Food Science Professor Amanda Lathrop recently received a $90,000 grant from the Citrus Research Board to identify a surrogate use in citrus-specific validation studies to assist with accessing, managing, and monitoring food safety risks. Lathrop will work with Fresno State Professor Steven Pao and industry partners at Wonderful Citrus, Decco Worldwide and Sunkist Growers to identify a citrus industry-specific surrogate with known chlorine resistance and citrus survival and adherence characteristics. This tool will help packinghouses demonstrate to regulatory agencies and auditors the effectiveness of current food safety practices or identify opportunities for improvement.