13 Aug 2014

Nutrient Decision Support for Soybean Systems

IPNI Working Group #8


Goals
The primary goal of this working group is to increase the productivity of soybean systems, thereby, providing improved sustainability (economic, social, and environmental) through nutrient stewardship and responsible crop management.

Background
This working group was started in 2013 keeping in mind (a) the importance of soybean crop in the world and (b) the fact that in all regions (whether high- or low-yielding), soybean yield increases have been stagnant in the last 5-10 years. The annual soybean grain yield increases went from 99 kg/ha/year in 1965-2010 to a mere 29 kg/ha/year in 2005-2010—a decrease of 71%.

Current Projects
The group is working on four themes, viz., (a) defining soybean nutrient management for low-yielding areas; (b) educating farmers and agronomists in soybean management and fertilization; (c) closing yield gap between current and attainable yields in high-yielding regions; and (d) describing the yield gap among regions based on the characterization of soybean systems. The attached file (see 'Additional Resources' on your left!) enlists issues or desired outcomes, strategies, regions, leads and dates of completion, main funding sources and collaborating partners for each of these four themes.


Members

    • Fernando Garcia (co-chair), Director, Latin America-Southern Cone Program, Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Eros Francisco (co-chair), Deputy Director, Brazil Program, Rondonopolis, Brazil
    • Svetlana Ivanova, Vice-President, Eastern Europe/Central Asia and Middle East Program, Moscow, Russia
    • Shamie Zingore, Director, Sub-Saharan Africa Program, Nairobi, Kenya
    • Ping He, Director, China Program, Beijing, China
    • Kaushik Majumdar, Director, South Asia Program, Gurgaon, India
    • Vladimir Nosov, Director, Southern and Eastern Russia Program, Moscow, Russia
    • Tai McClellan Maaz, Director, North America Program, Peachtree Corners, GA, USA
    • Mike Stewart, Director, Director, North America Program, San Antonio, TX, USA