NC State University: CALS: NCARS: Plan of Work




NORTH CAROLINA AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE PLAN OF WORK 2000 Annual Report of Accomplishments and Results North Carolina Agricultural Research Service College of Agriculture and Life Sciences North Carolina State University Campus Box 7643 Raleigh, North Carolina 27695 919-515-2717 http://www.cals.ncsu.edu/research/ INTRODUCTION AND CERTIFICATION North Carolina State University is North Carolina's 1862 land-grant university and the only Research I land-grant institution in the state. The North Carolina Agricultural Research Service (NCARS) within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences serves not only as the college's agricultural, environmental and biological sciences research arm but also provides the research foundation in these areas for educational activities within academics and extension. NCARS is the principal state agency for research in agriculture, life sciences, forestry, and family and consumer sciences. Its research projects involve NC State University's colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Forest Resources, Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Engineering, and Veterinary Medicine and the School of Human Environmental Sciences at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. Within the college, NCARS coordinates research in 18 departments and works in partnership with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service and Academic Programs. The mission of NCARS is to develop the knowledge and technology needed to: improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of industries in agriculture and life sciences; conserve and improve the state's natural resources and environment; improve the health, well-being and quality of life of all citizens of North Carolina. In FY2000, NCARS personnel include 300 research faculty accounting for approximately 160 full-time scientist equivalents, most on shared appointments with academics or extension. Working with these faculty are over 250 graduate students, researchers and research assistants; 450 laboratory and field technicians and 120 clerical staff. These faculty and support personnel conduct basic and applied research in over 550 projects to support more than 70 commodities as well as many related agribusinesses and life science industries. The following Plan of Work Annual Report highlights accomplishments and impacts of research conducted through the North Carolina Agricultural Research Service and emphasizes the high priority areas in agriculture and life sciences for North Carolina now and in the near future. Johnny C. Wynne, Director NC Agricultural Research Service Campus Box 7643 North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC 27695 INDEX SECTION PAGE I. Planned Programs 1 A. An agricultural system that is highly competitive in the global economy 1 1. Technologically integrated and sustainable crop and livestock production systems 1 a. Crop production systems 1 b. Animal production systems 8 c. Biological systems 11 2. Plant and animal germplasm, genetic resources and conservation, and plant improvement 15 a. Crop improvement 15 b. Animal improvement 18 3. Plant protection strategies 20 a. Forest and horticultural crop protection 20 b. Agronomic crop protection 21 4. Animal diseases and animal health 24 5. Farm business management, economics and marketing 26 6. Product development 31 B. A safe and secure food and fiber system 33 1. Food and fiber processing, safety, and quality 33 C. A healthy, well-nourished population 38 1. Human nutrition and human health 38 D. An agricultural system which protects natural resources and the environment 41 1. Soil, water and air quality conservation and management 41 2. Forest, pasture, wildlife and fish resource conservation and management 50 E. Enhanced economic opportunity and quality of life for Americans 55 1. Individual, family and community economic development and quality of life 55 II. Research Stakeholder Input Process 58 III. Program Review Process 59 IV. Evaluation of the Success of Multi and Joint Activities 59 V. Integrated Research and Extension Activities 60 I. PLANNED PROGRAMS National Goal 1: An Agricultural System That is Highly Competitive in the Global Economy Program Area 1: Technologically Integrated and Sustainable Crop and Livestock Production Systems Subprogram Area 1a: Crop Production Systems Overview Research activities in this program area have concentrated on development of improved pre- and postharvest handling techniques; production management systems; and acceptability/quality of field, fruit and vegetable crops. In addition improved production management systems for ornamental and floricultural crops, turfgrass, and landscape plants to enhance rural and urban environments. Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. Biological control strategies for silver whitefly in greenhouse production of tomatoes have been evaluated and demonstrated to be successful. Successful protocols for organic production of greenhouse tomatoes have been developed and production was comparable to conventional practices. A web site http:www.ces.ncsu.edu/greenhouse_veg/ has been developed to distribute greenhouse vegetable production information in general and biocontrol and organic production in particular. Five strategies for transition from conventional to organic farming systems were initiated in 2000 at the Center for Environmental Farming Systems to determine the most feasible and economical method of making this transition. Optimal cultural practices for the woodland botanical and highly valued medicinal herb goldenseal have been developed. This is a alternative crop for western NC growers. A high speed HPLC assay was developed for identifying the active ingredients(hydrostine and berberine) in goldenseal. This will assist in identifying which cultural practices are most conducive to producing high levels of these ingredients. A new soybean variety "Satellite" which has low levels of the undesirable polyunsaturated fatty acid linolenic acid has been developed. This variety produces a cooking and salad oil comparable in quality to canola. Acreage of blackberries has increased 20% over the past 5 years as the result of information provided by NCSU personnel in response to the current unlimited demand for this fruit. The Specialty Crops Program identified a specialty melon "Sprite" which was successfully commercially produced and marketed in 2000. As the result of this success acreage for 2001 will increase to 38 versus the 2 acres grown in 2000. The peanut variety NC 12C released by NCSU was the most commonly grown seed peanut in NC in 2000 with approximately 28% of the total certified peanut seed acreage planted to this variety. Studies conducted to determine nitrate leaching on several NC golf courses indicated that the potential for nitrate leaching from properly managed golf turf is not of a magnitude to cause alarm. The PourThru Nutritional Monitoring Program to determine the nutritional status of floricultural crops has been developed and refined. This is a fast and convenient method of grower in house testing of pH and EC of growing media. An aluminum amphorous mineral, allophane, has been identified as a potential component to include in soilless media, which when charged with phosphorous could supply the entire amount of phosphorous needed to grow a floriculture greenhouse crop thereby eliminating the need for post plant applications of phosphorous which would reduce phosphorous levels in irrigation effluent. Successful interspecific hybridization between Buddleia davidii(butterfly bush) and B. lindleyana was accomplished resulting in a unique hybrid with distinct ornamental attributes. Rye varieties used as cover crops in sustainable agricultural systems were found to vary in their ability to suppress weeds. Progress is being made in utilizing wild peanut species for incorporation of disease and insect resistance in peanuts which will lead to reduced use of fungicides and insecticides in this crop. Linkage between molecular markers and genes conferring root knot nematode resistance; southern corn root worm; leafhopper; and several components of early leaf spot resistance have been identified. The establishment, production and utilization of native grasses especially switchgrass and gamagrass, are being determined so these species can be more readily utilized to reduce stream and river pollution. Reduce tillage systems for peanuts are as successful as conventional tillage on coarse textured soils but are less consistent on fine textured soils. Small grain management systems developed to incorporate resistant wheat varieties and seed treatments were utilized in 2000 and helped reduce hessian fly infestation in a cost effective manner. High density apple orchard management has been specifically adapted and developed for southeastern environmental conditions which has enabled NC growers to adopt these systems more readily. Significant progress has been made in defining selection criteria for heat tolerance in tomatoes. The USD/ARS potato selection BO 564-8 yields and chips as well as the variety "Atlantic" the chipping variety of choice in NC. This clone which may be released soon does not suffer from internal heat necrosis, a major defect of Atlantic. Release of improved "Beauregard" sweetpotato clones has resulted in a dramatic improvement over the conventional "Beauregard" clone and the improved materials have been widely accepted by growers allowing them to improve productivity and quality. Key Theme - Diversified/Alternative Agriculture North Carolina farmers need new, competitive agricultural opportunities if they and the rural areas they support are to be economically healthy. The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University joined forces with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to create the North Carolina Specialty Crops Program. The program is designed to accelerate identification and development of new commodities and value-added products. Researchers determine how best to grow new crops under North Carolina conditions, while a market analysis is done to determine the size and location of a market for a crop. If a crop shows potential in the research field and test markets, extension faculty work with farmers to begin small-scale on-farm production. Marketing of crops from these on-farm trials is coordinated by the program's marketing specialist. If these efforts are successful, a grower education campaign is launched on cultivation and marketing of the crop. Impact - A growers association has been formed through the program and is shipping produce under a Carolina Specialities label. Commercial acreage of seedless red watermelon, leaf lettuce and Sprite melons has been increased as a result of program efforts. Research is being conducted on Oriental melons, high-fructose grape tomatoes, seedless yellow and orange watermelons, pyrethrum (for insecticide production), a super-hot industrial pepper, red kernel sweet corn, vegetable soybeans, Hispanic vegetables, Boniato sweet potatoes, blackberries and off-season greenhouse blueberries and strawberries. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and Smith-Lever Scope of Impact - State Key Theme - Diversified/Alternative Agriculture During the 1980s the use of medicinal herbs increased dramatically, aided by clinical trials that verified the efficacy of many traditional herbal medicines. Today, the herbal/nutritional supplement market is valued at about $2 billion nationwide and $15 billion worldwide with an annual increase of 15%. The vast majority of medicinal plants are either collected from wild populations, or grown outside the United States. The growth and collection of medicinal herbs is an important contributor to rural incomes in many areas, including Western NC. The demand generated by this market has brought with it the problem of over-harvesting and the loss of native populations. Uncontrolled harvesting in the wild threatens the diversity and even the existence of these native plants. Many small farmers produce herbs for the medicinal and personal care products industries. Significantly, these same growers frequently farm burley tobacco and are justifiably concerned about the future of tobacco production in light of the Tobacco Settlement and recent reductions in quota levels. This has resulted in strong interest in further agricultural diversification. A program has begun that will develop sustainable propagation and production methods for medicinal plant species native to NC. During 2000 we developed a high speed HPLC assay for the active ingredients in goldenseal; began a systematic examination of extraction procedures for goldenseal; began methods development for analysis of black cohosh; and continued to monitor and collect data from field and forested plots of medicinal herbs. Preliminary results indicate that the use of rhizomes differing in size and lateral bud number in a system of sustainable propagation/production of goldenseal results in good stand establishment regardless of treatment. All treatments appeared healthy, with few disease symptoms. Impact - This work supports an existing network of small Western NC farmers who produce medicinal herbs to supplement their incomes. Sustainable production methods will permit these growers and new growers to increase their production while easing the threat to wild populations threatened by harvesting from the wild. Source of Funds - Hatch Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - GIS/GPS Ground- and surface-water nitrogen (N) contamination from southeastern Coastal Plain agriculture is a regulatory and social issues threatening regional crop production. Nitrogen fertility has traditionally been managed on a whole-field basis, which does not take into account soil and crop spatial variability that affects crop N demand and N-use efficiency. Scientists in the Crop Science Department at North Carolina State University have developed techniques using aerial color-infrared photography to determine optimum timing and rates of N fertilization of winter wheat. Similar techniques are being developed for corn. Scientists in the Department of Soil Science are assessing other remote sensing techniques to characterize the spatial variability of soil characteristics which affect crop production and N-use efficiency. Impact - Tailoring site-specific N fertilization of row crops to spatially variable crop status, soil properties, and projections of potential yield has the potential to optimize N-use efficiency and improve crop yield and quality. This spells greater profitability for producers. At the same time, optimizing N-use efficiency will minimize the amount of excess N that can pollute ground and surface waters. