Progress 09/01/23 to 02/28/25

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project was organic grain producers in the Midwest region, especially growers already using a three-year rotation and incorporating a small grain phase of rotation, who may benefit from adopting oats and buckwheat into their crop rotations. On the end-use side of the supply chain, we targeted owners and operators of small and mid-size food companies who were purchasing imported oats and buckwheat, in an effort to understand the drivers of purchasing decisions and to explore the potential of changing supply chains to domestically grown oast and buckwheat. We collaborated with growers, processors, and end users who already had experiential knowledge with producing oats and buckwheat in the region to conduct focus groups to collect and document knowns and unknowns of growing and processing oats and buckwheat to bring to market; to develop priorities for research and development, and to begin to develop methodologies for advancing Midwest supply chains for these products. Changes/Problems:There were no problems or changes in the implementation of this planning project as described in the proposal. We completed all goals and objectives as described in the economic, focus group, field variety trial, and proposal development objectives. We even recruited a site in another state (MN) to replicate the buckwheat variety trial, and they are now a partner on the new Implementation proposal. We successfully completed Obj. 4, recruitment of a broader network of supply chain participants and development of an Implementation proposal, and we are eager to submit the funding request for the next phase of this project, to build upon planning project findings with the network of public research program and industry collaborators who have joined us. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Field day attendees at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute's annual 2024 field day were shown how we measure different oat and buckwheat traits, including height, leaf number, canopy cover, and internode length measurements. The findings of the field trials, photos, and other learnings gleaned about how to improve Midwest organic oat and buckwheat production and processing, are being incorporated into digitally interactive, web-based educational training modules tailored towards building knowledge and competency in small grain production for grower technical support professionals in the Midwest region. These educational modules will be disseminated via the web and publicized in August 2025. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Oat and buckwheat variety trials were demonstrated to farmers at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute Field Day in August 2024, where field day attendees viewed and examined the varieties, discussed trait differences that were visually evident, and discussed how these trait differences would impact yield and grain quality potential outcomes. Variety trial findings were presented to growers, and factsheets of findings were disseminated, at the OGRAIN Conference in Madison, WI in February 2025, and at the Illinois Organic Grain Conference in February 2025. Buckwheat variety trial plots were also shown to touring scientists at the University of Minnesota St. Paul campus research station throughout August-October of 2024, as a variety trial site was located there. Project personnel have communicated with more than 20 small grain growers and processors in one-on-one phone calls to discuss findings from the field trials and the focus groups, and to discuss future collaborations through the development of an Implementation proposal. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? For the economic analysis, this study employed a comprehensive approach, utilizing both secondary and primary data sources to gather relevant information. Secondary data was collected from publicly available USDA data, as well as crop budgets and financial data from various Midwest universities, including the University of North Dakota, University of Minnesota, and Purdue University. Our economic analysis distilled the following key takeaways: Price Premium for Organic: The significantly higher average price for organic oats ($5.82/bu) compared to conventional oats ($2.60/bu to $3.71/bu) underscores the potential economic incentive for farmers to transition to organic production. This price differential is a crucial element in developing a compelling value proposition for stakeholders in the organic oat value chain. Price and Revenue Variability: The notable differences in price per bushel and revenue per acre across states point to potential inefficiencies or opportunities in the current organic oat market. Our value chain analysis should investigate the causes of these variations and identify strategies to optimize pricing and profitability for all stakeholders. Our research should assess the barriers to entry and growth in states with lower production levels and explore how a more robust value chain could facilitate increased organic oat cultivation. Comparative Advantage Analysis: The data provides a foundation for comparing organic and conventional oat production systems. Our research should build on this by conducting a comprehensive analysis of the costs, returns, and broader benefits (e.g., environmental, social) associated with organic production to strengthen the case for value chain participants. To complement the secondary data, primary data was collected through a series of focus groups, which aimed to gather firsthand insights from key stakeholders in the Midwest grain industry. The farmer focus group, consisting of 10 farmers activety engaged in oat and buckwheat production, found that both oats and buckwheat fit well into the "third crop" window