New year, new decade, new ag breakthrough
Soybean and other legumes play a critical role in global food security and human health and are used in a wide range of products, from tofu, soy flour, meat substitutes and soy milk to soy oil-based printing ink and biodiesel, said Molly Jahn, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics. This new information about soybean's genetic makeup could lead to plants that produce more beans that contain more protein and oil, better adapt to adverse environmental conditions, or are more resistant to diseases.
As we begin a new year, and a new decade, this type of major agricultural innovation is a critical step toward achieving the important goal of closing the global productivity gap by 2050. While it's difficult to embrace a sense of urgency about the year 2050, consider this perspective: It took 15 years and a collaborative effort on the part of 18 federal, state, public and private organizations to accomplish this momentous feat in soybean bean genome sequencing.
Given that, 2050 is closer than we can imagine.