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Innovative Farming Techniques Making weed management decisions that are environmentally and economically sound is a complex task. Most fields in the South are infested with many different weed species, which vary in their ability to cause crop losses and harvest difficulties. Weed populations that are left uncontrolled can result in near total crop losses. Consequently, herbicides are used on over 96 percent of corn, soybean, peanut and cotton acreage in the South, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Nationally, herbicides accounted for 90 percent of all pesticides applied in 1996 to soybeans, corn and cotton. From both an economic and environmental perspective, it is essential that herbicides only be applied when their use is clearly justified. And in cases where a herbicide is necessary, selection of the appropriate chemical and rate for the mixture of weeds in the field is critical. Use of an inappropriate herbicide or the wrong rate may be ineffective, leading to additional treatments to correct the initial mistake, or result in yield losses or chemicals being released into the environment unnecessarily. . Scientists at North Carolina State University have developed a computerized weed management decision aid, named HADSS, to assist extension personnel, consultants and growers in evaluating the situation in each field and determining if a herbicide application is necessary, and if so, the appropriate chemical and rate to apply. HADSS allows users to compare different weed control methods and evaluate the potential benefits of shifting to crop cultivars or hybrids that have been genetically engineered for tolerance to specific herbicides. It also maintains a field history of herbicide applications, so that the program can warn users if overuse of herbicides with a particular mode of action may increase the risk of developing a weed population that is resistant to that chemical. It provides a direct link to current herbicide label information over the World Wide Web. In the future, it will import and export field information from a program named Pocket HERB that has been developed to run on the new Windows CE palmtop computers. These programs are based on many years of field experience by weed scientists in North Carolina and across the South. Thanks to funding from USDA, researchers at North Carolina State University are currently cooperating with weed scientists across the South to develop versions of HADSS that have been customized to fit conditions and management practices in each state. HADSS has been field tested in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas. These trials gave a clear indication that HADSS can duplicate the expertise of university weed scientists in most situations. HADSS is currently available for North Carolina (corn, soybean, peanut), Georgia (soybean and peanut), and Mississippi (soybean). As additional field validations are complete, HADSS will be available to extension agents, growers, consultants and other decision makers across the South. Impact - With millions of acres of corn, cotton, soybeans and peanuts planted in the South each year, the potential impact of HADSS is enormous. HADSS captures the expertise of weed scientists across the South, organizes their knowledge into an easily usable format, and provides a framework for making results of research on new products quickly available to decision makers. At a time when resources are stretched to the limit, the programs can help extension specialists and agents do their jobs more effectively. The use of HADSS will support and encourage making herbicide decisions based on field- and site-specific conditions and applying appropriate levels and types of herbicides. Potentially, the program can reduce herbicide applications and improve the economic status of growers across the South. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Organic Agriculture The Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS) is dedicated to developing farming systems that are environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable. Established in 1994 near Goldsboro, NC, the Center has over 2,000 acres (1,000 cleared). This unique Center is a partnership among NCSU, NC Agriculture and Technical State University, NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, non-governmental organizations, and other state and federal agencies, farmers and citizens. Citizens of NC and other states are currently faced with landscape-scale issues like ground and surface water contamination, soil erosion, declining soil quality, loss of wildlife habitat, and declining rural communities. Only long-term, large-scale interdisciplinary systems research can adequately address these issues. Interdisciplinary research is being aimed at developing profitable agricultural systems that also protect our environment and enhance our rural communities. . Two major research efforts have been initiated at CEFS. The first is a long-term experiment comparing five very diverse agricultural systems including a best management practice system, organic system, integrated animal/crop system, forest wood-lot system, and a successional ecosystem. Systems will be compared on many integrating factors including energy and nutrient flows within the plant-soil system, biological-based shifts, and economic performance evaluations. Data collection will cover the broad range of factors critical in agricultural systems, and will facilitate the study of large scale issues like impacts on farmers and communities. Many faculty and graduate students are involved in this interdisciplinary effort. . The second experiment is to investigate various strategies, from a biological and economic systems perspective, for making the transition from a conventional to an organic agricultural production system. This experiment will take place within the context of the larger systems experiment described above. It has been documented that when growers transition from conventional to organic production systems, there is a period of suppressed yields followed by a return to yields near or equal to conventional production. This transition effect has been attributed in part to time required for necessary changes in chemical, physical, and biological properties of soil which enhance nutrient cycling, plant growth and development, and the biological pest control properties of the system. Six treatments, representing various strategies for transition and appropriate controls, will be monitored for energy and nutrient flows within the plant-soil system, soil quality indices including a range of soil physical, chemical, and microbiological properties, micro and macro fauna, weed, disease, and insect dynamics, overall productivity, and economic performance. Impact - Long-term and transitional studies on organic systems will provide critical information related to biological, agricultural, economic and sociological aspects of organic production under NC conditions. Also, information on specific cultural practices may be applicable to other low-input, sustainable agricultural systems. Sources of Funds - Hatch, Smith-Lever, NRI, State Scope of Impact - State Key Theme - Ornamental/Green Agriculture Nursery/floriculture crops have been the fastest growing agricultural sector in NC over the last fifteen years. The wholesale value of these crops exceeded $973 million in 1999 - surpassing tobacco as the number one crop commodity. In addition to economic impact, these crops play a vital role in enhancing and protecting our environment as natural areas continue to be lost to expanding development and urbanization. Research is continuing to develop improved crops with greater adaptability, pest resistance, and commercial potential to improve the competitiveness and profitability of this industry and improve environmental quality of our planet. Application of pesticides on landscape plants can be complicated due to the proximity to people, adherence to reentry restrictions, and concerns about the environment. As such, there is a need for new approaches to pest control in the landscape. An important component of integrated pest management is the development and use of plants with greater natural resistance to insect pests and the development of new pesticides with minimal environmental impacts. Plants for these areas also need to be adaptable to extreme environmental stresses including high temperatures, drought, and periodic inundation. . This research has addressed diverse aspects of physiology, production, and improvement of nursery crops. Accomplishments have included the identification of superior germplasm, development of more efficient production techniques, and improved understanding of physiological and biochemical mechanisms involved in greater tolerance to environmental stresses and resistance to problematic diseases and insects. This information has provided a basis for continuing work on developing improved hybrids with greater adaptability, tolerance to environmental stresses, and improved aesthetics. Impact - Identification and development of superior plants and germplasm with greater adaptability and pest resistance will potentially result in reduced need for pesticides, improved environmental quality, greater plant growth and survival, and ultimately greater value for both producers and consumers. For example, white-barked birch trees with resistance to bronze birch borer could have national sales of 2-4 million dollars annually, would reduce the need for pesticides and decrease production costs, and would provide superior trees for more sustainable landscapes. Source of Funds - Hatch and State Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Plant Production Efficiency Studies have examined ultra-narrow-row cotton (UNRC) as a possible fit in North Carolina. The system that has been assessed, entails growing plants in rows that are 10 inches or less apart, for physiological, entomological, and productivity characteristics. In many areas of the state UNRC out performs wide row cotton (30 -40 inches) in fiber yielding ability. Also, an earlier ground coverage occurs by the UNRC than conventional row widths, which translates into greater light capture by the plants. This earlier canopy coverage results in a greater rate of photosynthesis (production of sugars) per unit ground area due to greater light capture by the cotton plants. The greater and earlier groung coverage also indicates that UNRC will be more competitive with weeds, because it can more quickly shade the ground and provides a poorer growth environment for the weeds than found in more widely spaced plant stands. Insect damage does not appear to be greatly different between the two production practices. Impact - The cotton growers of the state need solid, unbiased information concerning UNRC and it=s potential in NC environments. Much of the early information available concerning UNRC was industry driven and, as a result, could be biased. Current information is valuable to growers who are contemplating a switch from wide row to UNRC. The cost to the grower would be unacceptable if the UNRC system did not perform as expected, since the equipment needs are different for the two management systems. As it stands, UNRC looks promising for some NC regions. It has lower start-up investment and lower overall production costs. The type of harvester used for UNRC is less expensive than the spindle picker used for wide-row production. However, if a grower has a good spindle picker that is paid for, it may not be a good choice to change. One potential draw-back of UNRC is the lower fiber quality due to bark and leaf matter collected with the fiber during harvesting. The result is a lower price per pound of fiber. This problem should be considered prior to any major switch in production practices. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Precision Agriculture Crops in NC are generally produced on fields that have a high degree of variability in soils (both their chemical and physical properties), topography, soil moisture, residual soil nutrients and crop residues. Precision agriculture technology can enable management of fields to account for this variability by using variable-rate control of inputs in order to optimize yields and profits and reduce environmental impacts. Technology developed has advanced rapidly, but implementation and assessment of environmental and economic impacts are not keeping pace. Precision agriculture technologies have been developed for crop production, are gaining acceptance, and are emerging as valuable tools for field management of inputs to help achieve yield potentials. Yield monitors for small grains and cotton have been developed and are being used by producers to record yields. Variable-rate control technology for chemical and seed inputs has been developed, but has not been widely utilized in NC. Soil mapping of soil, ph and nutrients are being generated from grid soil sampling, but need to use smart sampling based on variability. Impact - Producers of corn and cotton in NC can improve efficiency of inputs, reach yield potential and reduce environmental impacts by using precision agriculture technology and management. Cotton yield monitors have been shown to be 95+%, and corn yield monitors 97%, accurate when averaged over a field. With current yield potential and soil maps, producers can effectively manage field variability and have efficient production. Economic and environmental impacts can be assessed through further research. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - State Key Theme - Apiculture Introduced pests, pesticides, and various diseases have significantly reduced the number of honey bee colonies in North Carolina and across the United States. Approximately one third of the managed honey bee colonies and more than 90 percent of feral colonies across the country have been killed in the last 12 years. This reduction in honey bee numbers has significant impact on the availability of insects to pollinate crops that make up as much as a third of the typical American diet. The loss of bee colonies has reduced potential income to beekeepers (based on sales of honey and charges for bee pollination of crops) and increased the cost of managing honey bee colonies due to the increased need for in-hive use of pesticides and medications to control bee pests and diseases. Significant progress has been made in understanding the biology and control of bee pests. Management procedures have been developed in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University that at least stabilize existing honey bee populations and prevent additional permanent losses. At the same time, research clearly demonstrates that a device called a "pollen trap" can be used by beekeepers to reduce significantly non-target pesticide kill of honey bees that are located near apple orchards in North Carolina. Impact - The use of pollen traps near North Carolina apple orchards is expected to save approximately 100 bee colonies and reduce damage to another 500 colonies annually. The value of this reduction in bee kill in increased honey production and reduced management cost should be at least $100,000 per year. The value of bee management procedures designed to protect bees from pests is as yet undetermined; however, there will be an economic benefit from these measures as well as an increase in optimism among beekeepers as the recent downward trend in bee numbers is reversed. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $830,623 $10,826,383 $1,188,248 $1,046,635 22.6 35.8 128.4 33.2 Subprogram Area 1b: Animal Production Systems Overview Research was conducted to improve animal productive efficiency in an environmentally sustainable manner by investigating basic physiological processes of animals, studying relationships among grazing animals, forages, and the environment, determining the efficiency and profitability of animal production systems, and examining the impact of animal production systems on animal products used by humans and on consumer acceptance of animal products. Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. Research in the application of biotechnology in beef cattle documented changes in the expression of genes that control fetal growth, resulting in the large offspring syndrome (LOS) in bovine embryos fertilized and cultured in vitro. Control of the expression of these genes holds promise to enhance the adoption of assisted reproductive technologies in the beef cattle industry. The microbial population in the rumen of ruminant animals and the products they produce were altered by controlling biomass inputs during in vivo experiments for the purpose of maximizing nutrient use by the animal and minimizing nutrient excretion and waste in the form of ammonia and methane. Dairy heifer mortality rates were cut in half in research that investigated relationships among nutritional levels, growth rates and body size. The results documented that appropriate nutritional regimes reduced mortality rates and resulted in heifers being incorporated into the milking herd at an earlier age. Reduction in the excretion of nitrogen in the form of urinary urea can be achieved in growing cattle with growth-promoting implants if the rations fed to these cattle are calculated and balanced using metabolic protein rather than crude protein requirements without compromising weight gains or fat-to-lean gain ratios. Research using pigs has demonstrated that feeding degermed, dehulled corn can substantially reduce manure production without negative effects on animal performance by increasing the digestibility of corn while decreasing the high-fiber components of corn that is part of the diet. Long-term studies in pigs has demonstrated that excretion of zinc and copper in swine waste can be reduced by 30 to 50% as a result of reducing trace mineral supplementation without a detrimental impact of the growth and health of the pigs. Alternative animal houses that separate urine and feces in a continuous mode resulting in a dry fecal stream reduced ammonia and odor emissions. Key Theme - Animal Production Efficiency The US swine industry (including NC producers) have adopted production practices on a large scale which involve early-weaning of piglets. The younger and lighter piglets in this scheme exhibit reduced survival rates and slowed growth. Among the many stressors impacting these pigs is the abrupt switch from liquid feed (mother's milk) to dry feed. Test feeding systems have been developed which supply feed to the newly-weaned pigs in liquid form (i.e., manufactured liquid diets). These systems are designed for ease of operation and cleaning so they may be easily adopted on a large commercial scale. Impact - Superior growth performance has been documented of piglets reared in this system. Indeed, pigs reared with this new technology grow even faster than sow-fed siblings. Recently it has been documented that the improved growth is maintained to market weight and it is anticipated that significant economic returns may be achieved when this system is employed, provided diet ingredient costs are managed properly. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Grazing To support the emerging NC meat goat industry, work began on the evaluation of forages and fodder trees suitable for meat goats and adapted to our environmental conditions and on the use of locally-available byproduct feeds for goats fed forage-based diets. Additional research is exploring non-pharmaceutical approaches to treating goats against gastrointestinal parasites. In cooperation with the NCDA marketing specialist, graded goat sales have been implemented in certain areas of the state to supplement weekly auction market sales, and meat goat shows are now an integral part of the NC State Fair in Raleigh and the Mountain State Fair in Asheville. In addition, educational programs targeting CES agents, commodity associations and other agricultural professionals have been implemented with the objective that meat goat producers will select, adopt and successfully implement best management practices that will achieve business, individual, and family goals related to profitability and quality of life. Impact - Producers in NC sold about 180,000 goats for meat in 2000, generating receipts of over 7.5 million dollars. In addition, the NC meat goat industry breeding stock inventory totals about 122,000 animals located in 3,000 farms, representing a capital of over 12 million dollars. It is anticipated that the meat goat inventory will grow by 8-10% in 2000. The number of sheep and goat producers reporting increased awareness and knowledge of best management production practices were 1479 in 1999, and 1625 in 1998. These figures represent over a third of the number of NC meat goats producers, estimated at 3,000. In addition, the number of sheep and goat producers adopting practices that optimized income were 565 in 1999 and 725 in 1998. These adopted practices and procedures resulted in a total economic impact of $239,750 in 1998 and $198,234 in 1999. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - State Key Theme - Aquaculture Commercial culture of flounder, widely and profitably practiced in Europe and Japan, has not yet been attempted in the United States. Southern flounder has great promise for aquaculture, with a high market value and unique ability to grow well in fresh water. Wholesale prices for fresh flounder range from $5-$10 per pound so the economic potential for cultured flounder is promising. Because their range of distribution extends from North Carolina along the Atlantic and Gulf coast into Mexico, the potential for culture in a large geographic area exists. The goal is to establish practical culture methods and to define nutritionally balanced diets for the mass-rearing of weaned fingerlings and the commercial-scale production of fish. Successful production of commercial-scale quantities of weaned fingerlings has been achieved. Research has defined the dietary protein requirements for juvenile Southern and summer flounder as well as the fatty acid requirements of larvae. These accomplishments are fundamental steps in the development of nutritionally complete diets that will maximize the economic viability of flounder farming. Growth studies of fish cultured at different salinities show that Southern flounder can be raised in fresh water beginning at a very early age without affecting their survival or growth rate. Impact - The establishment of Southern flounder as a new, high-value aquaculture species represents the first introduction of a fish with a worldwide market appeal and the capability of being cultured over a large geographic area. The potential for flounder culture is equal or superior to that of the hybrid striped bass industry, which has enjoyed a growth rate of 20 percent per year for the past 10 years and the achievement of annual value of more than $3.5 million to North Carolina alone. The economic potential of flounder farming in the United States could reach five-to-10 times the value of the hybrid striped bass industry within the next 10 years. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Aquaculture Aquaculture is the most rapidly expanding type of livestock farming in the United States and hybrid striped bass (HSB) farming is among the fastest growing forms of finfish aquaculture. Previously, all hybrid striped bass were produced from wild broodfish caught during their spawning migrations. This dependency on wild fish creates numerous problems for the fish farmers and precludes selective breeding of an improved cultivar. If hybrid striped bass farming is ever to reach a level of development comparable to the "broiler' chicken industry, it will be necessary to fully domesticate the parental lines, genetically improve the fish to produce a superior cultivar, and discover breeding techniques that allow them to be reproduced on demand. Selective breeding of striped bass and white bass for HSB has begun. Breeding has shown, for the first time, that the domesticated fish can be used to produce HSB with fecundity, fertility, and yields of fry and fingerlings at commercial scale and rates equivalent to those obtained using fully mature, wild female broodfish captured on or near their spawning grounds. This development removes uncertainty about the viability of the domesticated basses as aquaculture broodstock, opening the door to selective breeding of HSB. The largest and most diverse broodstocks of striped bass in the country have been developed and white bass domesticated over four generations and striped bass over three generations. All striped bass and white bass have been genotyped at three microsatellite DNA marker (MDM) loci in anticipation of developing the first genetic map for these species. Experiments are planned that will identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) based on the DNA markers that can form the basis for a rational selective breeding program. In essence, the presence of MDMs detected by DNA fingerprinting of the fish will be used to predict performance of their offspring in culture. Performance will be assessed as quantitative traits, such as growth rate of feed conversion efficiency. Genotyping of the fish at several more loci will be completed shortly, which will increase flexibility in choosing individual fish to make selected crosses. With Kent SeaTech in San Diego, the largest producer of HSB in the country, a novel procedure for producing highly enriched microsatellite DNA libraries for striped bass has been developed and executed, which will generate several hundred MDM gene sequences in a matter of weeks. The libraries will allow building of the first medium-density genetic linkage map of the bass genome and highly accelerate selective breeding. As the only laboratory worldwide operating at this level of selective breeding of any temperate basses, the top seven producers of HSB in the USA have joined with us to genetically improve HSB for commercial fish farming. Impact - Domestication of the fish, as has been accomplished for both striped and white bass over several generations, opens the door to selective breeding and production of genetically improved HSB for growout. Superior performing fish are needed because the HSB industry faces severe competition from foreign producers of similar white-fleshed fish, either wild-caught or farmed. Improved efficiency of production, via genetic improvements to the fish, will ensure continued competitiveness of HSB farming in the USA. Currently, because they are relatively expensive to produce, HSB are sold mainly to high-end 'white tablecloth' restaurants or sold live into lucrative Asian ethnic markets. These markets are limited, creating competition among growers and driving prices and profits down. HSB sales need to expand into the general retail market , which will only be possible if production efficiency can increase, allowing prices to drop while maintaining profit margins. Development of an improved cultivar through selective breeding is key to realize this goal. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - Regional Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $481,758 $3,752,393 $511,321 $531,172 14.3 24.7 37.2 10.2 Subprogram Area 1c: Biological Systems Overview Research was conducted to map, identify and analyze genes responsible for quantitative traits; characterize the structure and expression of genes and pathways required for growth, development and behavior; develop new approaches for gene transfer and gene regulation, and new methods for visualizing gene products within cells; identify biochemical factors and pathways involved in response to abiotic and biotic stresses and environmental factors such as drought, gravity, light and pathogens; and elucidate the structure, function and evolution of macromolecules that are key to growth, development, defense and behavior. Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. The nature of genetic variation for Drosophila longevity in a population of recombinant inbred lines was investigated by estimating quantitative genetic parameters and mapping quantitative trail loci (QTL) for adult life span in five environments. There was highly significant genetic variation for life span within each sex and environment. Map positions and effects of QTL affecting life span were estimated by linkage to highly polymorphic transposable element markers. A minimum of 17 QTL were detected; all were sex and/or environment-specific. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping was used to evaluate the genetic basis of variation in eight Arabidopsis floral characters in the Landsberg erecta X Columbia recombinant inbred line population. A composite interval mapping analysis detected 18 significant QTL affecting at least one floral character. Eleven QTL ere associated with several floral traits, supporting either pleiotropy or tight linkage to major determinants of floral morphological integration. A novel signal transduction pathway in plants was elucidated through studies on the protein kinase SK1 in soybeans. Discovery of this pathway has yielded new insights into how plants recognize osmotic stresses, such as high salinity and drought, and adapt to survive under conditions of water stress. A geminivirus silencing vector for Nicotiana benthamiana was developed and used to demonstrate the silencing of an endogenous gene encoding a DNA replication protein in plant meristems. Silencing the gene stopped all primary growth and produced meristems that lacked primordial, suggesting that there are two-way interactions between development and the cell cycle. Advances in light microscopic methods were made through the development of Polarization Modulation Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy which allows better contrast and resolution when imaging living cells, and through modification of spinning disk confocal microscopy. These methods will allow single molecules to be imaged at high resolution in cells and are expected to be increasingly important for genomic and proteomic studies. Arabidopsis plants transgenic for a heat shock-inducible calcium-binding peptide targeted to the endoplasmic reticulum were constructed. Induced plants accumulated higher levels of calcium, and this calcium reserve can be used to help the plant during low calcium availability. Some early biochemical events during graviperception in maize have been identified. The phosphoinositide signal transduction pathway was shown to be part of the mechanism by which cells perceive a positional change relative to the gravity vector. Incubation temperatures and eggshell conductance were used to lengthen or shorten incubation periods of turkey embryos. Delaying embryonic development approximately one day resulted in a significant three-way interaction among incubation temperature, egg weight and eggshell conductance. These studies will assist turkey hatchery managers in matching incubation conditions to egg weight, eggshell conductance and the length of the incubation period, management factors that may improve hatchling survival and growth. A number of candidates genes that contribute to odor-guided behavior in Drosophila were identified. The candidate genes include a novel odorant binding protein, an odorant receptor, a putative kinase and a protein that may be important for synaptic integrity in the chemosensory pathway. Incubation conditions that could cause cardiac damage and lead to chick mortality were tested. Incubation temperature and eggshell conductance were shown to be factors causing heart damage as determined by blood TroponinT concentrations and verified by lactate dehydrogenase and creatine kinase activities. Studies of enzymes in the phosphatidylcholine (PC) biosynthetic pathway in soybean demonstrated that PC biosynthesis in plants is fundamentally different than that observed in animal and yeast systems. These studies are important because PC is not only a critical structural component of cellular membranes, but is also an important intermediate in triacylglycerol biosynthesis and additionally serves as a reservoir for important signaling molecules. Two regionally-expressed, partially redundant genes encoding cofactors that interact with the Deformed homeoprotein in Drosophila to specify body pattern during embryogenesis were identified. That these proteins are encoded by redundant genes may explain why such cofactors have been difficult to identify through traditional genetic methods. Key Theme - Biobased Products Numerous papilloma viruses cause severe disease in both animals and humans. Of special note, two of these which attack humans produce not only troublesome papilloma lesions, but are also the direct cause of important cancers. One of these causes cervical cancer, the single greatest cause of cancer-related deaths in women worldwide. The other resides in the pores of the skin, and when activated by sunlight, causes the development of a certain type of common and quite serious skin cancer. Both of these diseases could be prevented by immunization against these viruses. Such a vaccine has been developed, but currently available technologies for production of the vaccines are prohibitively expensive. Thus the vaccines cannot be introduced into human clinical trials, and their deployment seems in doubt. A more cost-effective production system is desperately needed if these vaccines are to reach the at-risk populations. Genes encoding the L1 capsid protein, which serves as the immunogenic agent, have been introduced into tobacco, so that the vaccine can be made by the tobacco. Tobacco produces more biomass per acre than virtually any other crop currently grown, making it an ideal "factory" crop. A system is being developed which would allow the simultaneous extraction of the vaccine and a wide array of other valuable products from the transgenic tobacco. Using this system, the costs of production and purification of the vaccine would be offset by the combined value of all of these products. These tobaccos will be grown in the field in the summer of 2000, and vaccine and other products will be extracted to determine the amount of vaccine that could be recovered, and to estimate its cost. Impact - A system has been developed which could allow the cost-effective production of important vaccines which could protect against certain papilloma viruses. Importantly, this system could be used to produce many other native and transgenic products from genetically modified tobacco. This could lead to the development of a new industry for North Carolina which could help to offset losses in revenues from tobacco grown for traditional uses. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State and NRI Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Biotechnology Many types of inherited diseases in humans cannot be treated because little is known about the chain of events from the expression of the defective gene to the resulting disease. Retinitis pigmentosa, an inherited form of blindness, falls into this category. There is no treatment for this disease, which results in blindness in middle age for all who inherit the dominant gene. Researchers at North Carolina State University and Duke University have successfully produced transgenic pigs using genetic engineering that are providing an excellent genetic animal model for retinitis pigmentosa. Because of the size and construction of the pig eye, it makes an excellent animal model for the human eye. Impact - Research is beginning to identify possible treatments for retinitis pigmentosa. Although much work must still be done, none of it would be possible without the transgenic pigs produced at North Carolina State University. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and National Institute of Health Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Plant Genomics Current gene transfer technology is an uncertain art because we have little or no control over factors such as position effects and gene silencing interactions that can modify or abrogate transgene expression. These effects, which are sometimes first observed only several generations after the initial transformation, limit the applicability of transformation technology to plant improvement. We have developed technology that uses matrix attachment regions (MARs) to minimize certain aspects of this variation, and are attempting to define additional elements with similar, hopefully additive, effects. In addition, we are working on procedures that will allow us to repeatedly target genes to the same location in the recipient genome. Future work may include attempts to transfer large segments of DNA, or even artificial chromosomes, in the hope of achieving more predicable gene expression. Impact - If transgene behavior can be made more predictable we will be able to make better use of gene transfer techniques in plant improvement programs, as well as in fundamental research. One might reasonably anticipate an increase in the rate at which transgenic crop varieties are produces, as well as changes in the types of improvements that can be contemplated. For example, commercial transgenic cultivars commonly express single genes for resistance to pathogens or herbicide. In the future, we might contemplate transgenic plants that simultaneously express a dozen or more transgenes under appropriate developmental control and modify metabolic pathways or other complex quality traits. Such technology should considerably broaden the range of beneficial improvements that can be contemplated in plant breeding programs. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State, USDA-CRGO, NSF Scope of impact - National Key Theme - Animal Genomics Complex, or quantitative, traits are affected by multiple interacting genes that are sensitive to the environment. Most characters that are important for human health (for example, susceptibility to heart disease, cancer, or diabetes); agriculture (production and yield traits); and adaptation of populations to their environments are complex traits. A major challenge is to determine what are the genes affecting complex genotypes, as genetic methods of analysis developed for single genes with large effects are not appropriate. The use of model genetic systems, such as the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, enables quick and efficient testing of new methods of analysis. The principle of conservation of genes affecting all fundamental biological processes means the genes affecting genetic variation of a trait in flies are likely also to be important for similar traits in humans and other organisms (for example, lifespan). . Three methods have been used to map genes affecting several complex traits in Drosophila (numbers of sensory bristles, olfactory behavior, mating behavior, starvation resistance and longevity) and to determine their properties. Transposable element insertional mutations with quantitative effects have been induced, and the affected genes cloned using the transposable element as a molecular tag. Quantitative trait loci have been mapped by linkage to molecular marker loci in pedigreed populations. Finally, associations between molecular variation in candidate genes and phenotypic variation for the trait have been examined in random mating populations. Quantitative trait loci often have different and sometimes opposite effects in males and females, and in different environments. The chromosomal locations of quantitative trait loci often coincide with those of candidate genes, identified by mutations with large phenotypic effects. Association tests require a high density of intragenic polymorphic molecular markers, and reveal that regulatory gene regions affect variation for complex traits. Impact - The complexities of quantitative variation in Drosophila impact the design of studies to determine genes affecting quantitative traits in humans and other organisms. It has been proposed that such genes can be mapped by genotyping a random sample of individuals for single nucleotide polymorphisms ('SNPs') in protein coding regions of candidate genes, and associating the genotype with disease or other trait status. The work with fruit flies has shown that this strategy is likely to fail unless (1) the density of SNP markers is much greater than has been proposed, (2) markers are included in non-protein coding (regulatory) regions, (3) larger sample sizes are used, and (4) the effect of sex and other demographic factors are included. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State, NIH, NSF Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $269,266 $4,329,938 $788,032 $482,002 11.3 41.2 64.4 15.0 Goal 1, Program Area 2: Plant and Animal Germplasm, Genetic Resources and Conservation, and Plant Improvement Subprogram Area 2a: Crop Improvement Overview Research activities in this program area have concentrated on improving plant productivity and quality of fruits, vegetables and agronomic crops through breeding methodologies to increase yield and quality and reduce the incidence of diseases and insects; increasing biological efficiency through control of metabolic processes and gene regulation in plants used for food, fiber and fodder; and developing methods and strategies to more efficiently produce horticultural and agronomic crops in NC Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. 'N7001' was released as the first drought-resistant cultivar released in the U.S. New soyfood cultivars were released for human consumption, including varieties N7101, N7102, N7103 and N6201. 'China Pearl', 'Challenger' and 'Intrepid' peach cultivars have been released with enhanced cold hardiness and thus will produce fruit even in seasons with late freezing temperatures. 'Sampson', 'Duplin', and 'Onslow' blueberries were released with superior characteristics for mechanical harvesting. The peanut cultivar 'Perry' was released with good yield and grade and moderate levels of resistance to various peanut diseases. 