

Find out more at www.isagro-usa.com.