From squash to peas, Iowa State and Gerber have teamed up for the past three years to produce quality, organic food for babies.

“In the summer of 2001, Gerber baby foods contacted Iowa State about providing organic vegetables for their Tenderharvest baby food collection,” said Kathleen Delate, associate professor of horticulture and project coordinator.

“John Aselage, who works for Gerber and grew up in the Midwest, knew that the soil in the area is capable of raising great vegetables,” Delate said. “Iowa State was specifically chosen because of the coverage given on the Internet about the university having the country’s first organic professor.”

Delate was the first professor in the nation to teach organic practices.

While some time is spent in the Ames office, the vegetables are not grown in the local area.

“The vegetables are grown at a real, commercial scale organic farm located in Mount Vernon, Iowa,” Delate said. “We usually travel to the farm once a week from Ames. The farm is managed by Laura Krouss.”

Besides Krouss, one graduate student, three undergraduate students and several volunteer ISU alumni help with the responsibilities of the farm, Delate said.

“I became interested in the project because my parents were organic dairy farmers, and Iowa State has a great organic program,” said Amy Freiburger, who is helping in the department this summer.

Freiburger recently graduated from Iowa State in public service and administration in agriculture.

Jon Pieper, a horticulture student who also works under Delate, said the work at Mount Vernon mainly consists of planting, weeding, irrigating, taking counts and recording data.

While a variety of organic crops are grown at the farm, only squash, peas and green beans are used for Gerber’s baby foods.

Delate cited many reasons why organic vegetables are important and are key to quality baby food.

“Mothers are very critical organic consumers. They are very concerned with starting their babies off on the right track nutritionally,” Delate said. “They know that organic foods offer pesticide-free nutrients that are also higher in anti-oxidants.”