Location: Bio-oils Research
2024 Annual Report
Objectives
Develop cutting edge analytical standards to provide a platform for essential activities to support soybean composition improvement in the U.S., including amino acids, fatty acids, protein, oil, and other important constituents.
Approach
Using new wet chemical methods, improved near infrared calibrations will be performed and compared to calibrations by other NIR users. A wider range of soybean composition will be worked into the calibration. Soxhlet and nitrogen analyses will be performed on a large number of soybean samples and added to the current calibration.
Progress Report
Breeders throughout the United States are working together to develop new soybean varieties that are more resistant to changing climates, pests, and disease, as well as developing new traits in these materials such as improved protein and/or oil percentages. High protein and oil yields will provide farmers additional income and processors additional feedstocks. The Northern and Southern states' Uniform Soybean Tests (UST) have been in place since the early 1940s. The UST evaluates yield, disease resistance, and quality traits of public breeding lines from the southern and northern states of the United States. The UST program has been directed toward the testing of elite breeding lines that ultimately leads to the release of new varieties. Under Objective 1, ARS researchers in Peoria, Illinois, analyzed approximately 6,400 samples for protein, oil, and moisture content for the UST. ARS collated the data into a report to aid breeders in determining what evolving soybean varieties to advance. New analytical instruments (protein analyzer and NMR for oil analysis) have been added to procedures as internal checks for protein and oil to fine tune the calibrations for the high throughput instruments. Finally, every soybean sample submitted had a photo captured to return to the breeders showing the condition of the seeds at the time of analysis. These photos will allow breeders to see how their seeds compared visually to other seeds grown throughout the United States.
Accomplishments
1. Enhanced quality of U.S. soybeans through analysis of soybean breeding germplasm. The United States produces 4.16 billion bushels of soybeans annually, valued at around $61 billion. Because of the finite land area for soybean production in the United States, soybean breeders across the country are working together to develop elite varieties that have improved seed yield, protein, and oil content to help meet growing demands for feed and fuel in the United States. During these breeding efforts, analytical analyses are needed to determine what changes have taken place in the seeds. ARS researchers in Peoria, Illinois, analyzed approximately 12,600 soybean samples over the past two years and reported the results back to the respective breeders. As a result of this research, ARS has improved the quality of U.S. soybeans for oil and protein content, thus providing better products for U.S consumers.