Two faculty members in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences have received grants from the Pennsylvania Soybean Board to support projects aimed at strengthening soybean production, improving grower decision-making and reinforcing the role of soy-based products in agricultural systems.
The awardees were Paul Esker, professor of epidemiology and field crop pathology and Land-Grant Research Impact Fellow, and John Boney, Vernon E. Norris Faculty Fellow of Poultry Nutrition and associate professor of poultry science.
Esker received nearly $350,000 to expand the Pennsylvania Soybean On-Farm Network to generate applied, grower-driven research to improve soybean management and profitability under real-world conditions. The network will conduct replicated field trials on commercial farms across Pennsylvania, testing agronomic practices and collecting data in collaboration with growers and extension educators.
Results will be translated into practical recommendations, field day programming and decision-support tools to strengthen soybean production statewide, Esker said, particularly as farmers face increasing challenges from weather variability, pests and rising production costs.
Boney’s grant of approximately $59,000 will explore the digestible lysine requirement of modern turkeys during the brooder phase by formulating diets with increasing soybean meal inclusion. Lysine is the reference amino acid — the building block of proteins — in poultry nutrition, and Boney said accurately defining its requirement helps ensure optimal growth, feed efficiency and balanced amino acid formulation, while reinforcing soybean meal’s role as a primary amino acid source in poultry diets.
Source : psu.edu