university of california
fy 2006 annual Report of Accomplishments and results
university of california
division of agriculture and natural resources
fy 2006
annual report of accomplishments
and results
agricultural experiment station
and cooperative extension
submitted to usda-csrees
March 29, 2007
Table of contents
SECTION A. PLANNED PROGRAMS
NATIONAL GOAL 1
NATIONAL GOAL 2
NATIONAL GOAL 3
NATIONAL GOAL 4
NATIONAL GOAL 5
SECTION B. STAKEHOLDER INPUT PROCESS
SECTION C. PROGRAM REVIEW PROCESS
SECTION D. EVALUATION OF SUCCESS OF MULTI AND JOINT ACTIVITIES
SECTION E. MULTISTATE EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
SECTION F. INTEGRATED RESEARCH AND EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
1
university of california
fy 2006 annual Report of Accomplishments and results
SECTION A. PLANNED PROGRAMS
The University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC-ANR) is the major land-grant arm of the University of California, part of a nationwide public university system "built on behalf of the people" (Abraham Lincoln's words) with Experiment Stations established to develop "useful and practical information...and to promote scientific investigations and experiments,” and Cooperative Extension programs to "aid in diffusing...useful and practical information." UC-ANR's mission, “... is to serve California through the creation, development and application of knowledge in agricultural, natural and human resources.”
UC-ANR members are based on the Berkeley, Davis and Riverside campuses, and in more than 50 regional and county offices throughout the state. The Division is composed of the UC Agricultural Experiment Station (AES) and UC Cooperative Extension (CE), supplemented by 20 Statewide Programs and projects, and supported by nine Research and ExtensionCenters.
The AES has about 700 academic researchers, most of whom also have professorial appointments representing dozens of scientific disciplines.
Cooperative Extension, the principal outreach arm of the Division, comprises academic appointees attached to campus departments as CE specialists or county offices as CE advisors; there are about 120 specialists and 235 advisors.
The following narratives report on California’s planned programs for the five National Goals represent a sample of the research and extension efforts conducted by UC faculty, CE advisors and CE specialists.
NATIONAL GOAL 1
Through research and education, empower the agricultural system with knowledge that will improve competitiveness in domestic production, processing and marketing
California’s producers of food, fiber, forage, and floral products are under considerable stress from rising costs. The inputs experiencing the largest increases are labor, insurance, and energy (electricity and fuel). This is making it very difficult to compete in the new global economy where most of California’s competitors have lower costs. Those foreign competitors who do not have lower costs are sometimes subsidized, giving them a competitive advantage. Even though California is America’s largest agricultural producer, it is a crowded urban state. This is putting incredible pressure on farmers to modify practices to accommodate the close proximity of urban neighbors. Normal farming practices that would have been acceptable to non-farm residents in the past are now objectionable. The rapid increase in population is causing the loss of productive farmland and a rapid degradation of air and water quality. Agriculture is under pressure to contribute to proposed solutions. This is manifested in stricter air emission rules and the almost complete prohibition of any form of run-off of soil, nutrients, or pesticides.
University of California AES scientists and CE academics have responded to these challenges with a large and diverse body of research and extension work to address all the pressing issues above. The following section provides a sample of projects and programs that directly address National Goal1. UC-ANR seeks to make California and U. S. farmers more competitive by introducing new technologies that enable them to adapt to the new global paradigm. Innovative research helps to reduce total inputs and reduce costs.
Plant and animal improvements are being introduced that will increase production and per unit cost while at the same time introducing natural resistance to plant pests. Resistance to pests will allow the world’s farmers to reduce their dependence on pesticides. Increased yield efficiency will reduce inputs of nitrogen and other nutrients, which will reduce unit cost and minimize environmental impacts. The University of California is a world leader in the introduction and testing of new or improved specialty crops. Many of these crops are especially useful to smaller farmers. Many are targeted to growing ethnic markets, which are a rapidly growing sector of the US marketplace.