after corn and soybean, making them attractive options for growers looking to diversify their crop rotations.Organic oats offer the potential for high yields, although most farmers grow them for feed grade and do not invest in inputs for the oat phase of the rotation.Buckwheat is particularly appealing due to its ability to enhance soil health and its adaptability to various soil types. Its short growing season allows farmers to conveniently fit it into existing rotation schedules, typically planting after a small grain is harvested in July, and plowing down or harvesting it in the fall. Known key agronomic practices to ensure growers meet test weight requirements of end buyers are early planting and varietal selection, but virtually no research-based fertility practice recommendations are available to growers. This is a key area of research that needs to be prioritized for field trialing.For oats, agronomic research should target grain quality and profitability. For buckwheat, research is needed on harvest timing and methods, as well as fertility management, particularly to optimize plant height and biomass production. This optimization should focus on enhancing weed competition while enabling grain harvest with a combine and improving the harvest index of currently available varieties. For the processor and end user focus group, in summary, further research, development, and investment is needed to develop oat ingredient products via different post-harvest processing steps that are accessible to development by a small- or intermediate-scale processors, to expand access to oat markets and distribution beyond the 2 or 3 firms that currently exist within a very limited geography in terms of crop contracting options for Midwest organic growers. This could manifest as milling recommendations, recommendations for oat handling for brewing/distilling markets, and/or the expansion of steam flaking equipment access and affordability.For buckwheat, we found that consumer awareness is relatively high, mainly rooted in a nostalgia for buckwheat pancakes alongside a somewhat limited awareness of the importance of buckwheat in Northern European and East Asian cuisines. End users described the utility of buckwheat groats for granola when dehulled, or interest in expanding use of the flour, although they reported few resources for determining flour quality, or in discerning between different buckwheat flour products. End users requested expansion of resources to be made available for best methods for using buckwheat flour, what attributes to expect in a range of baking applications, and even resources made available for beverage applications, including brewing with buckwheat. Given the rapidly expanding demand for gluten free grain products, including beverages, investment in resources for end users is sorely needed to expand the application of buckwheat usage to harness its nutritional attributes and its environmental and local marketing benefits. For the field variety trials,this trial confirmed that Midwest-grown oats grown in organic environments can produce test weights suitable for food-grade end-buyers that meet minimum test weight thresholds of 36 or up to 38 lb/bu. This trial also demonstrated that no-till establishment of oats can enable early season planting while creating growing environments where some oat varieties can adequately compete with weeds to achieve economically viable test weights. However, yields in this trial were relatively low compared to county average yields for conventionally grown oats, and we noticed visually evident nitrogen limitation during the growing season. We did not apply any organic fertilizer to the oat trials to mimic common practice of farmers in the region, who typically report relying on residual fertility following corn and soybeans in rotation, often because oats are seen as an economically risky crop where imported fertilizer costs may not be recouped. Our trial highlighted a need, also stated by farmers and breeders in our focus groups, for fertilizer recommendations developed specifically for organic systems with an aim toward maximizing oat yield, quality, and economic returns, to understand what additions to residual corn/soybean soil fertility are needed to improve oat cropping outcomes. For the buckwheat trial, the newest variety release from WA State, 'Tinker', demonstrated the highest yields of all the varieties evaluated, even in the Midwest region which ostensibly has a different climate from where 'Tinker' was developed. This demonstrates the potential for rapid high impact benefits in productivity that can result from the new public buckwheat breeding program. Our trial also found a significant positive correlation between 30-day canopy cover and leaf number with yield, pointing to traits that can be selected for to increase grain yields. On the processing and culinary testing side,large differences were observed among buckwheat varieties at the processing level during milling into flour, but these differences were not detected to a large degree by the consumer, although greater hull retention in buckwheat flour likely results in baked goods with poorer texture ratings from consumers. Varietal development and management practice influence on culinary/sensory properties should be monitored during the development stage prior to variety release to better understand market acceptance of existing or new varieties. For Objective 4, the Implementation Proposal, we have convened three universities, three non-profic organizations, and over 20 industry participants (growers, processors, and end buyers) to collaborate on a three-year Implementation Project. The OREI Implementation proposal was written in December 2024-February 2025, and we are waiting to submit the proposal when the next OREI RFA is released, anticipated in 2025.

