July 11, 2005
Media Advisory – Agricultural Research Tour
Farmers from across the state and officials of the Illinois Soybean Checkoff Board will arrive by bus Thursday, July 14, at the Agronomy Research Center on Pleasant Hill Road (just west of McLafferty) to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s agricultural research tour. Scheduled talks and tours throughout the morning will give farmers a better picture of what they get for their check-off dollars (a pennies-per-bushel fee paid at the grain elevator). The news media are welcome to attend at any time.
The event kicks off at 8 a.m. with an introduction by College of Agricultural Sciences Dean Gary L. Minish. Sessions on nematode research and the soybean breeding, weeds and pathology programs will take place simultaneously from 8:15 a.m. to 10 a.m. Pathologist John S. Russin’s report on Asian rust, a hugely destructive soybean disease moving up from the south, would likely be of interest to readers and viewers.
Updates on the college’s soy foods initiative, its work with schools offering lunch programs, and its multidisciplinary Center of Excellence for Soybean Research, Training and Outreach will take place from 11 a.m. to noon in Student Center Ballroom B. Allan D. Higginbotham’s work with soy and human health and Sharon L. Barter’s work with the school lunch program would likely be of greatest interest to readers and viewers.
Reporters and photographers looking for interviews will have the best luck catching people before 8:15 a.m. or during the 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. break. Some researchers and all invited guests also will be available during the soy lunch scheduled for noon to 1:30 p.m. in the ballroom.