- Author: Stacey AMPARANO
If you have ever enjoyed Barilla pasta in your favorite Italian dish, you have most likely consumed Desert Durum wheat from Imperial County. The success of the Desert Durum wheat is due to research of UC Davis Distinguished Professor and HHMI Researcher, Jorge Dubcovsky. Desert REC is the central testing location for the University of California Durum Wheat breeding and Regional testing program. The Imperial Valley is the main location for the production of the Desert Durum ®, a special type of durum with excellent quality that is highly demanded by different local and international buyerslikeBarilla Pasta. Through testing at Desert REC, the UC Durum Wheat breeding and Regional testing program developed the successful variety Desert King in 2005, which was followed in 2011 by Desert King-HP. This varietal incorporated a gene from wild wheat that significantly increased grain protein content. To satisfy the quality requirements of the international buyers the UC programreleasedMiwok in 2013 with reduced cadmium levels. Recently, in 2018 the program released Desert Gold, which combines the high yield potential of Desert King, low cadmium levels, and a superb pasta quality. The durum wheat varieties developed in collaboration between UC Davis and Desert REC currently cover 43% of the durum wheat acreage in California. In addition, UC Davis and Desert REC have collaborated with industry to incorporate the high grain protein content into their varieties. Considered together, the UC varieties combined with the varieties from industry developed with the help of Desert REC and the UC Davis Breeding program currently cover 80% of the durum wheat acreage in California. This number documents the high value that the UC Davis-Desert REC collaboration brings to the California Wheat Industry in general.
Further reading:
UC Small Grains Research & Information:(Research result from Imperial Valley Trials)
UC Davis Wheat Breeding Program
For more information on the UC Durum Wheat breeding and Regional testing program, please contact Jorge Dubcovsky at jdubcovsky@ucdavis.edu
For more information on DREC and its educational program, please contact our Center Director, Jairo Diaz at jdiazr@ucanr.edu or our Farm Smart Program Manager, Stacey Amparano, at scwills@ucanr.edu. You can also reach us at (760)356-3060
- Author: Stacey AMPARANO
Water has always been a precious commodity in Imperial County. With rainfall averaging less than 3 inches per year, this arid desert region depends on irrigation water from the Colorado River to continue its production of over 100 different commodities on its deep, rich soil. While water flowed has freely since the early 1900's, water transfers and growing metropolitan cities have put increased pressures on Imperial County to conserve and meet the demands of the future. Imperial County is the top producer of Alfalfa in California, and it is one of the top commodities in Imperial County, with over 150,000 acres of alfalfa harvested annually and shipped across the world. Alfalfa has also been Imperial Valley's biggest user of water as well as IV's most valuable field crop, with a gross value of $218 million in 2018 according to the Imperial County Crop Report.
The scientific findings from UCDREC and UCCE will continue to play a critical role in forming successful solutions to Imperial Valleys emerging water issues related to agriculture and alfalfa.
For more information on DREC and its educational program, please contact our Center Director, Jairo Diaz at jdiazr@ucanr.edu or our Farm Smart Program Manager, Stacey Amparano, at scwills@ucanr.edu. You can also reach us at (760)356-3060
Further reading/viewing:
The Early History of Water in Imperial Valley: Video
Early History of Water in Imperial Valley- Presentation and Study Guide
- Author: Mariana Gonzalez
On October 4th, 2019, I flew from the San Diego airport to attend the 33rd Annual Conference of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, or HACU, as part of the Student Track's Adelante Institute in Chicago Illinois. The conference took place from October 5th to October 7th with about 600 Hispanic college students in attendance. About 230 of these students were sponsored by HACU, higher education institutions, corporations, or federal partners. I was the sole representative of my college, San Diego State University-Imperial Valley campus, sponsored by USDA.
Each day, the conference hosted various workshops with a focus on leadership development. Representatives from government agencies and service companies conducted the workshops. I gained valuable insight on my leadership skills and received information on how to further improve these skills. Not only did HACU emphasized the importance of developing leadership skills but they also promoted Hispanic diversity in the workplace. They served as a bridge to connect public organizations, agencies, and universities to me. Agencies in attendance sought to increase diversity in their organization and were looking for Hispanic students as potential applicants for their internship programs. Throughout the three-day event, there were many networking opportunities. There was a Networking Exhibition Hall where all organizations in attendance had a designated booth to promote their organization and recruit students into their agencies and programs. Each day, I spoke to different representatives, exchange contact information, and gave copies of my resume to the representatives. I have learned of many career options and am currently applying to these opportunities.
Another impactful aspect of this conference were the people in attendance. I met so many students from different colleges, states, and countries. Attending the conference in Chicago made me witness firsthand just how diverse is the Hispanic community. Most of the population in the Imperial Valley is comprised of Mexican heritage. The Imperial Valley is surrounded by Mexican culture. All I knew about the Hispanic culture was Mexican traditions and customs. I learned more about other Hispanic cultures directly from HACU students who were Puerto Rican, Cuban, Ecuadorian, and Spanish, just to name a few. HACU celebrated our stories and everyone's heritage. It took leaving my hometown, my comfort zone, and a visit to Chicago, a place with multiple cultures, for me see the diversity of Hispanic community.
All the students I met had their own set of obstacles with a strong determination and passion to pursue a higher education. I met fellow USDA Sponsored Scholars and spent time getting to know them. We shared our stories and personal experiences. Most of these students were experiencing their visit to Chicago, like me. Speaking with students with similar backgrounds has encouraged me to not only tell my story, but to be proud of that story. I am proud of my upbringing, my heritage, and my culture. I am proud to be a first-generation college student and to be a Hispanic female in a STEM field. I am proud of the leadership skills I have acquired through USDA. I had my own set of struggles that I overcame. HACU helped me realize that I should proudly tell my story as I am doing so now.
It has been a month since I attended this conference. Needless to say, I have had enough time to process this experience. I can say with absolute certainty that the emotions ignited by this experience still burn passionately within me. I could not have had this experience if it weren't for the USDA sponsorship. My internship with USDA allowed me to gain opportunities outside of the internship. I cannot emphasize how impactful USDA internships are, especially in the Imperial Valley. Being a low-income, first generation student, I found it difficult to see if there were opportunities for me. I thought there were not many options for me and that I had no choice but to leave the Imperial Valley to seek out opportunities. However, ever since I met USDA, I have found so many career opportunities and have learned so much from my experience with USDA internships. I have grown from these experiences and gained skills with constant development and improvement. I could not have had this self-reflecting, eye-opening, amazing experience if it weren't for my USDA internship providing me with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. For that, I am eternally grateful.
Thanks,
Mariana Gonzalez