A Better Bean

A BETTER BEAN

Will soybeans grown in the future contain more oil? More protein?

Will this change how soybeans are grown on Iowa farms? What will global customers demand in soy products?

Will customers pay a premium for these characteristics?

We talk to the experts about what a future ‘better bean’ looks like.

Today’s average soybean seed composition:

OIL: 19%

MEAL: Protein: 34% (essential & nonessential amino acids) | Soluble carbohydrates: 9% | Insoluble carbohydrates: 21% (fiber) | Ash: 4% (minerals) | Moisture: 13%

BUILDING A BETTER BEAN

Each year, farmers strive to grow a bigger, better crop. Similarly, researchers work to find ways to enhance the existing crop and build a better bean. But what is a better bean? What makes it better?

“It could mean so many different things,” says Danny Singh, Ph.D., a soybean breeder at Iowa State University (ISU). “How a consumer would define a perfect bean may not necessarily be a perfect bean for someone who is producing it.”

Danny Singh, Ph. D. Iowa State University

Photo: Joseph L. Murphy/Iowa Soybean Association

A better bean, says Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) District 1 Director Brent Swart, contains a variety of characteristics.

“The better bean in the farmer’s eyes probably looks more at traits, agronomics, yield and disease resistance,” says Swart, a farmer and Pioneer field agronomist near Spencer.

Improved beans

Soybeans raised in Iowa are different than those raised 20 years ago, says Suzanne Shirbroun, ISA district 3 director from Farmersburg.

Part of that is the advancement in seed treatments, she says. Suzanne and her husband Joe, operate a seed dealership and customize their seed treatments at their customers’ requests.

Seed treatments keep improving, Shirbroun says, requiring less need for chemical applications.

“I’m putting a fraction of an ounce, in some cases, on a unit of about 140,000 seeds, or roughly 1 acre of seeds,” she says. “That’s less than I would have to apply via broadcast spraying or aerial applications.”

The seed treatments have improved through research efforts, like those that Singh and his team are undertaking.

Singh’s work through the Iowa Soybean Research Center at ISU is aimed at working toward a perfect bean through research, breeding and technology development. ISA is a major contributor to the center.

Clayton Carley, ISU graduate student.

Photo: Joseph L. Murphy/Iowa Soybean Association

Research pipeline

Singh and his team grow thousands of soybean research plots per year, looking at the performance of various traits and the impact of various stressors on soybean plant growth.

The use of machine learning methodology also helps determine what weather parameters are most influencing yield at different times of crop growth throughout the United States.

“If we determine those important parameters, we can determine what causes yield reduction,” Singh says. “Then, we can put a genetic solution toward it.”

Shirbroun understands that seed breeding takes time. History has shown that it’s worth the wait. In northeast Iowa, soils are wetter and cooler than in other areas of the state. In the past, farmers managed this by waiting until after Memorial Day to plant soybeans — tilling first.

That’s changed, she says.

“The vigor of soybean breeding has improved,” Shirbroun says. “We’re not as afraid to plant in April and no-till because we have soybeans that can deal with early-season situations.”

Megan Lund, ISU undergraduate field assistant.

Photo: Joseph L. Murphy/Iowa Soybean Association

Systems approach

Singh isn’t looking only to build a better bean. He wants to find better solutions to manage production challenges. Researchers are combining the use of robotics, sensors and drone imaging in an area called cyber-agricultural systems.

“In doing so, we’re very strategic in being able to find where the problem is and being able to mitigate it, so these crop solutions have less chemical cost, less input, less soil compaction, less runoff and enhance profitability,” Singh says.

They are working to speed up response rates to challenges found in the field, Singh says.

“If we know three or four days in advance that a disease is going to come, smaller robotic units can take care of that issue to prevent it,” he says.

In-field use of these technologies could be just a few years away, Singh says. His research team is driven by improving production with reduced input costs and the time and effort invested.

“That’s the motivation behind it,” Singh says. “The perfect bean is not just one that provides a higher level of protein, oil or meal, but one that can be produced in a way that makes farmers profitable.”

GROWING A BETTER BEAN

There are research and marketing opportunities surrounding the idea of a better bean, but farmers have perhaps one of the largest roles in this process: growing it.

Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) District 5 Director Tom Vincent says growing a better bean could be an option if there’s an incentive to do so. He’s raised seed soybeans for several years near Perry and understands opportunity.

