A new partnership, the first of its kind in more than 40 years, aims to increase soybean flower and pod retention. Suzanne Shirbroun, president of the North Central Soybean Research Program and an Iowa farmer, said the research is an investment in the future of soybean production through a regional and national checkoff partnership.
?The farmer leaders across the soybean producing regions discussed ways to utilize research dollars to make an impact on U.S. soybean farmers, and that has led toward prioritizing nationally-scoped research,? Shirbroun said. ?And we’re pretty excited about the possibilities that it holds for the U.S. soybean industry.?
The collaboration includes the Atlantic Soybean Council, the Midsouth Soybean Board, the North Central Soybean Research Program, the Southern Soybean Research Program, and the United Soybean Board.
?The researchers are from different parts of the region, and they’ll work to improve soybean flower and pod retention,? Shirbroun said. ?And what we’re hearing is there’s a potential enhancement of yields of maybe 10 to 15 percent, which would be pretty exciting. Texas Tech is the lead research facility, but they’re working in collaboration with Kansas State, the University of Missouri as well as the University of Tennessee.?
Shirbroun added that the study could increase economic returns for soybean farmers.
?These findings could result in maybe an estimated $50 per acre or about $400 million overall in economic returns to U.S. soybean farmers. The whole premise of this research is to help develop advanced breeding lines leading to new local soybean varieties with improved flower retention and helping farmers to potentially minimize yield loss.?
For more information, visit unitedsoybean.org.
