Category: Academic Departments
This year, AgSci researchers released two new high-yield, disease-resistant wheat varieties, “Rosalyn” and “Bobtail,” that show resistance to drought, important to growers in the face of a changing climate.
http://www.capitalpress.com/content/mw-Bobtail-Rosalyn-052113-mug
OSU researcher Shawn Mehlenbacher continues to breed new varieties of hazelnuts that are resistant to disease. Oregon grows 99% of the nation’s hazelnut output—a $129 million industry. New plantings are increasing at a rate of 10%, or 300 new acres a year of OSU-bred varieties. OSU plans to license Wepster, the newest hazelnut variety, for a royalty of 50 cents per tree.
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2012/07/oregon_hazelnut_industry_sides.html
A five-year, $5 million grant, funded by the EPA, has enabled OSU’s National Pesticide Information Center to expand its online services. Last year the website had 1.8 million visitors, with 32 million overall hits, and the hotline handled 17,000 phone calls, offering information in over 170 languages.
http://portlandtribune.com/fgnt/36-news/221635-82155-osu-expands-pesticide-info-program
Chris Langdon, a shellfish biologist at the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station, continues his research to help protect Oregon’s $70 million oyster industry by genetically improving oysters, making them larger, tastier, and more resistant to increasingly acidic oceans. Since 1996, his work has led to growths in commercial yields of up to 35%, injecting an estimated additional $4.5 million per year into the Northwest’s seafood economy.
http://oregonprogress.oregonstate.edu/summer-2015/build-better-oyster
Michael Behrenfeld will lead a NASA-funded research project investigating phytoplankton blooms—the foundation of the marine food web. He will test the idea that warming oceans will have previously-unforeseen impacts on marine ecosystems.
A new study, led by Taal Levi (Fisheries and Wildlife), suggests that changing climate patterns may be altering the transmission of certain pathogens, including the bacterium that causes Lyme disease.
Plant pathologist Luisa Santamaria teaches plant disease prevention to agricultural workers. Since 2011, Santamaria has reached about 500 Spanish-speaking workers from 25 nurseries through a grant awarded by the USDA and NIFA, helping to keep Oregon’s $745m nursery industry healthy.
http://oregonprogress.oregonstate.edu/summer-2015/growing-educated-workforce
Regional Approaches to Climate Change is a 5-year, $20 million project funded by NIFA. John Antle is leading the Modeling component of the project, which will use climate data and crop simulation models to assess impacts and adaptation in Pacific Northwest wheat-growing systems.
Oregon State University’s fermentation science program has received a $1 million gift from a San Antonio-based beer company, making OSU the first university in the nation with a working research winery, brewery, and distillery.
Food Science and Technology students collaborated with Bridgeport Brewing Co for a special 30th anniversary release. Their resulting ale won the gold medal at the European Beer Star competition in Germany, beating over 1400 commercial entries.
http://oregonprogress.oregonstate.edu/summer-2015/student-entrepreneurs
