Welcome to the UC Davis Plant Breeding Academy

The Seed Biotechnology Center releases 2016 Annual Report http://sbc.ucdavis.edu/files/266398.pdf

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UC Davis European Plant Breeding Academy graduates the fourth class

UC Davis European Plant Breeding Academy (PBA) has graduated the fourth class with a session and graduation in Davis, California. Over the last two years, during the six sessions held in Enkhuizen, The Netherlands; Angers, France; Gatersleben, Germany; Gent, Belgium;  Almeria, Spain, and UC Davis, ten participants in this class spent more than 300 hours in classes, workshops and the field, training towards the PBA Certificate. The PBA is a premium professional certificate program offered in the USA, Europe, Asia and Africa. Fourteen classes offered worldwide since 2006 were attended by 260 breeders from 58 countries, making the PBA the most recognized program of its kind. The next class of the European PBA starts in October 2017. This class is full, applications are accepted for a waiting list. For more information, contact Joy Patterson at jpatterson@ucdavis.edu or visit PBA online.

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Wal-Mart and Bayer team up to create "Sweet Spark", a designer cantaloupe
Major retailer Wal-Mart wanted melons in winter to be as delectable as summer. So they have teamed up with seed experts at German agriculture giant Bayer AG to help develop a bespoke melon that’s pleasing to the palate but still tough enough for the trek from warmer climes. “When you’re as big as Wal-Mart, you can dictate a lot of what you want to see in produce,’’ said Kent Bradford, a professor and director of the Seed Biotechnology Center at UC Davis. Read full article

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UC Davis African Plant Breeding Academy starts Class III
The UC Davis African Plant Breeding Academy started its third class of students with a session in Nairobi, Kenya, May 15-27, 2017. The program is organized in collaboration with The African Union New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency and the African Orphan Crops Consortium. The third class of the UC Davis African Plant Breeding Academy consists of 34 breeders, half of whom are women, representing 18 African nations. Over the next thirteen months, they will spend more than 300 hours in classes, workshops and the field, training to complete this premium professional certification program.

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ILLUMINA DONATES POWERFUL SEQUENCER TO AOCC
Illumina has generously donated one of its most powerful sequencers, the HiSeq 4000 Sequencing System, to enable the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC) to complete its crop sequencing project. In addition to the 101 crop species being sequenced, the instrument, which is housed at the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) in Nairobi, will be used by our African Plant Breeding Academy instructors to train practicing African plant breeders on how to use genomics to increase nutrition and crop yields. 
View AOCC 2017 Progress Report
Read more and view VIDEO

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SBC Plant Breeding Academy congratulates Dr. David Stelly, a long term PBA lecturer and contributor, on the 2017 International Cotton Advisory Committee Researcher of the Year Award. Read more

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