U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service

Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products (NP 306)

Tuesday Afternoon

June 10, 2008

# Breakout Records:

  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------
  **[Breakout                    **Group 1 -- Cotton Quality, Ginning, Utilization**
  Group:]{.smallcaps}**          

  **[Moderator:]{.smallcaps}**   **[Ed Hughs]{.smallcaps}**

  **[Recorder:]{.smallcaps}**    **[Rick Byler]{.smallcaps}**

  **[Presenter:]{.smallcaps}**   **['Sid' Brough / Harrison Ashley]{.smallcaps}**
  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------

1.  **How well did research in this ARS National Program address your
    organization's needs or priorities over the last 9 years?**

Done well for ginning industry -- all three labs (Stoneville, Lubbock,
Las Cruces)

> Moisture issues -- good progress, still needs work
>
> Short fiber -- still an issue -- source, reducing, and measurement
>
> Stripper harvesting issues ARS did research, no other researchers
>
> Measurement for HVI -- current and additional measurements

ARS researchers are known throughout industry, good communication

Stakeholders have good working relationship, kept up to date at Beltwide
and other meetings

Would like more cooperative work with Cotton Incorporated in finishing,
dying and textile chemistry

Good cooperation with fiber and yarn quality research

Cotton Incorporated would like more cooperative work on additional HVI
development

Currently there is work with fiber measurements between AMS, ARS, and
China

Short fiber -- variety, harvesting, ginning, textile processing -- a
problem

Short fiber a problem for domestic mill as well as export market

ARS gin labs were very responsive to cotton problem in GA

Roller ginned upland cotton

Neps are an additional problem after short fiber

Lack fast short fiber, neps, stickiness, seed coat fragments

Fiber to fiber cohesion

Good work on contamination -- more progress needed

2.  **What should be ARS' role in this area of research? What should be
    relegated to universities and industry?**

Nationwide impact of most ginning res Basic research, not testing
equpment generally, testing technology

Dynamic industry, some immediate problems

Short fiber, neps, stickiness, seed coat fragments, color

Emergency work is appropriate for ARS, no other group can respond as
fast

Do high risk research, without (much) regard to economic details

Do practical research

ARS should coordinate with NCC and CI in research

Don't draw lines on long vs. short term research

Publish, vs. Patent, vs. CRADA

PM~2.5~ Study -- multiple gins, multiple agencies -- need methodology,
data, resources

earch -- ARS recognized as authoritative

Cotton industry has a fabulous research support in ARS, universities are
harder to work with

Collaboration with equivocation -- don't be too sensitive about details
of research subject details

Someone needs to evaluate technology, ARS should be less reluctant -- no
one else to do it

3.  **How have recent market changes, paradigm shifts, and technology
    developments affected your organization?**

More emphasis on the short fiber issue than previously

Fuel/ energy costs up, need to look at more efficient energy use

CO~2~ regulatory issues

Sustainability

Changed market, ring spinning vs. rotor spinning -- paradigm shift

Domestic market lower, export market greater

EFS has added to US cotton market value, certain additional information
for each bale would add more value

Input costs up substantially, will affect crop choices by farmers,
market will determine what crop is grown, ARS research needs to be
flexible

Relative input costs affect technology needs, hence ARS research topics

Sports apparel -- taken over by synthetics

Fire retardant -- new regulations, expanded number of products covered

Wrinkle resistance -- continued emphasis

Bio-technology

Consumer demand for higher quality -- drying, cleaning, wrinkle
resistance,

Sustainability and pressure regarding environmental footprint of
conventional cotton processes -- energy input, carbon exchange, water
pollution, GMO, total costs, customer costs -- need research to address
these new issues and document truth of situation, benefits and draw
backs

  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------
  **[Breakout                    **Group 2 - Animal-Based Products**
  Group:]{.smallcaps}**          

  **[Moderator:]{.smallcaps}**   **Peggy Tomasula**

  **[Recorder:]{.smallcaps}**    **Bill Marmer**

  **[Presenter:]{.smallcaps}**   **Doug DiRienzo and Dean DiDato**
  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------

1.  **How well did research in this ARS National Program address your
    organization's needs or priorities over the last 9 years?**

-   From leather perspective, very pleased in what he's seen over last 7
    years: Stressed continuing importance of leather:

-   Great for the finished leather side, but would have liked to see
    increased attention to hides. (All hides and leather = \>\$2B export
    market.)

-   Call for better cross-pollination with other ARS researchers outside
    NP306 (animal husbandry, nutrition, pest control, breeding).

-   No work with lamb pelts over last few years.

-   Calls for an independent wool research project (as opposed to a
    component of another CRIS project).

-   From dairy perspective, ARS researcher credibility highly credible.

-   ARS has done good job on non-feed uses (particularly due to BSE
    issues), need flexibility for more to be done.

-   Sheep people appreciated collaborative efforts with ARS in full
    spectrum of research.

-   Most of AMI's focus on pathogen reduction. Very little on such meat
    quality issues as tenderness. As for poultry: same.

-   Water and air issues; recovery from water stream. Minimize water
    use. Needs not yet addressed.

-   5-year research span is too rigid if the target is moving.

-   Annual review program was praised, but can request switches in
    priorities too often.

2.  **What should be ARS' role in this area of research? What should be
    relegated to universities and industry?**

\[per Frank Flora: national security, health & welfare, promote
discovery and innovation, economic competitiveness, long-term/high risk,
global, national or regional in scope, benefits to consumers, for policy
decisions\]

-   Lots of universities doing meat research, but no university work on
    hides. ARS is unique.

-   ARS needs to take its research further along to development to get
    industry to take it on.

-   USDA should not continue doing work if takers aren't there.

-   ARS's role is very high priority in some long-term research.
    Industry is all applied research. Would hate to see ARS not do the
    longer term, higher risk research. Partnering needs to be
    heightened. Need publicity to get the work out to the industry.

-   Some basic knowledge is fundamental, and thus should not be cut off
    if no interest is seen. If too applied, it'll be changing too
    quickly.

-   Other role that's important is publication of the research in
    scientific journals. ARS does good job in that, but should work to
    get the information out to stakeholders in other vehicles, too.

-   ARS's role is to do basic research to address new opportunities and
    reduce risk before handing off to industry.

-   ARS needs to take its work further along to get its work adopted.

3.  **How have recent market changes, paradigm shifts, and technology
    developments affected your organization?**

-   Use of corn for ethanol and therefore effects on the feed market.

-   Energy has affected everything.

-   Green issues, sustainability

-   All commodity costs are up, even lowly salt.

-   We have the safest food in world, yet can't export it.

-   Irony: America lost tanning industry to China partly because of
    increasing environmental restrictions, but now China is imposing
    environmental controls!

-   Loss in trade means less imported containers to fill with exports.

-   Pricing of rendered fat less and less tied to price of corn, but
    more and more tied to price of fuels -- a huge shift.

-   Use of waste byproducts.

-   Might see more interest in ARS research as company research programs
    are pared.

-   Potential growing markets abroad as middle class grows abroad.

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-   Water is a commodity, and processing facilities are having problems
    getting sufficient water. ARS attention to this is critical. No
    one's done critical work on what's in the odor stream.

  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------
  **[Breakout                    **Group 3 - Cereal & Oilseed Quality & Processing**
  Group:]{.smallcaps}**          

  **[Moderator:]{.smallcaps}**   **Steve Delwiche**

  **[Recorder:]{.smallcaps}**    **Chris Butts**

  **[Presenter:]{.smallcaps}**   **[Gavin O'Reilly, Pertens
                                 Instruments]{.smallcaps}**
  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------

1.  **How well did research in this ARS National Program address your
    organization's needs or priorities over the last 9 years?**

Responsive to industry requests and addressing immediate industry needs
(peanuts, imaging, sensing, gluten, moisture measurement,mycotoxin).

Segregation and detection of hard red v hard white wheat

Support of malting barley quality and other commodities

Sometimes too quick to move on without properly transferring technology.

Data to identify biochemical markers of various fungi in the production
of aflatoxin is lacking (DON).

Require greater objective evaluation of new varieties (barley, peanut,
wheat)

Require greater communication and outreach to industry

2.  **What should be ARS' role in this area of research? What should be
    relegated to universities and industry?**

Balance applied and fundamental research; CRADA's, patents driving the
research

Research should be focused on the public good

Scientist performance based on publications may risk high research

De-emphasize niche markets (organics) and focus on quality to food to
the masses.

What comes after NIR? Rapid testing methods

3.  **How have recent market changes, paradigm shifts, and technology
    developments affected your organization?**

More export competitors (former USSR)

Higher cost of production

Harvest capacity of peanut has outstripped testing method capacity.

International consolidation of businesses

Tightened standard due to lower detection limits

  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------
  **[Breakout                    **Group 4 - Bioactive Compounds and Functional
  Group:]{.smallcaps}**          Foods**

  **[Moderator:]{.smallcaps}**   **[Joe Rich]{.smallcaps}**

  **[Recorder:]{.smallcaps}**    **Arland Hotchkiss**

  **[Presenter:]{.smallcaps}**   **[Mark Arney]{.smallcaps}**
  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------

1.  **How well did research in this ARS National Program address your
    organization's needs or priorities over the last 9 years?**

-   ARS has generally done a good job of what was expected 9 years ago

-   Examples of ARS being ahead of the curve in research (whey proteins)
    -- looked at market needs early on

-   Probiotics example -- US research behind that in Europe and Asia --
    no US demand for this research 9 years ago

-   Need better nutrition -- 306 linkage

-   Nine years too long (strategic plans every three years), needs
    change

-   Industry groups need to send focused message to ARS

-   ARS good at thinking out of the box" leading critical issues, give
    ARS freedom to explore

-   ARS high risk (market) research, industry can't do high risk
    research, concern about destroying IP by early publication

-   Industry responsibility to get involved in planning process

-   Disconnect between ARS and industry, need better communication (open
    doors both ways about what research is done)

##### Need easy way to move funds with agreements

-   Partnerships have worked in solving problems and developing new
    technologies (good three-way collaborations ARS, industry, academic)

2.  **What should be ARS' role in this area of research? What should be
    relegated to universities and industry?**

ARS brings credibility for independent research to validate industry
results (example probiotics)

-   help in determining concentration of viable bacteria or

-   efficacy

ARS is not in the business of developing new products but we will
develop new processes for food processing, functional foods (processes
not products)

-   ARS 30,000 foot level

-   University ground level

-   Industry grass level

-   Proactive research ability of ARS

-   Long-term, high-risk research, industry seeks but wants solution in
    short time frame

Consortium of academic, ARS, industry collaborators (Kokini suggested
genomics/metabolomics -- university/government, analysis/validation ARS,
animal/human testing industry), difficult to manage 107/306 sharing
funds (different program cycle off by 18 months), we can't deal with
diseases or therapeutics

Collaborations, ARS is a not contract service lab

Status report on bioactive/functional foods

-   What are industry, government agencies, international agencies,
    universities already doing

ARS needs to stay forward thinking

3.  **How have recent market changes, paradigm shifts, and technology
    developments affected your organization?**

Peanuts

-   Oil prices

-   Acreage to corn (incentives)

-   Healthy food market

-   Market looking at new "sexy" foods, challenge for traditional
    foods/products

-   Just peanuts not sliced almonds

-   Need to find new components/ways to market peanuts

-   Farming has become very efficient

-   Need better grading system

Paradigm shifts

-   Nutrition and health in foods

-   Need for NP 107-306 projects to be planned together, link CRIS
    projects

-   Fuel prices, impact on beef

-   Opportunities for processing, research for improving
    sensory/functional properties of healthy foods

-   Competing with other crops -- beets vs corn and wheat (grain prices
    at all time highs), need to look at co-products, new uses to compete

-   Organic market demand, Research to determine the differences organic
    vs traditional

-   Super foods technologies

-   Consumer wants natural but industry sees need to feed the world

Market changes

-   Push need for data pertaining to efficacy of phytonutrients in
    products (probiotics)

-   \$ needed for efficacy/validation research

-   companies want ownership of information (IP)

Technologies

-   Non-animal-based methods of testing biological activity/efficacy

    -   Nutrigenomics, metabolomics

    -   Micro-arrays

    -   Need new whole-animal model

  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------
  **[Breakout                    **Group 5 - Specialty Crops Quality & Processing**
  Group:]{.smallcaps}**          

  **[Moderator:]{.smallcaps}**   **Liz Baldwin**

  **[Recorder:]{.smallcaps}**    **Jim Mattheis**

  **[Presenter:]{.smallcaps}**   **[Sola Lamikanra]{.smallcaps}**
  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------

1.  **How well did research in this ARS National Program address your
    organization's needs or priorities over the last 9 years?**

-Table grape breeding program, particularly improvement of postharvest
quality,

flavors/aroma, texture, avoiding blemish, stability

-Citrus: new high value products from waste, flavone, limonoid work,
nutritional related products; influence of greening on quality;
communication w/stakeholders enhanced; Fresh: disease issues from
coatings, biofilms; ethanol by product

-sweet potato: development of patented technology (sweet potato puree)

-apples: commercialization of 1-MCP

-improved communication of expertise available

-sugar: high quality of work, related to process changes, more research
directed to sugar requested