With the assistance and leadership of UC researchers and extension academics, California is a leader in new product development and improvement. Farmers, in partnership with processors, are developing new agricultural products that will add greater diversity to diets and provide new marketing opportunities in the world marketplace.
Last year, 428 local extension programs were delivered in this program area. In addition, 35 statewide collaborative workgroups and continuing conferences composed of both AES and CE academics planned and conducted research and extension projects. UC ANR has 6 Statewide Programs that brought together AES and CE resources and personnel that addressed critical issues in the state that are included within National Goal 1. California academics received 20 patents and published 876 peer-reviewed articles and 25 extension publications that addressed Goal 1.
FY 2005-2006 Allocated Resources
Extension Federal Funds (Smith Lever 3 b&c) / ExtensionState Match / Research Federal Funds (Hatch) / ResearchState Match$3,057,678 / $3,057,678
(99.37 FTE) / $2,885,973 / $2,885,973
( 226.90 FTE)
Theme: 1.01 Adding Value to New and Old Agricultural Products
Title: Investigating Factors Important to Sink Allocation in Wheat and Tomato
Description: IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF GENES IN WHEAT ENDOSPERM WHICH AFFECT SEED CHARACTERISTICS. (i)The aim of this project is to discover genes important to in wheat endosperm characteristics. From a population of novel, short cDNAs cloned genes related to the starch synthases, seed storage protein and transcription factors and other DNA-binding proteins. The UC researchers also recovered other known starch biosynthetic enzymes. (ii) They discovered mutants affected in seed storage product accumulation from an M2 EMS mutagenized population of cv Jerome. Some lines also showed agronomically important traits including early flowering and seed set. The traits are heritable and the genetic basis for these phenotypes is being investigated. (iii) They have developed two populations of a Californian-bred and adapted wheat (Summit) with deletion (M1) and point mutations (M2). These mutant lines may harbor new seed and other important traits of interest to Californian breeders. (iv)They have initiated a metabolomic and transcriptomic project to monitor the effects of over-expression of the High Molecular weight glutenin (HMWG) gene in transgenic wheat. HMWG affect dough quality and altering expression may improve bread baking and cooking quality. However, it will be critical to thoroughly characterize such lines to show the effect of genetic manipulation if these crops are to be ever used for public consumption. GENETIC AND BIOCHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF PREVIOUSLY UNDESCRIBED STARCH SYNTHASES. Constructs for over-expression and suppression of the wheat starch synthase IV isoforms have been completed and have been transformed into wheat by Agrobacterium and particle bombardment. These lines will be characterized with respect to physico chemical changes in starch granule structure. Characterization of the SSIV gene confirms that that it is almost certainly an ancient form of starch synthase more closely related to cyanobacteria. Expression in E.coli has been uneven. IDENTIFICATION OF TRANSGENIC TOMATO PLANTS WITH INCREASED YIELD AND ALTERED PATTERNS OF CARBON ALLOCATION. They conducted a screen of over 8000 transgenic (Tg) tomato plants which over express transcription factors (TF) cloned from Arabidopsis to detect plants with altered patterns of carbon allocation. This material could be used to delineate factors which regulate and control carbon flow to the ripe tomato fruit. A difference in leaf starch-levels often indicates a change in the carbon budget of a plant. They identified 26 Transcription Factors which when over expressed significantly altered leaf starch. Yield was negatively affected in all cases. The carbohydrate profile of ripe fruit from five of these lines appears to have disparate ratios of glucose to fructose compared to controls high fructose fruit is especially desirable because it is sweeter. Plants were grown in controlled conditions in the greenhouses in 2005 and characterized further. Early flower and fruit set, yellow leaves, large plants with large leaves are among the phenotypes visible. Fruit and leaves were collected for further biochemical analysis.
