Above: Gottheimer with Yaman Caglar, Congressional App Challenge Winner.

NEW JERSEY — U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) met the Fifth District Congressional App Challenge winner, Yaman Caglar from Haworth, New Jersey. Yaman’s app, PlantThis!, detects the health of any plant from a picture of its leaf and checks if a plant has a disease.

Click here to try Yaman’s app PlantThis!

9,011 students registered across the country for the 2022 competition. Last year’s competition set the record for most student registrations, most apps submitted, most apps per district submitted, and most districts receiving over 20 apps. 

“The Congressional App Challenge is a wonderful tradition and I’m proud to have met our Fifth District winner, Yamal! He and his app PlantThis!, and the dozens of other contestants are a testament to the creativity and innovation of North Jersey’s youth,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5). “Every year, I’m proud to see the work of the Fifth District’s young innovators, and am excited to see what 2023’s contest brings!”

“I made this app because some people, like my grandfather, own very big crops that can quickly catch diseases. And animals like dogs can step into these kinds of diseased plants and get sick. Many people also live off of crops,” said Yaman Caglar, Congressional App Challenge winner. “Knowing whether these naturally grown foods are safe to eat is critical.”

Above: Gottheimer with Yaman Caglar, Congressional App Challenge Winner, and his family.

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