'Satelite', a soybean cultivar with low levels of linolenic acid and low saturated fat was released. Hulless oat germplasm was developed with good Hessian fly and Fusarium head blight for the horse industry. Powdery mildew resistant soft red wheat germplasm was developed and is being incorporated into cultivars. Leaf rust and septoria resistance has been transferred from wild diploid oat species to cultivated oats. Tomatoes are being developed with early blight and fusarium wilt resistances and enhanced color. Corn germplasm lines are being developed with gray leafspot resistance. Isolation of xanthotoxin from Xanthomonas is proceeding to elucidate the pathway leading to the production of cercosporin-line toxins. Protein kinases responsible for phosphorylating the SEC14-line lipid transfers protein Ssh1p were identified in soybean. The work is leading to osmoregulation of lipid synthesis, and has led to new insights into mechanisms plants use to recognize osmotic stresses, such as high salinity and drought. A new choline kinase isoform was isolated and characterized from soybean, a key enzyme of phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis pathway. Correlations between protein and isoflavonoid (a class of compounds with possible anti-cancer activity) concentrations were identified in soybean. Naturally occurring polyamines, were identified as well as the possible molecular basis for polyamine action as a plant growth regulator, and thus opens new approaches to controlling plant growth responses to agriculture. Methodology was developed to image soybean roots in situ using nuclear magnetic resonance imaging technology. Protein phosphorylation was studied with protein kinases and indicated that acetic amino acid residues flanking the serine can stimulate, while acidic amino acid residues generally inhibit phosphorylation. Proline residues near serine also inhibit phosphorylation. Vitamin A levels were correlated with ozone damage in snapbean. A PCR-based strategy was used to isolate isoforms of the FAD2 gene, encoding an oleic acid desaturase , from a high oleic acid soybean line. Glufosinate uptake in different weed species was investigated and up to 18-fold differences were observed. Differences in uptake and metabolism account for variation in fields for weed control. Weed management systems in herbicide-resistant crops, especially cotton, soybean and corn, were investigated as well as carry-over effects of alternative herbicides were investigated. HADSS (Herbicide Application Decision Support System) has been developed in as a Windows-based version and web-based version to provide an integrated weed management system in crops. Economic thresholds for ladysthumb and pale smartweed in cotton were determined and the competitiveness of these weeds is low. Field plots of transformed tobacco plants were processed for production of canine oral papilloma virus vaccine proteins and pilot-scale processing of proteins performed. The instability of a gene encoding a nicotine demethylase in burley tobacco and its effect on secondary amine alkaloids and tobacco-specific nitrosamines was investigated. Results indicate that a commercial crop could be produced from plants that do not have high mutation rates during tissue culture generations to manipulate ploidy levels. PCR-based markers to target intronic gene regions were developed and the allelic variation in intron, promoter, and exon lengths of 54 genes in each of 48 maize inbred lines were surveyed. Molecular markers were associated with freezing susceptible winter oats and proteins that increase the apoplastic fluid of frozen, winter-hardy oats were investigated for genetic sequences. Genes were identified in DuPont's proprietary soybean EST database that are candidates for influencing ER biogenesis during seed development. Soybeans were evaluated for soil water differential on utilization of N and variation was found for root branching and radial hydraulic conductivity among genotypes. Water use efficiency, measured as dry matter produced per unit water evapotranspired, was positively correlated with N utilization. Optimal N-uptake was investigated in corn by direct measurement and late in the growing season by color-infrared photography across different soil types. The effects of ozone and CO₂ exposure on plant development and plant/pest interactions were investigated. Elevated CO₂ was shown to alter needle chemistry and led to decreased site soil quantity of dry matter. The metabolic basis for high-oleic in and low 16:0 trait associated with the fap1 and fapnc alleles. A pedigree database for more that 550 North American soybean cultivars was established which documents relationships among lines for genetic enhancement. Experimental procedures are being developed to introgress exotic maize germplasm into elite corn lines by developing strategies to estimate new genetic variation in unadapted genotypes. Best linear unbiased predictions were used to calculate the breeding values of more than 200 cultivars and lines for flavor, and trends in flavor in germplasm developed during the past 60 years were determined. Tall fescue was genetically transformed with resistance to the herbicide 'Finale' and fungal resistance genes. Cyst nematode resistance in soybean lines was identified. Field designs were developed to control experimental errors for yielded in low-replication experiments. Key Theme - Plant Genomics Recombinant DNA technology holds great promise for the improvement of crop plants by adding genes for specific, well-defined traits such as resistance to pests or production of specific compounds such as vaccines. Several problems, however, remain to be solved before recombinant DNA technology can be routinely used for such improvements. One of these problems is that several crop species are difficult to transform by existing methods. Another problems is that even in plants that can be transformed readily, the introduced genes are often expressed at low rates or the expression is lost in progeny of the original transformant. Scientists at NCSU have studied the effect of flanking introduced genes with extra DNA sequences called MARs (Matrix Attachment Regions). These sequences appear to increase the expression of introduced genes, stabilize the expression in progeny of the original transformed plants and increase the efficiency of production of transgenic plants. Impact - If this improvement in recombinant DNA technology applies generally to crop plants, the feasibility of using transgenic approaches will be greatly enhanced. Among other things, this technology should allow the production of crops with lower requirements for pesticides, thus lowering the environmental impact of farming. It should also make routine the engineering of plants to produce specific pharmacological compounds. Production of such compounds in tobacco might supplant traditional uses of tobacco and increase the value of the plants. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State and NSF Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Plant Germplasm North Carolina farmers may choose from nearly 100 corn hybrids, 50 flue-cured tobacco varieties, 90 conventional soybean varieties, 60 Roundup Ready soybean varieties, 40 conventional cotton varieties, 20 Bt cotton varieties, 20 Roundup Ready cotton varieties, 40 wheat varieties and several barley and oat varieties when they decide what to plant each year, with new products coming on the market all the time. Farmers must make the best possible crop decisions if they wish to maximize profit and keep their farms financially viable. The Official Variety Testing Program of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University conducts performance trials on barley, corn, corn silage, cotton, flue-cured tobacco, oats, soybeans and wheat each year. Many of these varieties are new, so farmers do not know what to expect from them. The trials are located in major production areas of the state, using the same types of production practices and technology that farmers use. Data from the trials are collected and disseminated in Measured Crop Performance Bulletins, perhaps better known to farmers as "the green books." Nearly 20,000 copies of four different green books are printed annually. The information is also available on the World Wide Web. Impact - The Official Variety Testing Program gives North Carolina farmers the information they need to make informed decisions about which varieties to plant to make sure they remain competitive in an increasingly competitive agricultural economy. While it is difficult to measure the impact of the Official Variety Testing Program, it seems likely the program fattens the bottom line of North Carolina farmers by several million dollars annually. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and Smith-Lever Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Plant Germplasm The narrow of the genetic base of U.S. corn breeding is sufficiently limited that 20 private companies, including all major ones, have joined a private/public consortium to develop alternative sources of breeding materials. Crosses between promising tropical materials and private breeding lines have been made. Breeding families have been developed at N.C. State and top-crosses of these 50%-tropical, 50%-temperate families have been tested in cooperative yield trials conducted jointly by the NCARS, the USDA-ARS, cooperating universities, and private companies. Almost 4,000 families have been tested; over 800 of these families performed as well as the commercial checks in first-year yield trials. Of the approximately 600 families that have been tested for two years, about 70 meet or exceed the mean of the commercial checks. Impact - The project (GEM, Germplasm Enhancement of Maize) represents the first and only industry-wide cooperative breeding effort. Seed requests from cooperators, both private and public, suggest that it is contributing to an expansion of the genetic base for corn breeding. Well over 100 requests have been made for specific breeding families, even before any announcements were made about seed availability. About 75% of these requests were by private, cooperating companies whose breeders had participated in growing the yield trials. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $296,021 $2,963,713 $1,586,520 $957,616 15.5 47.8 26.9 10.3 Subprogram Area 2b: Animal Improvement Overview Research was also conducted to improve animal performance by investigating basic biological systems that modulate life processes, studying the genome of animals, and creating useful animal models for the study of human and animal diseases. The impact of this research will enhance our understanding of the basic genetic and biological basis of animals, as well as improve the human condition via the study of animal models. One accomplishment in this program area is research that has shown the quantity and composition of fecal and urinary excreta in pigs is affected by genetic and sex influences indicating that there is a genetic component to the interaction of animal production and the environment. Key Theme - Animal Genomics Transgenic organisms are those that have received new DNA into their germ line via addition to the embryo. Transgenic plants have been front page news as genetically modified foods because of the controversy over food safety and their impact on the ecology where the plants are grown. Less well known is the research conducted with transgenic livestock being developed for agricultural and biomedical purposes. In agricultural the goal is to develop transgenic livestock with better efficiency of production and disease resistance. The mouse is used as a model to study the effectiveness of transgenes and the promoter that is used as a mechanism to activate the gene. Studies have centered on a growth hormone transgene constructed with a promoter that allows activation of the gene by adding zinc to drinking water. The purpose of these studies was to compare selection for increased growth rate in the presence of the growth hormone gene with conventional selection in the absence of the gene. The selection in different genetic backgrounds was also compared to see if this factor influenced the rate of genetic response. As selection progressed, the frequency of the growth hormone transgene was monitored to determine the reproductive performance of the transgenic mice. Impact - This study has provided strong evidence that the growth hormone transgene would be more useful if used in a line not previously selected for increased growth. Evidence also was provided that the introduction of the growth hormone transgene had a negative impact on fitness of the animals. An important unanswered question is whether these observations were specific for this transgene construct we studied. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and NSF Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Animal Genetics One of the most perplexing and frustrating challenges dairy producers face today is how to economically detect estrus and improve reproduction in high-producing Holsteins and other dairy breeds. Most research has been aimed at hormonal interventions or use of expensive electronic equipment to identify cows in estrus. An assumption is that all AI bulls are equally fertile, a point that has proven to be false. Teaching and extension have emphasized environmental modifications as the most economical way for improvement in reproduction. It has been assumed that genetics variation in reproductive efficiency is nil, which our work has proved to be incorrect. Impact - Use of AI bulls identified by Estimated Relative Non-return Rates as high conception will, on average, result in about 20% more calves per insemination. Advantages were apparent even in hot humid months in North Carolina and other states through the United States. Costs will be essentially the same per insemination, so economics of such bulls will likely be a reduction of direct and indirect costs per pregnancy of over 20%. Daughters of many dairy bulls, even some of those that sire higher producing daughters, have greater reproductive efficiency than the average AI bull. Combining these two procedures appears more cost-efficient than most if not all environmental interventions. All AI units have accepted these ERCRs (DRMS and NCARS) computed on mates of AI bulls as reliable. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $311,663 $720,813 $817,614 $200,861 4.1 9.8 10.7 2.5 Goal 1, Program Area 3: Plant Protection Strategies Subprogram Area 3a: Forest and Horticultural Crop Protection Overview Research activities in this program area have concentrated on developing and enhancing pest, pathogen and weed management technology for growth and production of forests and horticultural plants for greater enjoyment and profitability in an environmentally sustainable manner; improving the understanding of ecology and genetics of pest, pathogen and weed populations and their interactions with plants and antagonists for more effective integrated pest management; and incorporating resistance to pests, pathogens and weeds into improved, productive cultivars through classical breeding and biotechnology/genomics. Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. Several scientists attended a national meeting on bioterrorism. There is a potential for an ARS emphasis on this subject at NCSU in the Plant Science Unit. The disease forecasting program also has possibilities for prediction of aerosol delivery via wind currents. Plant health is a major effort of several departments in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at NCSU, including Entomology, Crop Science, Horticultural Science, and Plant Pathology. Integrated Pest Management continues to be a key component of many faculty programs. The Center for Integrated Pest Management has a regional influence on improving plant health. The Eastern USDA-APHIS Hub is now located on the NCSU campus as is the USDA-APHIS Center for Plant Health Science and Technology, which will enhance our work with invasive species. Recently, NCSU research has allowed establishment of export agreements with Japan for fresh market tomatoes. Plant-pathogen interaction research with root knot nematodes has shown that they contain a cellulose gene that is released into plant tissue via the nematode stylet during establishment of feeding sites. This is the first cellulase gene found in an animal. The gene has sequence similarities with bacterial genes indicating cross kingdom gene flow. The Micropropagation Unit is changing the NC sweetpotato industry by providing disease indexed mother plants for a new greenhouse sweetpotato vine propagation industry that provides true to variety, certified planting material for growers. Multidisciplinary teams are developing production practices for use as methyl bromide is phased out for strawberry and vegetable producers. The practices utilize sustainable agriculture techniques together with more environmentally friendly pesticides. A genome research laboratory was established that is allowing work on fungal, nematode, and bacterial pathogens to utilize genomics technology. Understanding the function of various genes is leading to ideas for novel management of diseases. Key Theme - Plant Health Flooding of sweet potato fields results in a condition known as "souring." This was a particular problem in North Carolina in 1999, when hurricanes caused extensive flooding and, consequently, extensive souring. Souring was thought to be caused by lack of oxygen in the root zone of sweet potatoes. As a result of research done at North Carolina State University, souring is now believed to be the result of a complex of factors, including fungal and bacterial pathogens in addition to flooding. The soilborne fungus Geotrichum candidum and a bacterium (putatively Erwinia chrysanthemi) were isolated consistently from soured sweet potato roots. Tests for pathogenicity of these two organisms were unsuccessful until roots were submerged in water for 24 hours following inoculation. G. candidum will cause low levels of disease by itself; however, when both organisms are combined in the inoculum, the resultant disease level is much greater. Impact - Effective disease management is based on an understanding of the causal agents. The more complete understanding of the causal agents involved in souring developed by scientists at North Carolina State University should lead to strategies for minimizing sweet potato losses due to flooding. With the pathogens involved identified, it will be possible to screen sweet potato varieties for susceptibility to souring and to develop new varieties with high resistance to souring. Researchers will also determine which varieties are susceptible to souring and advise farmers to avoid these varieties. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and Smith-Lever Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Plant Health In multidisciplinary work at the Center for Environmental Farming Systems, the effects of several production practices on naturally-occurring beneficial organisms (nutrient cyclers, arthropod predators, and insect pathogens) in the soil are being examining. Soil disturbance through tillage appears to be a major factor in disrupting populations of beneficial organisms. Tillage had a greater disruptive effect than conventional use of chemicals or organic practices in sweetpotato and other horticultural and field crops. The introduced insect-parasitic nematode, Steinernema riobrave, was able to persist for two seasons after introduction into corn in eastern NC, demonstrating its strong potential as an alternative to pesticides against soilborne insect pests. The introduced insect-parasitic nematode, Steinernema riobrave, was less susceptible to disruption by tillage than was the endemic nematodes, Steinernema carpocapsae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora. Impact - This result indicates that in some production systems, application of a biological control agent tolerant to disturbance may be more effective than conservation of endemic natural enemies. Increasing predictability and efficacy of biological control agents may reduce the need for synthetic insecticides, thus reducing the possibility of air, soil, and water contamination. Source of Funds - Hatch and State Scope of Impact - Regional Expenditures and Personnel Commitments (See Expenditures and Personnel Commitments at end of Subprogram Area 3b section.) Subprogram Area 3b: Agronomic Crop Protection Overview Research activities in this program area have concentrated on developing new and refining existing mechanisms and techniques for managing pests of field crops that are economically feasible for the producers and are environmentally compatible. Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. Selection were made for resistance to tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) in peanut by evaluating resistance in Arachis species both by mechanical inoculation and through thrip vector transmission. Results indicated that cultivars with moderate levels of field resistance are highly susceptible to the virus after mechanical inoculation. Tests with cropping systems, including rotation, double cropping small grains and soybean, and no-till, show yield loss to soybean cyst nematode to be limited to about 5%. Studies on numerous transgenic field corn gene events with single and "stacked" genes for multiple Bt toxin expression demonstrated varying levels of protection against Helicoverpa zea ranging from poor to superior when compared to a commercially available single gene event variety. Field results across 7 to 10 locations for 5 years in the southern region for performance of bacterial and fungal biocontrol agents in control of seedling disease in cotton, snap bean show no single biocontrol agent controlled both Rhizoctonia and Pythium damping-off. Morning-glory, pigweed, and prickly sida seedling emergence from seeded populations was monitored in no-till plots with no debris (reference plots) or with crimson clover, subterranean clover, rye, or wheat debris. Cover crops were either desiccated by glyphosate or mowed and tilled into the soil. Surface debris treatments delayed weed seedling emergence compared to the reference plots. Rye and wheat debris consistently suppressed weed emergence; in contrast, the effects of clover debris on weed emergence ranged from suppression to stimulation. Plant growth regulators affected bentgrass lateral recovery from simulated injury with up to a 35% delay in recovery with certain PGR treatments whereas others have slightly increased recovery. Soybean varieties with resistance to race 2 of the soybean cyst nematode, Heterodera glycines, are currently under evaluation and development. A risk index to help peanut growers avoid preventive insecticide application for rootworm continues to be refined. Data from over 5 years show less than 5% of fields surveyed had economically damaging populations. A new technique for greenhouse screening of seedlings for resistance to rootworms has been developed which will increase the speed in which rootworm resistance can evaluated. Planting of native plant field borders around soybean and cotton fields as wildlife habitat resulted in lower populations of bollworm (Helicoverpa zea) and some beneficial insect species, and slighty higher levels of aphids and lygus bugs in adjacent crop edge rows. Initial studies to select for pyrethroid resistance in Helicoverpa zea in order to develop management strategies to control pyrethroid resistant bollworm have resulted in resistance levels of approximately 5-fold. A version of the weed management decision support system HADSS has been developed for cotton. Field experiments examining weed growth in N2-fixing soybean and peanut in sandy, low fertility soils have revealed that the weeds can acquire up to 70% of their nitrogen from the crop plants. Host-plant resistance to foliar pathogens of soybean has been demonstrated to effectively eliminate the need for protectant fungicides in soybean. A spatially explicit genetic model of Helicoverpa zea adaptation to Bt toxin, has had a two Bt toxin component added which has led to a first estimate of the frequency of Bt resistance genes in field populations of H. zea. A gene called CFP was isolated from the toxin producing fungal pathogen of soybean Cercospora kikuchii and shown to confer a significant level of toxin self-resistance in that organism. CFP provides self-protection by its action as a pump to rid the fungal cell of toxin. Research on plant viruses has shown that the virus encodes a movement protein, which is essential for the virus to move from cell-to-cell. Virion formation is required to achieve a systemic infection. Molecular determinants for virion formation and the function of the movement protein are currently being determined. Key Theme - Plant Health North Carolina peanut farmers used to protect their crops from a disease called leafspot by spraying fungicide at regular intervals on a predetermined schedule. Such spraying can be costly and sometimes unnecessary. Faculty in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University came up with a better way of controlling leafspot. The disease infects crops only under certain weather conditions. By monitoring the weather, specialists were able to predict when the disease was likely to infect crops. Using this information, farmers spray only when disease outbreaks are likely. Impact - Using the leafspot advisory, farmers can cut their fungicide use dramatically. Approximately 75 percent of North Carolina peanut growers now use the advisory to determine when to apply fungicide. Depending on the weather in a given year, North Carolina farmers save from $1 million to $2 million in fungicide costs. Similar pest outbreak prediction systems have been developed for and are being tested on other crops across the Southeastern United States. At the same time, advances in computer hardware and software are making it easier for farmers to get this information. And advances in weather forecasting promise to make the information yet more useful by enabling pest outbreak predictions days from an actual outbreak. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and Smith-Lever Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Plant Health Among the most effective products of genetic engineering has been what are known as Bt crops. Genes from a bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), that code for the production of insecticidal proteins have been engineered into the chromosomes of crops. The resulting transgenic cotton, corn and potatoes that contain these genes produce the insecticidal proteins from the seedling stage until harvest, and this effectively protects the crops from specific pests without disrupting beneficial insects and wildlife. The use of these crops has reduced insecticide use and has resulted in economic benefits for farmers and agribusinesses. Unfortunately, there is field and laboratory evidence that insects can evolve resistance to these Bt proteins. If resistance develops, farmers may need to return to the use of conventional insecticides, which tend to be much more environmentally disruptive than engineered crops. For well over a decade, scientists at North Carolina State University have studied ways to develop and use Bt crops that decrease the risk of rapid pest adaptation to the Bt toxins. This work has involved both theoretical and empirical research. All of this information has been shared with other researchers in the Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, other universities and industry in order to develop practical approaches for decreasing the risk of resistance while ensuring the economic and environmental benefits of this technology. An ongoing research collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute has provided scientists and regulatory officials from developing nations with a better understanding of issues related to the sustainable use of Bt-producing rice and cotton. Impact - The detailed research findings from North Carolina State University have been instrumental in convincing the EPA and industry that there are ways to get long-term benefits from Bt toxin-producing crops. NC State University scientists have participated in numerous public and private workshops and conferences aimed at educating diverse stakeholders about the benefits of reducing the risks of rapid pest adaptation. This has resulted in the EPA mandating the use of specific resistance management approaches by all farmers who plant crops that express the Bt toxin. The institutionalization of resistance management has been a major step for agriculture because these policies require farmers to sacrifice a certain amount of short-term profit for long-term benefits. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments (Subprogram 3a and 3b) Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $536,132 $6,820,786 $1,737,473 $1,728,827 27.2 48.6 46.0 31.9 Goal 1, Program Area 4: Animal Diseases and Animal Health Overview Research activities in this program area have concentrated on improving overall animal health and performance through methods that reduce the incidence and/or severity of diseases caused by pathogenic agents and/or other environmental factors; developing environmentally safe, economically realistic, and socially acceptable methods for the handling and recycling by-products of food animal industries; and developing effective, safe and acceptable practices for the control of odor and pests associated with food animal production. Some highlights of accomplishments in this program area are listed below. � Isolated, purified and characterized two putative viral agents associated with Poult Enteritis and Mortality Syndrome (PEMS) in turkeys. One agent is an astrovirus and the other is a reovirus. While both of these viruses have been known to be involved in enteric disorders of poultry, the significant and common finding by these investigators is that both agents induce significant detrimental immune alterations in exposed SPF poults. � Examination of piglets exhibiting rotaviral gastroenteritis, one of the leading causes of neonatal intestinal injury and diarrhea, with the ultimate goal of improving the rate and extent of recovery. � Characterization of a group of mutations that truncate the membrane spanning domains of togavirus membrane glycoproteins. The togaviruses are a major group of infectious agents that cause disease in man and domestic animals. Among these are horse encephalitis, classical swine fever, border disease and bovine diarrhea. � Completion of an evaluation of the house fly's ability to harbor and transmit Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, an infectious bacterium of turkeys. House flies can support this bacterium for 30 hr on the body surface, and in the gut for up to 36 hours. � Investigation of the mechanism by which tetracycline, spectinomycin, and other antibiotics act on the structure of the ribosome in E. coli. � Development of on-farm mortality preservation and conversion into value-added animal feed products. Procedures were developed for preserving mortality carcasses by phosphoric acid and processing it into a protein by-product meal by flash dehydration and extrusion processing. � Studies on the use of microbial phytase in poultry feeds in order to reduce phosphorus excretion. � The impact of field incorporation of turkey litter on the survival of darkling beetles was evaluated and soil incorporation of the litter significantly reduced beetle survival. � IPM is being used to reduce cockroach infestations on swine farms, and to reduce the amount of pesticides used in their control. � Molecular markers related to stress are being studied in an attempt to revitalize stocks of the American oyster. Heat shock proteins (Hsps) are essential for adaptation to thermal, chemical and biological stressors in many organisms. � Peptides can enhance intestinal nutrient absorption when administered in ovo or post-hatch. � Studies to determine the molecular mechanisms associated with the induction of morphological defects in mice have been conducted which demonstrate the role of aberrant gene expression in the etiology of morphological defects. Key Theme - Animal Health Integrated management of pests of importance to livestock and poultry requires the broad understanding of diverse management tools including cultural, physical, biological and chemical control methods. Although chemical pesticides play an important role in the management of livestock pests under outbreak conditions we recognize the importance of minimizing pesticide exposures under the Food Quality and Protection Act. In addition reduced use of pesticides lessens the potential of pesticide resistance to develop in a pest population. The goal of this research is the incorporation of these alternative methods into Integrated Pest Management Programs for poultry and livestock. The turkey industry in North Carolina has been confronted with emergence/re-emergence of two important diseases, Poult Enteritis Mortality Syndrome (PEMS) and Turkey Coronavirus (TCV). PEMS is a devastating enteric disease of turkeys of an unknown etiology, and is often, but not always, associated with TCV. Although a cure for PEMS has not been determined the incidence of disease has declined in recent years. Mechanisms associated with the transmission of these diseases may be closely linked and insects may be directly involved. The darkling beetle (Alphitobius diaperinus) and the house fly (Musca domestica) are commonly associated with turkey litter. The role of these insects in the transmission of these diseases, and its movement and dispersal habits are largely unknown. . Research at NCSU used immunofluorescent (FA) and serology techniques to detect TCV in turkey tissues. Results indicate limited transmission TCV to turkey poults by darkling beetles, however darkling beetles do readily transmit PEMS agents to young turkeys. Potential for disease transmission is greater in house fly. TCV remains viable in house flies for a longer period than in darkling beetles, and the potential for dispersal is greater. Currently studies are being conducted to mark and recapture the immigration of darkling beetles from field to turkey house following the land application of organic fertilizer. Establishing a link between the application of turkey litter and immigration of darkling beetles may provide important clues to the spread of poultry diseases in North Carolina. Darkling beetle survival was significantly impacted by mechanical incorporation of litter into red clay field soils. Temperature has a great impact on beetle survival. Results of this technique may vary with soil type. Surviving beetles dispersed from the field by flight. Dispersal is limited by temperature. Impact - Turkey Coronavirus (TCV) is subject to rapid destruction in the environment. Adult darkling beetles transmit TCV mechanically for only a few hours. Transmission of the agent(s) responsible for PEMS was mechanically transmitted for 24 hours and perhaps longer. The darkling beetle is added to the list of known vectors of this disease. This project provides definitive information on the role of darkling beetles in the epizootiology of TCV and perhaps PEMS. Using methodology developed in this initial study, the house fly was also incriminated in the transmission of TCV. Further study will define the role of the house fly in TCV epizootics in NC. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Emerging Infectious Diseases Research in aquatic plant ecology and nutrient pollution impacts on freshwater, estuarine, and marine ecosystems has lead to the co-discovery of the toxic dinoflagellate, Pfiesteria piscicida, as a causative agent of major estuarine and coastal fish kills. This organism was the first toxic dinoflagellate known to have direct attack behavior toward fish; the first to have a complex life cycle with many forms; the first with toxicity triggered by live fish or their fresh tissues; and the first to produce neurotoxic aerosols that can cause serious, mostly reversible cognitive impairment and short-term memory loss in humans, as well as certain more long-term impacts on the human immune and autonomic nervous systems. In 2000, work was initiated to characterize the genome of P. piscicida and the second known toxic Pfiesteria-like species, which was named as P. shumwayae. Also work is nearly completed on purification of a potent neurotoxin from P. piscicida, and the determination one of its major modes of action in causing 'crossover' impacts on mammalian nervous and immune systems. Also documented was additional chronic, severe impacts of Pfiesteria toxin in promoting finfish disease; and, verification that Pfiesteria thrives after being consumed, then excreted in feces of adult oysters -- which means that cultured, transported oysters can serve as a vector in distributing Pfiesteria to other regions. And, for the first time, research has verified toxic strains of Pfiesteria species in northern Europe and in New Zealand. Impact - Research on Pfiesteria and water quality has provided the framework that was used by the U.S. Congress and federal agencies in direct more than $600 million to control pollution in estuaries and coastal waters in many states. In 1999, the US Department of Agriculture committed to direct $221 million to North Carolina's Albemarle-Pamlico Estuarine Ecosystem to help reduce agricultural pollution. In support of this research, during 1998 the U.S. Congress appropriated $500,000 to our laboratory to continue the research effort (received in 1999); and the North Carolina General Assembly directed $1 million in non-recurring funds, and $600,000 in recurring funds to NCSU to form a Center for Applied Aquatic Ecology. This Center will address applied issues spanning from enhancement and protection of fish nursery habitat to human health impacts from Pfiesteria. Its research will focus on impacts of algal blooms on aquatic food webs, especially on commercially important fish species and their habitats, and on the health of humans who utilize these aquatic resources. The Center's research will examine direct and indirect influences of pollutants such as nutrients, suspended sediments, and pesticides on algal blooms, fish stocks, and valuable fish habitat species. The Center will also meet a pressing need in obtaining data to develop improved management strategies to enhance habitat for fish yield, and to mitigate impacts of noxious algal species that have been stimulated by wastes. It will contribute data that are of practical use to policy makers in evaluating both primary and secondary impacts of human and animal wastes on our freshwater, estuarine, and marine resources. Sources of Funds - Hatch, State, NSF, USDA Special Grants Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $767,875 $2,135,119 $893,492 $503,422 11.2 18.7 16.3 11.0 Goal 1, Program Area 5: Farm Business Management, Economics and Marketing Overview North Carolina farmers are facing major structural adjustments due to changes in farm programs and traditional "cash crop" quota reductions. Research projects on cotton and tobacco production systems were begun to aid farmers in their decisions on what new enterprise or crop rotation to add to farming operation. Cost of production numbers were developed for tobacco and cotton enterprises. The difference in prices of pesticide products that are chemically identical, but can not be shipped across country borders has caused farmers and others on either side of the US-Canada border to complain. Farmers on either side of the border who grow the same crops do not have access to the same pesticides, or if available, at a higher price. Research was conducted to evaluate reasons for price differences and to assess the effects of price differences on the cost of production. Results showed the economic impact of price differences in pesticides on the total pesticide costs to farmers were small because farmers were able to substitute pesticide products and use more mechanical pest controls. Price differences were found, some were higher in Canada, some were lower. The price difference summaries showed that they were often higher between US-Canada that between US locations. The 1996 Fair Act resulted in significant changes to US government programs of the support of agricultural incomes. These changes included the elimination of many forms of supporting producer prices and incomes. The federal crop insurance program, however, realized an expansion as revenue insurance contracts replaced traditional yield insurance contracts. Research was conducted that rates crop insurance by using price and yield risks that can be used for achieving actuarially fair crop insurance rates. The results suggest that risk management programs have served as an inducement for farmers to plant on erodible land. During a period where the Conservation Reserve Program has significantly reduced much soil erosion, expansion of crop insurance and disaster relief programs offset approximately 60% of the reduction in erosion. These results have been used to make changes to actuarial methods used to rate insurance programs that should make insurance premiums more accurate and thus improve the operation of the programs (which direct billions of dollars in support to agricultural producers). The research has the potential to result in significant saving for taxpayers. The majority of North Carolina's strawberry crop is sold through direct market channels such as Pick-Your-Own or Ready-Pick operations. Few managers know the socioeconomic characteristics of their customers or have ever assessed the effectiveness of their advertisement campaigns. Customer surveys were conducted at 8 direct market strawberry operations during the past season. Information gathered and analyzed has been made available to strawberry marketers. These managers can change their services, product offerings, and advertising programs to better promote their strawberry operations. The county by county effects of the tobacco settlement (in North Carolina) and possible elimination of the tobacco program were researched. The results suggest that if cross-county restrictions were lifted in NC, tobacco production would fall by 3% in the Border Belt, increase by 10% in the Eastern Belt, fall by 15% in the Middle Belt, and fall by 15% in the Old Belt. Lifting the restrictions would result in increases in quota income to the Middle and Old Belts by over 20% and by 4% in the Border and in decreases in quota income in the Eastern Belt. While quota owners would benefit in the Middle and Old Belts, farmer incomes in those belts would fall by 16% (Middle Belt) and 15% (Old Belt). As North Carolina continues to urbanize, there is concern that unique land resources, open space and viable agriculture and forestry will be lost. A project was completed which identifies legal and financial tools that can be used to preserve these resources and promote the continued viability of agriculture and forestry in North Carolina. A Land Preservation Notebook was published to serve as a catalog of federal and state land preservation programs, laws and regulations available for landowners and others. Key Theme - Agricultural Competitiveness With the removal of much of the safety net that previously existed for farmers in the 1996 Farm Bill, farmers are more susceptible to unfavorable commodity price movements. This fact coupled with low commodity prices for corn, soybeans and wheat have produced an increased demand by farmers for the knowledge and skills required to better market their crops. Many farmers consider marketing their weakest area of knowledge. In order for farmers to make fully informed decisions concerning marketing grain crops and reducing exposure to price risk, understanding how local prices and basis have behaved historically is extremely important. A historical database for soybean and corn prices by location for North Carolina over the period 1980-1999 was developed and is continually updated. This database allows the calculation of basis, which is critically important to grain marketing decisions. These basis tables are available as part of the North Carolina Soybean and Corn Price Yearbook and have also been made available on the web at the North Carolina State Grain Marketing Homepage. Impact - These data combined with the educational materials available give farmers and others the necessary tools and ability to make more informed and better marketing decisions. For example, the yearbook gives farmers a knowledge of historical basis that can be used to decide whether to accept or reject a particular forward price offer, to decide whether to hedge using futures, or to store their crops for a deferred sale. These data will also serve as an extremely useful resource for analyzing other important economic questions. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - State Key Theme - Agricultural Profitability Since its introduction, the adoption of genetically altered Bt, or Bollgard cotton, by North Carolina producers has grown steadily, from 24,000 acres in 1996 to just under half a million acres in 2000, or more than half the state's record 900,000-acre cotton crop. Because bollworms are North Carolina's major cotton pest and because Bollgard cotton is only moderately resistant to this pest, North Carolina's producers must carefully weigh the high technology costs of planting Bollgard cotton (presently averaging about $20 per acre, or as much as $10 million in the 2000 crop year) against the potential benefits of this new technology. Additionally, due to the lower insecticide use with Bollgard cotton and its variable efficacy against other pests (Bt cotton provides exceptional control of tobacco budworms and European corn borers but no control of non-caterpillars), dramatic shifts have occurred in the status of many North Carolina cotton pests. Therefore, grower decisions about the potential economic returns of Bollgard technology are difficult. North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service specialists in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University conducted a comprehensive statewide survey of 360 Bollgard and 360 conventionally managed cotton fields from 1996 to 1999 to determine the degree of late-season boll damage caused by bollworms, European corn borers, fall armyworms and stink bugs. This survey was accompanied by the canvassing of a sample of North Carolina's independent crop consultants, producers and North Carolina Cooperative Extension agents to obtain data on insecticide use against various cotton pests, technology fees and scouting requirements in conventional and Bollgard systems over this four-year period. The insect damage caused by major pests, the insecticide use patterns and the technology fee assessments were used to form the basis for economic comparisons of Bollgard and conventional cotton insect management systems in North Carolina. Impact - Armed with objective information quantifying shifts in the importance of our major insect pest species on cotton (bollworm damage to bolls has dropped 60 percent, while stink bug damage to bolls is up four-fold in Bollgard cotton) and significant changes in insecticide use patterns (Bollgard cotton was treated an average of .75 times compared with 2.61 applications for conventional cotton from 1996 to 1999), North Carolina producers and consultants now have the information they need to make informed decisions about the expected costs and benefits of this new Bollgard technology. Source of Funds - Hatch, State and Smith-Lever Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Managing Change in Agriculture Many poultry contract growers are dissatisfied with existing contractual arrangements. Their complaints focus primarily on tournament schemes, under which growers receive a fixed amount per pound of live meat produced (to defray their capital and operating expenses), plus a bonus payment for using integrator-provided inputs efficiently. Poultry growers have repeatedly expressed concern about tournaments because they believe that it is unfair to compare their production costs with those of other growers in determining payments. Some growers have argued that tournament schemes are biased, since integrators have sole control over the initial quality of production inputs. Consecutive flocks grown by the same grower, and having similar production costs, can receive substantially different payments, depending on the performance of other growers in the settlement group. Growers have expressed exasperation over this form of remuneration since they have no way of anticipating how large their payments will be. . Analysis of the welfare implications of contemplated government regulation of poultry contracts have indicated that the mandatory replacement of tournaments with fixed performance standards would a) increase grower welfare, and b) increase or decrease the social surplus. This shows that whereas the mandatory replacement of tournaments with fixed performance standards, absent any other rules, can decrease grower income insurance without raising welfare, income insurance and welfare can simultaneously be increased provided that the slope of the bonus payment scheme, the so called "piece rate," is also regulated. Moreover, the enforcement of fixed performance standards absent any rules for the magnitude of the piece rate will result in an unambiguous reduction in social surplus, but regulation accompanied by a rule determining the magnitude of the piece rate may or may not reduce social surplus, depending on the technology and preferences. Impact - If the public policy in this area is to receive sufficient guidance, it is essential that it relies on economic research of this kind. The obtained results provide an accurate account of the welfare implications of a concrete regulatory proposal and gives a specific set of instructions how to proceed. The idea of simply imposing a mandatory use of fixed performance schemes in settlement of broiler contracts will not achieve a targeted goal of improving the welfare of growers. A fairly elaborate scheme that requires the regulation of the "piece rate" will have to be introduced instead. A substantial opposition from the integrators' circle should be expected because the companies will be worse off under this scheme. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Key Theme - Niche Market The majority of North Carolina's strawberry crop is sold through direct market channels, such as Pick-Your-Own and Ready-Pick operations. However, few managers know the socioeconomic characteristics of their customers or have ever assessed the effectiveness of their advertisement campaigns. Therefore, they do not know who their customers are, if they are receiving the desired results from their promotional efforts, or if they are spending their advertising dollars wisely. Consumer surveys were conducted at eight direct market strawberry operations during the 1999 marketing seasons. Customers were asked if they could recall any recent advertisements and if the ads had an impact on their decision to shop at the garden center. The amount of fruit the customers purchased, amounts spent during the shopping trip, and selected consumer socioeconomic characteristics were also collected. Impact - Direct market strawberry operators now have more information to help them make more informed marketing decisions. They have a better understanding of their "typical" customers, how far they travel to pick or buy fruit, and the most effective advertising means of reaching their target customers. Consequently, managers can change their services, product offerings, and advertising programs to better promote their strawberry operations. The operators also know how to improve the effectiveness of their advertising programs and how to attract new customers by focusing on the reasons customers buy direct market fruit and by informing working couples that pre-picked fruit is available. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - State Key Theme - Risk Management With the removal of much of the safety net that previously existed for farmers in the 1996 Farmbill, farmers are now more susceptible to unfavorable price movements. This fact, coupled with low commodity prices for corn, soybeans, and wheat has resulted in an increased demand by farmers to gain the knowledge and skills required to better market their crops. Many farmers consider marketing as their weakest area in their farm enterprise. In order for farmers to make fully informed decisions concerning marketing grain crops and reducing exposure to price risk, understanding how local prices and basis have behaved historically is extremely important. A historical database for soybean and corn prices by location for North Carolina over the period 1980-1999 has been developed and is being continually updated. This database allows the calculation of basis which is critically important to grain marketing decisions. These basis tables are available as part of the North Carolina Soybean and Corn Price Yearbook and have also been made available on the web at the North Carolina State Grain Marketing Homepage. Impact - These data combined with the educational materials available give farmers (and others) the necessary tools and ability to make more informed and better marketing decisions. For example, the yearbook gives farmers the knowledge of historical basis that can be used to decide whether to accept or reject a particular forward price offer, to decide whether to hedge using futures, or to store their crops for a deferred sale. These data will also serve as an extremely useful resource for analyzing other important economic questions. For example, this data is also being utilized in the development of the CropRisk, the software tool that is being developing as part of the risk project that the department has received funding for from the USDA. Finally, since this information has been made available for over a year now and I have used it in my extension programs I have had much positive feedback from producers who are utilizing this information in making marketing decisions. For example, numerous producers have shared with me that this information has allowed them to increase their bottom line significantly. In particular, one producer shared that it was worth more than $1 per bushel (about a 20 per cent increase) on their net soybean price due to the strategy he successfully adopted as a result of this information and marketing programs he attended. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - Regional Key Theme - Agricultural Financial Management The difference in the prices of pesticide products which are chemically identical, but can not be shipped across country borders has caused farmers and others on either side of the US-Canada border to complain. The concern is that farmers on either side of the border who grow the same crops do not have access to the same pesticides, and if they are available they are higher priced. This condition can lead to differences in costs of production and profitability for farmers of key crops such as wheat, barley, potatoes and canola. At the request of the US Department of Agriculture and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada a study was initiated by G. Carlson, NCSU, and McEwan of Guelph University to study the price differences of pesticide products between the US and Canada. The three objectives of the study were: 1) to assemble information on price levels for all major pesticides used on wheat, barley, potatoes and canola in the US and Canada, 2) to evaluate reasons for price differences between locations, and 3) to assess the effects of price differences on the cost of production of crops. The information was assembled into a report and orally presented to USDA and AAFC. A Senate Agriculture hearing was held to consider the study and possible legislation to allow shipment of pesticides across the US-Canada border. Impact - The economic impact of price differences in pesticides on the total pesticide costs of farmers were small because farmers were able to substitute pesticide products and use more mechanical pest controls. We did find price differences for various pesticides. Some were higher in Canada, and some were lower there. The economic explanations for higher prices included higher willingness to pay in some areas (demand), higher cost to produce and sell the products, price discrimination by sellers, patent protection differences and differences in the prices of substitute pesticides. The price difference summaries showed that the price differences were often higher between US-Canada locations than between US locations. However, over time, pesticide price differences sometimes favored US farmers and sometimes favored Canadian farmers. The findings did not imply that legislation is needed. Source of Funds - Hatch, State Scope of Impact - National Expenditures and Personnel Commitments Appropriations Grants and Contracts Personnel Federal State Federal Non-Federal SY PY TY CY $218,210 $902,699 $142,910 $76,896 4.8 5.6 4.0 3.3 Goal 1, Program Area 6: Product Development Overview Activities in this program area in 2000 have concentrated on development of new and improved animal and fruit and vegetable products, reduction of waste through development of by-products. It is envisioned that new products and/or processes will be adopted by industry leading to economic expansion by way of domestic and international sales of North Carolina and other U.S. value-enhanced agricultural products. Single-event economic impact can be equated to a $20 million or greater increase in sales. Some highlights of activities in this program area are listed below. Fat soluble vitamins are often removed due to reduced fat products. A milk protein, -lactoglobulin, has been shown to bind with these vitamins and thus provides a new vehicle to low-fat product fortification utilizing dairy product components. Studies have shown that many fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants that can reduce free radicals associated with degenerative diseases. Processing techniques are being optimized to maximize the antioxidant content and quality of several North Carolina fruits, along with development of an antioxidant nutrient database of North Carolina fruits. Quality retention and shelf-life extension have been achieved for North Carolina blueberries by washing with ozonated water. A new procedure modified whey protein concentrate using hydrolysis, gelation, freeze-drying and grinding to impact starch-like functionality to fluid systems. Over a broad range of pH and temperature conditions, these dairy-based ingredients significantly lower processing costs. Biological nitrogen fixation can provide an economic and environmentally safe source of this nutrient for efficiently nodulated leguminous species. This can be especially advantageous in tropical soils which are generally low in available plant nutrients. Leguminous forage species adapted to the soils and capable of high nitrogen fixation may therefore have an important impact on pasture-base animal production system. Work has indicated that effective selection of Bradyrhizobium strains for A. pinto: improves dry matter yield and forage quality. Research has shown that the quality of shredded sweetpotato can be maintained for 14 days of storage at 4 C, thus allowing expanded market for all grades of these roots.