NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota
State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665
November 25, 1998
New-Generation Crops Offer Producers Opportunities, Challenges
The ability to insert genes from other sources into plants and to modify a plant's existing genes promises to produce within the next five years a new generation of alternative crops—crops that will have specific end uses. But the biotechnology revolution will require something of producers: no more business as usual. Producers willing to meet this challenge can expect to receive a premium price for the crops they grow, says a plant scientist at North Dakota State University.
"In the past, most of a farmer's management decisions, from an agronomic standpoint, have been based on production—bushels or pounds," says Duane Berglund, extension agronomist at NDSU. "In the future, producers will still need to keep an eye on quantity, but more of their focus will be on quality, quality, quality."
Berglund distinguishes between two types of genetic engineering currently underway: that aimed at adding input traits and that which enhances output traits by modifying the oil, starch and protein—any one or all three. Results already stemming from the work with input traits include corn-borer-resistant (Bt) corn, Roundup Ready soybeans and Liberty Link corn.
An example of a successful output-based effort at NDSU involves the hull-less (naked) oat variety Paul which is not a transgenic crop. A high-oil, high-energy cultivar, Paul is a nutrient-dense feedstuff that has the potential to replace a portion of the soybeans and corn used in swine diets. Berglund says the race horse market represents another opportunity for oat producers who grow Paul.
"More producers should be capitalizing on that unique cultivar," Berglund says. "Paul is an energy-dense feed, every bit as good as high-oil corn, and Paul has a good complement of amino acids superior to corn."
Humans too can benefit from output-based genetic engineering. One example is Laurate canola, which features a modified fatty acid content that improves the oil's properties for use as a food ingredient. Also, genetically modified soybeans now being marketed feature such health benefits as a lower saturated fat content and an increased protein content so that tofu and other soy products can compete better against animal protein.
Because of a technique called gene stacking, Berglund sees a future of "designer" crops that contain both input and output traits. One example might be a high-oil corn hybrid that also is high in lysine and tryptophan, is Liberty or Roundup tolerant, and has the Bt gene for corn borer and rootworm tolerance. Similar enhancements will be available for wheat and other traditional crops grown in this region.
To capitalize on output traits, producers will need to manage genetically modified crops more intensely during the growing season, and they will also need to devise highly diversified handling systems because each crop—and varieties of the same crop with different end-use characteristics—will need to be stored and delivered separately as identity-preserved (IP) products.
"Farmers' seed cost will increase because of these biotech enhancements," Berglund says. "Their handling and storage costs are going to increase too. So there has to be a payback."
Berglund expects that the added premiums will make producing specialty end-use crops economically feasible. The additional cost of preserving the identities of these crops will require an extra $12 to $15 per acre for a producer's additional labor, management and handling. So, negotiating with the end user represents another component of a producer's new management responsibilities, and in virtually all cases, that negotiation process will result in a signed contract between the producer and an oilseed crusher or a food processor. As a result, understanding all facets of contract production will be critical as well.
For producers with Internet access who are interested in the developments of genetic engineering as it relates to agriculture, Berglund suggests the following two Web addresses:
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Source: Duane Berglund (701) 231-8135
Editor: Dean Hulse (701) 231-6136