-pickles: shelf-life work, consumer acceptance, minimizing process waste
(brine recycling), process filing work, education related to regulatory
changes, ARS as resource for industry related information

-mango: nutritive value

-tech transfer via popular media, demonstrating understanding of
industry, mentoring for new SYs from established communicators

Summarize:

Quality, shelf life

By products to minimize waste streams, value added

Nutritional value

Disease control (quality limitation)

Bio-fuels (citrus, sugar)

Communication to industry, expertise

Responding to industry requests for information/new research

2.  **What should be ARS' role in this area of research? What should be
    relegated to universities and industry?**

-dual role of fundamental / applied work , balanced approach,
situational to react to emerging needs

-do not do product development beyond proof of principle, shouldn't
compete with existing products, could enhance value of existing products
where no incentive for industry to perform the work; large versus small
business development, creating products for new markets rather than to
compete in an existing market,

-continue with base expertise to do science as resources allow

-prioritize within research needs

-organic vrs conventional questions

-good communication with industry

-grant driven research --funding agency priorities determine outcomes,
source of unbiased research

-service labs to provide quality information to breeding programs

-methodologies to compare organic/conventional

summary:

dual role: fundamental, applied as appropriate

national priorities as benefits consumers, regional producers

development of non-competitive products

responding to emerging issues

3.  **How have recent market changes, paradigm shifts, and technology
    developments affected your organization?**

-need to be sustainable, labor shortage, water availability/quality,
fuel costs

-carbon monitoring/footprinting

-health aspects of calorie consumption

-market changes (sweet potatoes) increased consumption, newness,
uniqueness: interest in value added products leads to waste management
issues, nutritional potential for health (nutrition, obesity) ; process
related questions for storage information

-need for clinical studies related to commodity nutritional value

-harmonization of existing federal nutritional databases (FDA, USDA)

-progress rapidity related to emerging diseases (citrus greening)

-lack of mechanization to deal with labor issues

-impact of disease management on quality, food safety

-drought issues on quality, lack of chilling for litchi flowering, other
climate issues

-energy related price increases

-quality parameters impacting fuel production

-process information to preserve nutritional and edible quality
(flavor/texture)

-irradiation impacts on mango quality (nutritional, edibility)

-genetic modification for disease management (citrus), quality
enhancement: role of ARS in evaluation of quality, establishment of
traits to enhance

-market changes due to globalization

Overall summary:

Question 1. what did ars do right?

1.  added value/by-products, nutritional value, minimizing waste

2.  shelf life extension/ quality evaluation

3.  non-biased information

4.  rapid response / valued resource

5.  responding to industry input for research needs, information

Question 2. ARS future role

1.  basic high-risk effort needed / long-term but balanced w/immediate
    needs/ applied

2.  proof of princi;oe/ method development

3.  organic vrs conventional vs biotech

4.  new markets / value added

5.  breeding / nutritional and market quality, crop energy value

Question 3. effect of market changes/paradigm shifts

1.  need for sustainability/environmental impact

2.  waste stream reduction/recycling

3.  energy related cost issues

4.  health and wellness information

5.  disease management (costs)

6.  new processing methods for quality retention, energy cost savings

7.  genomics

8.  globalization

  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------
  **[Breakout                    **Group 6 -- Biobased Products, Industrial Crops**
  Group:]{.smallcaps}**          

  **[Moderator:]{.smallcaps}**   **Sevim Erhan**

  **[Recorder:]{.smallcaps}**    **Daniel Solaiman**

  **[Presenter:]{.smallcaps}**   **[Jim Martin]{.smallcaps}**
  ------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------

1.  **How well did research in this ARS National Program address your
    organization's needs or priorities over the last 9 years?**

    -   Some successes. Example, hydraulic fluid and soy ink.

    -   Volumes still low- Singles, no homeruns.

    -   "We come to you with specific issues/problems, and you were able
        to solve it. Example, Isopene product

    -   Licensing issues are growing less. Getting better.

    -   AAIC (new crops) strong support from ARS.

2.  **What should be ARS' role in this area of research? What should be
    relegated to universities and industry?**

    -   Disagreement on who should do "Long term, higher risk."

    -   ARS is unique in being able to go from fundamental through
        demonstration. Strength for ARS.

    -   Would like to see more collaboration between ARS and university.
        It seems now ARS collaborates more with industry.

3.  **How have recent market changes, paradigm shifts, and technology
    developments affected your organization?**

    -   Sustainability/Environmental concerns

    -   Rising prices of petroleum (and foods) make bioproducts more
        competitive

    -   Yields per acre increases tremendously over the years.