From the editors of Feedstuffs
Corteva Inc., Bunge, and Chevron U.S.A. Inc., a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation, have announced a commercial collaboration to introduce proprietary winter canola hybrids that produce plant-based oil with a lower carbon profile. The goal is to increase the availability of vegetable oil feedstocks primarily for the growing domestic renewable fuels market. The companies plan to introduce the winter canola crop into the southern United States with an intention to create a new revenue opportunity for farmers with a sustainable crop rotation.
The proprietary winter canola hybrids from Corteva can be used in a double crop system, following soybeans or cotton.“We’re pleased to work with Bunge and Chevron to bring a new option in the southern U.S. that will deliver solutions for farmers to increase productivity and sustainability on their acres, as well as contribute to the need for renewable and less carbon-intensive fuel options,” said Chuck Magro, chief executive officer of Corteva Agriscience.
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$5M grant to boost AI, robotics research in chicken processing
Researchers in Arkansas and two other states will be using a $5 million grant to increase use of artificial intelligence and robotics in chicken processing to reduce waste in deboning and detect pathogens.
The grant from the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture will establish the Center for Scalable and Intelligent Automation in Poultry Processing. The center, led by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, will join researchers from five institutions in three states in efforts to adapt robotic automation to chicken meat processing.Researchers in Arkansas and two other states will be using a $5 million grant to increase use of artificial intelligence and robotics in chicken processing to reduce waste in deboning and detect pathogens.
The grant from the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture will establish the Center for Scalable and Intelligent Automation in Poultry Processing. The center, led by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, will join researchers from five institutions in three states in efforts to adapt robotic automation to chicken meat processing.
Project director Jeyam Subbiah said the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the Division of Agriculture, will receive $2.2 million from the grant primarily to focus on food safety automation for poultry processing plants. The grant is for four years.
Ideas range from animal agriculture and artificial intelligence to pet foods and feed additives. The Yield Lab Institute in partnership with the United Soybean Board has just announced its four finalists selected from nearly 80 applicants around the world to move forward to the final round. Innovations generated from these startups, entrepreneurs and research teams aim to advance soybean meal demand, storage and transportation. Brandon Day, COO of The Yield Lab Institute, is back with us today to talk about the Soy Innovation Challenge. Joining us too are the four finalists to talk about their ideas and innovation.
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Corteva Agriscience, and Bunge have made significant advancements in the development of more nutritious soybean meal for the animal feed industry, specifically suited for poultry, swine and aqua feed. The companies have a multi-year collaboration to develop and commercialize soybean varieties that can create a potential new value stream opportunity for soybean farmers while giving feed compounders a new option to reduce their use of synthetic additives, lower costs, and shrink their carbon footprint.
Through this collaboration, Corteva is leveraging its expertise in germplasm, gene editing, and traits discovery to develop soybean varieties with greater protein content, optimized amino acid profiles, and lower levels of anti-nutritional factors. Early field trial research has confirmed Corteva’s approach to boosting protein levels and significantly increasing the proportion of the key amino acids methionine and lysine in the soybean while maintaining high field and oil yields.
Athian (athian.ai), the world’s first cloud-based carbon marketplace for the livestock industry, has received a seed investment from Tyson Ventures, the venture capital arm of Tyson Foods Inc. This latest investment from Tyson Ventures, along with previous investments from Elanco Animal Health Incorporated and Newtrient LLC, will fast-track the launch of the first-of-its kind transactional carbon credit inset program for the livestock sector that will provide producers economic incentives for on-farm sustainability practices, while helping improve the sustainability of the food system and reduce climate warming.“This investment from Tyson Ventures propels the development of our carbon marketplace platform forward,” said Paul Myer, chief executive officer of Athian.Read more
ADM announced this week a joint venture agreement with Marel, a leading provider of advanced food processing solutions, to build an innovation center in the heart of the Netherlands food valley at the Wageningen Campus. Subject to regulatory approvals, the center is anticipated to open in the second half of 2024.
With customer collaboration at the core, this innovation center is designed for food manufacturers to work alongside food scientists, extrusion experts and culinary professionals to prototype, manufacture and market new alternative protein products, as well as leverage pilot plant production with novel processing techniques.
"This center is another example of our continued investment in expanding alternative protein innovation that will help meet the needs of a growing global population," said Allyson Fish, president of global alternative proteins for ADM. “Over the last year, we've expanded our European-sourced non-GM soy in Serbia, announced significant expansion of alternative protein production in the U.S., and entered into a strategic partnership with Benson Hill to scale and commercialize an innovative ultra-high protein soy protein.”"Partnering with Marel is another important step as we advance protein innovation for the EMEA region and beyond. We're committed to meeting customer needs and powering continued profitable growth as we live our purpose by supporting a secure and sustainable global food system," continued Fish.
Collaborative space designed to support innovation of next-generation, protein-forward foods from concept to commercialization.