Impact: Wheat is the only grain suitable for making light-baked bread and pasta. Starch and protein in the grain are the key components which determine its use as a food, its nutritional value and yield. These compounds are biodegradable, and renewable are suitable as replacements for many polymers made from petrochemicals. Their goal is to understand how these compounds are made in wheat seed and to use this knowledge in breeding programs to add value to wheat for the grower, the industrial manufacturer and the consumer. Specifically they wish to (i) increase seed yields (ii) produce high protein flours and resistant i.e. low glycemic index starch and (iii) engineer novel biopolymers competitive in current and future markets. Tomatoes are high in antioxidants and are considered to promote good health. Consumers value fruit sweetness, the processor -high soluble content, and the grower - yield. The carbohydrate content of the ripe fruit directly determines aspects of these three characteristics.
As much as 90 percent of the carbohydrates in fruit are imported from photosynthetic tissues. One approach to increasing fruit sugar is to study the factors influencing carbon allocation from the leaf to that organ. They hope this knowledge will contribute to improving fruit quality.
Funding Source: Hatch and State
Scope of Impact: State Specific
Theme: 1.01 Adding Value to New and Old Agricultural Products
Title: Potato Variety Selection Evaluation and Development
Description: Emphasis was on specialty potatoes in 2004. Of the 13 colored flesh selections grown at Tulelake in 2005, 7 were selected as potential varieties based on field evaluation. After post-harvest and tasting evaluations, this number was reduced to 5. Three of these 5 have also been selected by OregonStateUniversity for future variety development. Thus, the 2 varieties that are being developed exclusively by the University of California are POR01PG25-1 and POR02PG21-1. The first is a red flesh, red skin selection with medium to large tubers, high yield and good chipping quality, as they’ll be fresh market quality. The second is a purple skin, purple flesh selection with medium to large tubers and high yield potential.
Impact: The number of growers of specialty varieties and who are marketing through specialty channels has increased significantly, and continues to increase. Yellow flesh varieties are becoming more conventional. Colored flesh varieties are becoming more common and more known among the consuming public. More universities are following the lead of UC and devoting increasing effort to breeding, selection and development of specialty varieties. Post-harvest and consumer evaluations conducted by UC are sought by growers and marketers. The selected lines have been introduced into tissue culture as the next step towards commercialization, while commercial scale field trials are also conducted. In a broader context, nearly all varieties currently grown commercially in California have been developed or introduced through the University of California potato variety development project.
Funding Source: Hatch and State
Scope of Impact: State Specific
Theme: 1.01 Adding Value to New and Old Agricultural Products
Title: Natural Fibers and Biobased Polymers: New Structure and Functions
Description: This project aims to understand the structure of natural fibers and to investigate chemical means to create new fibrous products and polymers from natural sources. New polymers and fibrous products have been synthesized from biological precursors, converted to ultra-fine fibers via electrospinning and characterized for functional properties. Nanofibers have been generated from polysaccharides (cellulose, chitin, and their derivatives). Ultra-fine hydrogel fibers have been created with super-absorbent and volume expansion capacities. The mass and volume swellings can be regulated by changing chemistries to fiber/pore configurations. These behaviors are stimuli-responsive, i.e., triggered by pH, temperature or electric fields.
Impact: Novel fibrous materials have been generated from natural and biobased polymers such as proteins (including enzymes) and polysaccharides (including cellulose derivatives). Fibers with diameters between 100 nm and 1 m have been formed with wide ranging inter-fiber porosity. Research has shown promise of nanoporous structure inside fibers, a basis for nano- and biobased materials science from agricultural components and materials. Research in this area helps to build basis for nano-materials science and has long term implications on high value-added applications of agricultural components and materials.
