Manhattan, Kansas
June 2007
Source: The Seed Source,
Newsletter of the Kansas Crop
Improvement Association
The
Kansas Crop Improvement
Association (KCIA) and the
Kansas
Seed Industry Association (KSIA) have been invited to join
four other organizations by becoming Founding Members of a new
non-profit Kansas corporation, the Kansas Wheat Alliance (KWA).
The goal of forming KWA is to increase the competitiveness of
the wheat industry and strengthen the Kansas economy.
KWA will function as a genetics wholesaler, focused on licensing
and commercializing wheat varieties released
by Kansas State University
(KSU). One important function of KWA will be to make it possible
to deliver farmer-preferred, value-adding proprietary
technologies, such as the Clearfield® herbicide tolerance trait,
in K-State wheat varieties. By collecting royalties or other
fees on licensed varieties, KWA will also create a new fund for
investment in wheat research and educational programs.
The proposal for forming the Kansas Wheat Alliance was developed
with input from producers, seedsmen, researchers and trait
providers.
The Boards of KCIA and KSIA have expressed general support for
the KWA proposal and given approval to meet with other founding
members to discuss next steps. The other proposed Founding
Members are the Kansas Wheat Commission (KWC), Kansas
Association of Wheat Growers (KAWG), K-State Research and
Extension (KSRE), and the KSU Research Foundation (KSURF).
KSRE and KSURF have approved the proposal. KWC and KAWG have
indicated positive interest, and they
have set aside time for discussing the proposal during their
next regular meeting on May 30. The goal will be to have KWA
operating in time for the release of K-State’s first Clearfield®
variety, which is expected in August of 2008.
For further information, contact Maurice Miller or Jim Sipes,
both of whom serve on the Wheat Variety Release Working Group. |
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