Plant Health Initiative

Research Initiatives 2011

Ed Cagney, President, NCSRP

Read the Research Initiatives for 2010 (printer-friendly pdf format)

A Message from the NCSRP Board

At the annual meeting in March, the NCSRP Board approved the following research projects for funding in fiscal year 2011. Several of the projects are being jointly funded by the United Soybean Board and state checkoff boards.

The areas emphasized for the coming year are soybean diseases, soybean cyst nematode, the soybean aphid, genetic and biotechnology studies toward the improvement of host resistance, and technology transfer/communication programs. The Board is confident that successful completion of the individual projects will significantly advance the understanding of some of the region’s major soybean production problems.

Click here to view a larger version of the 2011 NCSRP Investment Breakout. Read more about the specific research projects for 2011»

 

Delivering Results. When we say it, we mean it

Here are just a few of our successes that benefit you:

• Enabled scientists to build a “genetic library” of more than 300,000 pieces of genetic information used by public and private labs to decode the mysteries of the soybean defense mechanisms. Checkoff funding by NCSRP and the United Soybean Board leveraged more than $5 million in federal funding for this novel research program. As a result, plant breeders can further identify genes and plant material to breed soybeans with better disease and insect resistance.
• Coordinated an effective checkoff/university response to the arrival of Asian soybean rust in the United States. Helped develop and distribute a unified set of management/response recommendations to U.S. soybean producers.
• Provided resources, through the Plant Health Initiative, to train thousands of “first detectors” to accurately identify Asian soybean rust.
• Funded the development of educational materials for soybean producers to manage Asian soybean rust.
• Created awareness of the need for more SCN-resistant soybean varieties and founded the SCN Coalition, a visionary effort to deliver those varieties, involving seed companies, universities and checkoff partners.
• Developed greenhouse and field techniques to screen soybean varieties for resistance against sudden death syndrome, white mold, and soybean aphids.
• Developed an economic threshold for the soybean aphid of 250 aphids/plant that economists estimate will save soybean producers more than $1.2 billion over the next five years.

Explore soybean checkoff with the new Soybean Checkoff Research Database Search and explore the entire soybean checkoff research program on a new website funded by the United Soybean Board. Search for projects of interest by Key Word, by Researcher, or by Checkoff fund (including NCSRP).

Your soybean checkoff. Delivering results.