MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — Purdue University extension specialists are urging people to use caution when buying produce from farmers markets this summer due to the risk of possible contamination in flooded areas.

Fruit and vegetables that have been in contact with floodwaters should not be sold or eaten as fresh produce because they could be contaminated with microorganisms, said Elizabeth Maynard, an extension specialist in horticulture from Purdue's North Central campus in Westville.

Dave Clamme, an extension agent in Delaware County, agreed.
"If there is a possibility of contamination, you'd hope that the producer would be conscientious and do what's best for the group rather than act selfishly and do something to kill the farmers market because people can't trust it any more," he said.

Sprays, sanitizer and washing will not eliminate disease-causing organisms, so crops affected by flooding be disposed of or worked into the soil, extension specialists said. Crops that have been in standing rainwater rather than overflow from rivers or creeks should not be contaminated, Clamme said.

Farmer who grow fruit in flooded areas should not assume their crops are safe even if the fruit grows on trees, said Peter Hirst, an extension specialist in commercial tree fruit.

But one farmer said those who grow vegetables and fruits are protective of the crops, which have a high commercial value. The production value of Indiana's vegetable and fruit crops was more than $112 million in 2006.

"If you're producing high-value crops like fruits and vegetables, you tend to put that crop in a location that's not flood prone," said grain farmer Joe Russell, an official with the Delaware County Farm Bureau.

While urging caution, Maynard saw no cause for consumers to shun fresh produce.
"I don't think people should stay away from farmers markets," she said. "I think you should go, and if you have concerns, you should ask the producer."