Publications

Progress 09/01/23 to 08/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project was organic grain producers in the Midwest region, especially growers already using a three-year rotation and incorporating a small grain phase of rotation, who may benefit from adopting oats and buckwheat into their crop rotations. On the end-use side of the supply chain, we targeted owners and operators of small and mid-size food companies who were purchasing imported oats and buckwheat, in an effort to understand the drivers of purchasing decisions and to explore the potential of changing supply chains to domestically grown oast and buckwheat. We collaborated with growers, processors, and end users who already had experiential knowledge with producing oats and buckwheat in the region to conduct focus groups to collect and document knowns and unknowns of growing and processing oats and buckwheat to bring to market; to develop priorities for research and development, and to begin to develop methodologies for advancing Midwest supply chains for these products. Changes/Problems:No changes/problems have thus far been experienced. We anticipate completion of all objectives as originally described in the proposal. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We have convened a demonstration and workshop at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute farm to show growers how we measure various plant traits to examine varietal differences and inform breeding programs. We demonstrated methods to growers, including measurement of plant height, canopy cover, leaf number, and internode length, and growers participated in some data collection. We plan to incorporate other aspects of this project into educational modules tailored towards building competency in small grain and alternative grain crop production for grower technical support professionals; more progress on this project will be reported in future. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We plan to present findings at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute Field Day in fall 2024, and at several grower conferences throughout the Midwest in 2025, but data collection is ongoing and not ready to present at this time. We will finish conducting focus groups with end buyers and processors, and will complete a report of the economic analysis for Midwest-grown organic oats and buckwheat. We will leverage findings and field trials to develop the educational modules described above, and will continue network development and convene these networks to write the Implementation Proposal (Obj. 4), to be submitted in February 2025.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Thus far we have completed three of the focus groups and the following takeaways have been identified: Planting oats in the spring can be challenging in some parts of the Upper Midwest, particularly in Michigan, due to wet conditions that hinder early planting, which can lead to reduced grain quality and marketability.For oats, high test weight (minimum 36 lb/bu) is key for marketing for food grade, and for high test weight, early planting is essential. In Iowa, some growers no-till as early as March into semi-frozen ground. Oat fertility management programs are typically minimal, relying on residual fertility. The potential for improving oat grain quality through targeted fertility management remains largely unexplored, possibly due to the associated costs and the current lower priority and returns of these grains. Buckwheat is often grown after winter grains, but the timing of planting is crucial to ensure a quality grain crop, as late planting can put the crop at risk of early fall snows in northern regions. Some growers plant buckwheat before a winter grain: in southern WI, buckwheat was planted mid-June then swathed the buckwheat by Labor Day, after which the grower planted winter wheat. The winter wheat was competitive enough to limit buckwheat volunteers.Buckwheat fertility management requires further research to optimize plant height and biomass production for effective weed competition while still allowing for efficient grain harvest using a combine. This optimization should also focus on improving the harvest index of currently available buckwheat varieties. Processing & Storage:Oats and oat flour are highly perishable, posing challenges for small-scale processors and businesses, as consumers expect a shelf-stable product, and steam treating oats for preservation, the norm for large processors, can be cost-prohibitive for smaller operations. An alternative would be to sell nutrient-high fresh oats, but then the oats would need refrigeration at the retail level. Thus, consumer education and/or the development of affordable, smaller-scale oat preservation processing lines are needed to address these challenges when scaling up production. Buckwheat requires extra attention during the harvest and storage stages because it is susceptible to mold and mildew. Historically, buckwheat flour was produced with varying amounts of hull retention, depending on local tastes, to produce a range of colors and flavors. Modern large-scale buckwheat milling processes often remove the hull at 85% extraction and do not mill for fine grains, resulting in large hull