PSI Public Seed Initiative Cornell University USDA Plant Genetic Resources Unit Northeastern Organic Farming Association of New York, Inc. Farmer Cooperative Genome Project

Program Elements

 

• Seed Production

 

• Workshops to provide training in seed production

• Provide mobile seed processing equipment and service for producers and small seed companies

 

• Organic Field Days

 

• Disseminate information on latest research methods, results, and new initiatives at Cornell University

• Provide technical support and troubleshoot problems for Organic production methods

 

• On Farm Commercial Variety Trials and Demonstrations

 

• Public Germplasm Database of vegetable varieties created by public breeders and available for producers

• Demonstration trials to get feedback about variety performance from growers in this area

• Replicated trials for quantitative data on promising varieties

 

• Participatory Breeding and Selection

 

• Workshops for interested growers on techniques of pollination, assessment, selection, and breeding methods

• Provide access to parent germplasm and unfinished varieties for commercial seed companies, especially small corporations

 

Program Goals

 

• Establish a connection between university research and small producers

• Distribute benefits of public investments in genomics to producers

• Train interested growers in selection and breeding methods for developing new varieties

• Help establish markets for producers of organic seed, and for seed developed for northeastern growing conditions

• Decentralize seed production to meet grower needs in this region and provide an alternative to the limited varieties available from large commercial sources.

 

Program Leaders

 

Molly Jahn Program Director Department of Plant Breeding Cornell University	Sarah Johnston Executive Director Northeastern Organic Farming Association of NY, Inc. (NOFA-NY)
Anu Rangarajan Department of Horticulture Cornell University	Larry Robertson Plant Genetic Resources Unit USDA-ARS Geneva NY
JJ Haapala Farmer Cooperative Genome Project Junction City, Oregon
Northeastern Organic Farming Association   Michael Glos Ph: 607-657-2860 Email: michaelglos@nofany.org Web: www.nofany.org	Organic Systems Development NOFA-NY Project Coordinator 9398 West Creek Rd Berkshire, NY 13736
Field Days and Breeding Workshops   Mark Henning Ph: 607-255-1241 Fax: 607-255-6344 Email: mjh7@cornell.edu	106 Love Lab Caldwell Rd Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853
Questions?  Contact the Project Manager:   Matt Falise Ph: 607-255-6442 Fax: 607-255-6344 Email: mf93@cornell.edu	106 Love Lab Caldwell Rd Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853

 

The Public Seed Initiative (PSI) is a joint project of NOFA-NY, Cornell University, Farmers Cooperative Genome Project, and USDA-ARS Plant Genetics Resource Unit (Geneva, NY). Funding for PSI is provided by a grant from the USDA Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems.