Perennial Grains: Could Kernza Replace Wheat?

About this episode

Dr. Russell Sharp discusses the potential of perennial grains like kernza to replace traditional wheat, exploring their benefits and challenges.

Dr. Russell Sharp explores perennial arable crops such as kernza, perennial rice, and sorghum; discussing their advantages (reduced tillage, deeper roots, soil health), current commercial status, and practical challenges such as lower yields, pests, and multi-year management. The episode also covers breeding and gene-editing targets to improve traits, global research efforts, and the potential for growing perennials in hydroponic systems and niche value markets. https://eutrema.co.uk/ Norman Borlaug — CIMMYT Sanjaya Rajaram — CIMMYT Surinder Vasal — CIMMYT Ravi Prakash Singh — CIMMYT Neelamraju G. P. Rao — Indian Agricultural Research Institute / Vasantrao Naik MAU Gebisa Ejeta — Purdue University Ronnie Coffman — IRRI / Cornell University Dilbagh S. Athwal — Punjab Agricultural University / IRRI William L. Brown — Pioneer Hi-Bred Richard Boyles — Clemson University John Holland — USDA Agricultural Research Service Stephen Jones — Kansas State University Jeffery Dahlberg — USDA Agricultural Research Service Kulvinder Gill — University of Saskatchewan Peter Langridge — University of Adelaide Matthew Reynolds — CIMMYT Mark Sorrells — Cornell University Jorge Dubcovsky — University…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Russell Sharp

Topics covered

• perennial grains
• sustainable agriculture
• crop management
• soil health
• gene editing
• hydroponics
• agricultural research

Keywords

• kernza
• perennial rice
• sorghum
• soil health
• crop yields
• gene editing
• hydroponics
• agricultural research

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: CIMMYT, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Purdue University, IRRI, Cornell University, Punjab Agricultural University, University of Saskatchewan, University of Adelaide, University of California Davis, NIAB

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