pieces. In contrast, other millers use a finer grind which allows them to keep the hull pieces smaller, resulting in a lighter flour without dramatic speckling from the hull pieces. For oats, agronomic research should target grain quality and profitability. For buckwheat, research is needed on harvest timing and methods, as well as fertility management, particularly to optimize plant height and biomass production. This optimization should focus on enhancing weed competition while enabling grain harvest with a combine and improving the harvest index of currently available varieties. Crop Breeder Focus Group Summary Oats: Organic oat production in the Midwest faces several challenges and opportunities. Crown rust resistance has emerged as a critical factor for organic farmers, while millers prioritize test weight as a key quality indicator. The timing of oat maturity plays a significant role in their utility and performance, with early oats facilitating the establishment of cover crops like alfalfa or red clover, and later-maturing varieties better suited to northern climates (e.g., Canada) where summer heat waves are less likely to disrupt pollination and grain fill. While organic oat testing has historically been of limited interest to crop scientists, organic oat production and variety evaluation in organic environments has been growing, and some regions have recently reported organic oats yielding as well as or better than their conventional counterparts. Breeders are focusing on crown rust resistance, higher test weight, and early maturation. Heat tolerance and overall yield potential remain crucial, as does the ability to suppress weeds, a key consideration in organic systems. Climate change is anticipated to increase the frequency and severity of early summer heat waves; therefore, abiotic stress tolerance is becoming increasingly important. Interest among breeders is growing in understanding and improving culinary attributes, though data in this area is currently limited. Buckwheat: The current buckwheat market is dominated by variety not stated (VNS) seed, primarily used for cover cropping. There's a limited selection of named varieties available, with options like cv. Mancan, cv. Manor, and cv. Koto being the most common. A significant challenge in buckwheat production is yield variability, the causes of which are not well understood. While harvesting techniques have improved, it can still be challenging for combines typically found on Midwest grain farms to handle buckwheat biomass. In some regions, organic buckwheat farmers have faced pesticide contamination from neighboring conventional farms. Seed availability and quality, especially for organic production, remains a constraint in many areas. Earliness is a priority, especially for organic farmers in certain regions. Yield stability is a major focus, given the current variability issues. Other important traits include increased seed size, improved lodging resistance, and appropriate plant height. Enhancing self-fertility and increasing polyphenol content for better weed defense are also priorities. Phosphorus uptake efficiency is becoming important in some regions. Fast emergence and large leaves for early shading are desirable for weed management. While determinacy is being explored, breeders are mindful of potential trade-offs with yield. The field variety trials have been planted and are undergoing evaluation. Oat variety trial. The oat variety trial was conducted on certified organic land at the MFAI research farm in East Troy, WI in 2024. Due to feedback and interest from grower focus group participants, we used no-till establishment for the oats, which were planted with a Great Plains no-till drill on March 29, 2024, following organic corn in rotation. Six oat varieties were included in the trial, sourced from Albert Lea Seed, Inc., the dominant organic seed supplier in the region, with varietal origins from the University of Minnesota and the University of South Dakota breeding programs, with all but cv. Sumo selected in conventionally managed environments. The trial was established using a randomized complete block design with four replicates, with 20 x 30' plots. No-till establishment was largely successful; while weeds were present, the oat crop(s) appeared to perform similar to traditional establishment, although a side-by-side comparison of till vs. no-till establishment was beyond the scope of this study. Canopy cover was assessed at 60 days after establishment using the mobile application Canopeo, and weed ratings were visually assessed and recorded using a scale of 0 = 0% weeds comprising the crop canopy to 10 = 100% weeds comprising the crop canopy. Because of a cold wet spring experienced in the region, nearly 30 days passed until oats emerged in the no-till establishment environment. After emergence, the oat varieties generally competed well with weeds; no weed control measures were performed in this trial to enable evaluation of the intrinsic competitiveness of the varieties undergoing evaluation. Weed ratings performed 60 days after establishment were representative of the early season competitive environment experienced by the oats with winter annual-type weed species like shepherds-purse, pennycress, and downy brome.

Publications