Funding Source: Hatch and State
Scope of Impact: State Specific
Theme: 1.01 Adding Value to New and Old Agricultural Products
Title: Edible Coatings to Improve Food Quality and Food Safety and Minimize Packaging Cost
Description: Oxygen-barrier edible film-coatings based on whey protein have better coverage (~100%) and adhesion on the hydrophobic surface of peanuts when the nuts have had mild pre-roughening and the coating solution contains surfactants to increase compatibility of the coating with the peanut surface. Addition of beeswax, a relatively soft material compared to harder carnauba wax, increases the whey protein film moisture-barrier properties through two mechanisms: increasing the hydrophobic nature of the film and 2) reducing the amount of hydrophilic plasticizer-additive necessary to achieve desired film flexibility and stretch ability. Natural antimicrobial compounds, such as lactoferrin, lysozyme and lactoperoxidase, maintain their microorganism-inhibiting activity when added to whey protein film-coatings. Antimicrobial-containing whey protein film-coatings were shown to inhibit Penicillium commune mold and Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica and Escherichia coli O157:H7 pathogenic bacteria.
Impact: Whey-protein film-coatings have demonstrated antimicrobial and oxygen-barrier properties. Thus, they can improve food safety and quality, as they’ll reduce packaging requirements. Water-based whey-protein coatings have potential for replacing ethanol-based food coatings and synthetic plastic and paper coatings, thus reducing environmental problems. Utilizing whey protein for these applications adds value to this former waste product and enhances the economic viability of the dairy industry.
Funding Source: Hatch and State
Scope of Impact: State Specific
Theme: 1.01 Adding Value to New and Old Agricultural Products
Title: BioBased Substances and their Use in Fibrous and Textile Materials and
Products
Description: The objectives of this project are to identify and study sources of fibers and bio-based materials, to characterize their physical properties, to match sources/properties with new design prototypes. With these analyses, new textile and related design items using bio-based materials are being developed through the use of bio-based materials. The UC researchers are also assessing possibilities for ultimate marketability and public policy by analyzing agricultural producers', policy makers', and consumers' perceptions of bio-based materials. The initial activities of the project included the evaluation of a broad spectrum of natural materials and by-products for their potential use in fibrous products. The main goal is to find efficient, economically viable, and renewable replacements for petroleum-based substances. Several classes of natural products have been considered for their potential replacement of petroleum derivatives in high value-added products. These bio-based materials include polysaccharides, proteins and oils. For instance, natural oils from animals and plants are primary sources of long chain fatty acids, mostly with 12 to 24 carbons, that can bear both saturated and unsaturated bonds. Along with end group and side chain structures, the carbon length and degree of instauration determine the properties of these oils, including their softening/melting points, solubility and reactivity. Throughout human history, many of these oils have been used in foods and medicines, and their use has also expanded into other areas such as fragrances and cosmetics.The structures of oils allow their conversion and modification to derivatives that have many unexplored potentials as precursors for industrial products. Plants are among the most abundant natural sources of oils. Plant oils possess diverse structures, yet with moderate, unsaturated carbon that lies in between animal fats and marine mammal oils. There are efficient industrial processes for their generation, thus there is a potential economy of scale. The investigation on plant oils involves understanding their reactions with cellulosics, thus their potential applications as binders, coating and composite matrices.
mpact: New textile products will be developed utilizing natural plant oils (bio-based materials) derived from economically efficient processes.
Funding Source: Hatch and State
Scope of Impact: State Specific
Theme: 1.01 Adding Value to New and Old Agricultural Products
Title: A Time Series Approach to Analyzing Market and Food Demand Systems
Description: Data were collected for various California commodities - almonds, walnuts, tomatoes, alfalfa and cotton. Supply and demand elasticities for various
California commodities are estimated using supply and demand models. The
elasticities of demand are all inelastic. Producers’ response to price incentives is on the supply side. Supply and demand models are being estimated for table, raisin, and wine grapes. Severe data problems have hindered the estimation of these models. Disaggregate data, however, are being collected. And marketing channel issues involving retail, farm-gate or wholesale are being addressed.