Northern Vegetable Improvement Collaborative (NOVIC) 3
Project Director
James R. Myers
Year Funded
2018
Award Number
2018-51300-28430
Funded Institution
Oregon State University
Grant Program
OREI (Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative)
USDA NIFA Report
Project Overview
The Northern Vegetable Improvement Collaborative (NOVIC), a multiregional, farmer-participatory plant breeding (PPB) and organic seed production network launched in 2009, has developed several dozen new vegetable cultivars with enhanced market traits (flavor, color, etc.), disease resistance, and overall performance in organic systems. NOVIC received its third OREI award in 2013 to expand farmer capacity for variety selection and organic seed production and to develop additional cultivars of tomato, pepper, cucumber, cabbage, sweet and dry corn, snap and dry beans, winter squash, and other crops to meet grower-identified priorities.
Farmer Takeaways
(1) Participatory plant breeding (PPB) networks like NOVIC empower farmers to develop new varieties best adapted to their locale and market needs.
(2) PPB takes an adaptive approach and can reduce intellectual property barriers.
(3) While PPB varieties are slowly becoming more available through seed vendors, farmers can gain earlier access to improved seeds by participating in PPB networks.
(4) NOVIC combined NOP-compliant advanced genetic technologies with PPB to deliver improved organic seeds for a wide range of vegetables, flour corn, and dry beans.
(5) Other PPB endeavors are utilizing the models and lessons learned through NOVIC.
Project Outputs
NOVIC Project Homepage | eOrganic
Lessons Learned in Farmer Participatory Plant Breeding with NOVIC | eOrganic Webinar
Organic Seed Commons
Organic Seed Growers Conference 2022 | Organic Seed Alliance
Colley, M. R., Tracy, W. F., Lammerts van Bueren, E. T., Diffley, M., & Almekinders, C. J. M. 2022. “How the Seed of Participatory Plant Breeding Found Its Way in the World through Adaptive Management.” Sustainability, 14(4), 2132.
Colley, M. R., Dawson, J. C., McCluskey, C., Myers, J. R., Tracy, W. F., & Lammerts van Bueren, E. T. 2021. “Exploring the emergence of participatory plant breeding in countries of the Global North – a review.” The Journal of Agricultural Science, 159(5–6), 320–338.