Iowa Farmer Today
09-30-06
Health-conscious bean varieties gain popularity
By Tim Hoskins, Iowa Farmer Today
Roy Scott knows his state, South Dakota, does not have the same market share
in soybeans to keep the state’s soybean growers competitive with the same
specialty traits that are available in Iowa and other more-traditional soybean
areas.
South Dakota farmers account for 5 percent of the soybean acres in the United
States. They are tied for eighth place with their neighbor North Dakota in the
number of soybean acres at 3.8 million acres.
However, that is where Scott, a soybean breeder at South Dakota State
University, has found his niche.
He views his job as developing traits for South Dakota soybean farmers to be
competitive with other areas.
So, he is working with the South Dakota Soybean Association and the United
Soybean Board to develop soybeans with better oil qualities.
Scott is trying to develop soybeans in the group 0-2 range with low linolenic acid.
The low-linolenic bean he is developing has 1 percent low linolenic acid.
“We are using materials developed at Iowa State University,” he says. The
genetic material was developed by Walt Fehr, an ISU soybean breeder.
Scott says it will be at least three years before the varieties will be available to
South Dakota farmers.
Beyond the low-linolenic beans, Scott is working with soybeans that have lower
saturated fat in the oil. He says the lines he is working with are from ISU and
have 7 percent saturated fats. The saturated fat content in most soybean oil is
around 15 percent.
“They are yielding well,” he says of the project.
In addition, Scott is working to increase the oleic acid content of soybean oil to
50-55 percent.
The oleic acid content of most soybean oil is 24-26 percent, he says.
A benefit of raising the oleic acid content is an extended shelf life for the oil, he
says.
The genetic material for the mid-oleic soybeans is from Joe Burton with North
Carolina State University.
In addition, Scott is trying to combine some of the genes.
For example, he is trying to combine the low-linolenic trait with the mid-oleic trait
in the same soybean variety.
That would lead to healthier soybean oil that is more stable and has a longer
shelf life, he says.
While many seed companies and other university researchers are also
conducting similar research, Scott is one of the few working on varieties geared
to planting in extreme northern soybean-growing areas.
Many Iowa farmers have grown low-linolenic soybeans under various programs
including the Vistive program with Monsanto, the Nutrim program under Pioneer
and other programs such as Asoyia and Innovative Growers.
In 2005, 100,000 acres in Iowa were contracted in Monsanto’s Vistive program.
This year, the program expanded to five new states and grew to half a million
acres. Monsanto projects the amount of Vistive acres contracted for 2007 will be
1.5-2 million acres and add four more states to the program.
Under the Pioneer Nutrium program, farmers in Western and Central Iowa
planted 35,000 acres. This past year, the acres increased to just less than
200,000 acres and expanded into Eastern Iowa, western Illinois, Ohio, Indiana
and southern Michigan.
For the 2007 growing season, the program will change names to the Treus
program and acreage will almost double and expand into Wisconsin, Missouri
and Pennsylvania, according to a Pioneer spokesperson.
Asoyia, based in Winfield, Iowa, grew 35,000 acres of low-linolenic soybeans this
year and 25,000 acres in 2005.
The company is looking to expand that acreage to 90,000 and move into central
Illinois.
Scott, despite the fact Iowa farmers are growing beans with specialty traits, said
he is not in competition with them.
He says they are different maturity groups, and it will be 2009 before any variety
is released in a low-linolenic variety.
It will be four to five years before the mid-oleic soybeans are released, he says.
Scott says his research is using molecular markers to help speed development of
the new traits for his region.
His research is fueled by a desire to keep soybean farmers in his area
competitive with other areas.