Entre Ríos has a Research Center and Specialized Services in Blueberries

09/10/2015

The Center for Research and Specialized Services in Blueberries has a laboratory that relieves and diagnoses diseases that affect the crop in our province and, for this, human resources were formed and trained producers. With state funding, this center benefits the Association of Cranberry Producers of Mesopotamia Argentina (Apama) with the provision of specialized services that today also reaches citrus, grapevine, pecan, rice and soybean producers, as well as state entities and various companies.

The laboratory is in Concordia and it was equipped with instruments and specific equipment, in addition to adapting the building structure of the Faculty of Food Sciences of the National University of Entre Ríos. An expert in phytopathology in blueberries was based in the province at the request of this initiative, and fellows were incorporated to work in the Laboratory of Metal Analysis in Food and Other Substrates (Lamas).

In almost seven years the diseases that affect the cultivation of blueberries in the province were relieved and diagnosed; the specific needs of the producers were investigated and weighted; a laboratory for the analysis of metals in food and other substrates was installed; A process for the development of analytical techniques and training of human resources in quality management was initiated; the producers were trained; research lines were defined that respond to the concrete needs of the arandanero sector and the results obtained were transferred to the productive sector in question.

The dynamics of work that occurred was to exchange experiences between existing laboratories to detect demands and define where to direct the research. In addition, all producers with frequencies from 30 to 40 days were visited in order to relieve the implanted varieties, monitor possible nutrient disorders, take samples for laboratory processing, and establish a permanent relationship for better training and transfer . From 2007 to 2014, 1196 field visits were made, where 350 hectares were surveyed annually and 480 and 550 samples were analyzed per year.

In this way, the confidence of the producers was achieved to such an extent that they worked jointly with each other and those who make up the project, as well as training the Lamas technical staff. Thus, the provincial priority was fully met to develop local laboratory analysis capabilities to detect diseases, perform soil and leaf analysis.

The initiative was developed with financing for Federal Projects of Productive Innovation - Productive Linkages, which are intended to promote the approach of science and technology to the specific needs of the productive sectors by supporting the competitive development of value chains in correspondence with regional development strategies. These projects are instruments of the Federal Council of Science and Technology, dependent on the Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation.

«The impact generated in the community of producers was extremely positive», with which the Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation of Entre Ríos, as provincial authority auditing the experience, successfully concluded all the stages of the project planned in its technical and financial aspects.

Highly satisfactory

In this regard, the doctor and director of Lamas, Luz Marina Zapata, said that "The coordinated work between different institutions, the productive sector and the Faculty of Food Sciences was highly satisfactory".

«Convinced of the contribution that this project made to the blueberry sector, the Laboratory participates in the development of a Research and Services Center in Pecan Nut in the Province of Entre Ríos, in order to replicate the positive experience of growing blueberry in pecan nuts. », the expert informed

And much more. «With the purpose of achieving greater growth and responding to the multiple demands of the productive sector, members of the laboratory participated in the presentation of other calls that allowed the laboratory's capabilities to be strengthened, such as the incorporation of a Doctor and two professionals, and the acquisition again highly complex equipment», he said.

Consulted on the benefits that the center offers today, Zapata said that «Currently the laboratory has the development of techniques in soil, foliar, water and phytopathological analysis; provides research, technical assistance and specialized crop services for disease detection and soil and foliar analysis, development of functional and gourmet products as industrial alternatives with high added value to regional raw materials. In addition, it has a trained human team, validated methodologies and development of a quality management system. These services are not only intended for the blueberry sector, but also for producers of citrus, grapevines, pecan nuts, rice, soybeans, state entities and water supply companies, companies that develop fertilizer and fungicide products, among others., he remarked.

Successes and challenges

Finally, the director of the Laboratory located in the School of Food Sciences of the UNER referred to the successes and challenges of this initiative. «One of the most important successes was recognizing that interdisciplinary and interinstitutional work would allow us to grow. Thus, we turned to institutions such as INTA, other universities, companies and the Association of Blueberry Producers of Argentine Mesopotamia to try to achieve the proposed objectives.He stressed.

«The challenge of this initiative today is to expand our research, service and transfer capacity to the productive sector. That is why we are incorporating human resources and trying to access cutting-edge technology that allows us to respond to the laboratory's continuous demands for specialized services."He said.

Source: Cndigital.com.ar