"One of the reasons I became a seed bean grower was to get rewarded for a higher level of management,” Vincent says. He’s able to capture a $1-per-bushel premium to produce a clean, high-quality bean with good germination and color.

Other soybean farmers are growing non-GMO or food-grade soybeans to capture a premium. Currently, there aren’t incentives for raising soybeans with a higher protein or oil content. When there’s a market, farmers will respond, says ISA District 1 Director Brent Swart.

"If the market makes it possible to factor those metrics into how we get paid as farmers, that could change the face of what we do out here,” he says.

Swart, a field agronomist and farmer near Spencer, says farmers are continually looking to grow a better bean. Challenges change from year to year — weed control, erratic weather patterns, pests and diseases — and sometimes hinder progress. But farmers adapt to these challenges.

“Traits are helping us build a better bean from a disease, yield and agronomic standpoint,” Swart says. “Advancements are real and happening faster every year.”

When the better bean is created and marketing opportunities offer promise for soybean farmers, ISA CEO Kirk Leeds says farmers will be ready to respond.

“Farmers are pretty good at responding to market signals,” Leeds says. “They will provide whatever bean the customer wants, as long as it allows them to profit in the marketplace.”

MARKETING A BETTER BEAN

Investing in research and technology to produce a better bean is only fruitful if customers are willing to buy those soybeans. Without a market, all that’s left is a larger pile of soybeans.

That’s where efforts of the Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) and U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) team up.

A perfect soybean in the eyes of global customers contains characteristics that enable farmers to sufficiently feed their livestock — everything from pigs to fish. For human consumption, a better bean contains characteristics essential in soyfood production and consumption.

“They say the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is when we have a bean that has more oil and more protein and improved yield for farmers,” says Karey Claghorn, senior director at USSEC and former chief operating officer at ISA.

Karey Claghorn, Sr. Director, Organizational Collaboration and Innovation, U.S. Soybean Export Council

Photo: Joseph L. Murphy/Iowa Soybean Association

Farmers say they rely on ISA and USSEC in communicating the needs of customers.

“ISA plays an important role in connecting the dots between research, producers, consumers and end users,” says Brent Swart, ISA District 1 director.

ISA has been a part of the conversation surrounding the idea of this ‘better bean.’ ISA organized a conference in Chicago in 2018, bringing together stakeholders from across the country to strategize on the best opportunities to profitably market a 5-billion-bushel U.S. crop.

“Growth in demand both domestically and internationally is critical, and one of Kirk Leeds the ways to capture our share of this increased demand is to make sure we are delivering soybeans, and in some cases, ‘better beans’ than are currently available,” says ISA CEO Kirk Leeds.

ISA CEO Kirk Leeds

Photo: Joseph L. Murphy/Iowa Soybean Association

The first step is determining what customers want, Claghorn says.

“I believe in the future we'll need a more adaptable marketing system that’s ready to supply end users with the unique product they want,” Claghorn says.

She says there is a tool being developed that will help end users quantify how much value U.S. soy could add to their business. The tool, which is being tested, could be shared with many end users soon.

Building relationships

Global customers recognize U.S. soy as a high-quality protein for livestock, poultry and aquaculture, Leeds points out. Soy protein is a leading provider of protein for direct human consumption. On the oil side, soybean farmers provide a product that is healthy, and sustainably and competitively produced.

But the soybean industry must not rest on this reputation. There are opportunities to tap into additional markets and sell larger soybean supplies.

ISA District 3 Director Suzanne Shirbroun of Farmersburg expects her checkoff investments to pay off in the form of soybean sales.

“ISA and USSEC are my salespeople to the world, whether it’s to the hog farmer in North Carolina or Thailand,” she says. “We need to find customers, and we need to say, ‘Yes, we can produce this bean for you.’”

Relationships will continue to be key in marketing soybeans — even better beans, Claghorn says.

“Every country has different tastes and different market demands, so showing our customers that we can grow and deliver the products they want will help build demand for U.S. soy,” Claghorn says. Leeds is assured in the ability of ISA and USSEC to expand markets, and, in turn, deliver results to Iowa soybean farmers.

“ISA has a long history of meeting the needs of customers in Iowa, across the country and around the world,” Leeds says. “I am confident we will continue to be able to deliver soybeans that meet the needs of our customers.”

Contact Bethany Baratta at bbaratta@iasoybeans.com.