2013 Amaranth Institute Conference: Reviving An Ancient Crop
Conference agenda
Thursday September 19th
5-6 PM Installation of poster presentations</div>\r\n<div>\r\n
5-8 Conference Registration
5-8 Poster Viewing Available
7-8 Welcome Reception. Opening Speaker Pete Noll, Executive Director at Puente a la Salud Comunitaria, and President of the Amaranth Institute. Amaranth Institute 2013 – Expectations and Excitement – The State of Amaranth Today, Tomorrow, and Always! Larry Walters, Founder and Director Research & Development at Nu-World Amaranth, Inc. (d.b.a. Nu-World Foods) (10-15 minutes) Jonathan Walters</strong>: Director Sales & Marketing at Nu-World Amaranth, Inc. (d.b.a. Nu-World Foods), and Conference Chair for the 2013 Amaranth Institute (10-15 minutes)
Friday September 20th
9:00-9:15 AM Welcome Jon Walters and a representative of the Illinois State Agricultural Department
9:15-9:45 AM Mary Beth Wilson. Co-founder of start-up Innovesca and recipient of Phase I Small Business Innovation Research grant from the NSF to commercialize the Gates Foundation research looking at amaranth leaf potential in Africa and other developing countries. Cell mechanics to increase nutrition of Amaranth leaves post-harvest
9:45-10 Introductions and Break
10:00-11 Lara Field MS, RD, CSP, LDN Pediatric Dietician Section of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Heptology, and Nutrition The University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital. Discussing Celiac Disease and Amaranth as a hypoallergenic nutritional relief
11 AM-12 PM LaManda Joy. Founder/President Chicago Peterson Garden Project discussing Farm to Table Initiatives, Urban Gardening Initiatives, Nutrition, and her love of Amaranth, including benefits!
12-12:45 Lunch provided at hotel
12:45-5Bus Tour
5:30 Amaranth Institute Board Meeting
6:30 Banquet at hotel
7:30 Business Meeting
8:00 After Dinner Special Guest
Saturday September 21st
15 minute presentations w/ 5 minutes Q & A
9:00-9:20 AM David Brenner. Status of the Amaranthus Seed Collection
9:20-9:40 Erika Viljoen. PhD Student, Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council – Onderstepoort
9:40-10:00 Rob Myers. University of Missouri/USDA-SARE. Best management practices for grain amaranth production in the U.S.
10:00-10:20 Pete Noll. Director of Puente a la Salud Comunitaria, Amaranth’s increasing role in Mexico: How to look at it from a Livelihoods framework
10:20-10:40 Mary Delano. Mexico Tierra Amaranto, Queretaro, Mexico, Successful amaranth experience in Mexico
10:40-11:00 Dr. John Paul Delano Frier. CINVESTAV, Irapuato, Mexico.Amaranth hypochondiacus transcriptome as a platform for the deciphering of grain amaranth’s responses to (a) biotic stress
11:00-11:20 Craig Bielema. Appropriate Technology Specialist at ECHO, How ECHO is working to promote amaranth worldwide
11:20-11:40 Amaranth popper demonstration, Appalachian Staple Foods Collaborative
11:40-12:00 Pull out for networking and more individual discussions
12:00-1:00 Lunch
1:00-1:20 Closing remarks and plan next conference
Amaranth: Reviving An Ancient Crop, the 2013 Conference, was held at the RADISSON Chicago O’Hare from 19 to 21 September of that year.
The Conference benefitted from a strong turnout, hosting more than 25 amaranth enthusiasts from more than seven US states, two African countries, Russia, and India. Members and attendees were urged to mark their calendars for the 2015 Conference, although neither a date nor location had been set. For details of the conference agenda and presentations, click here 2013 Amaranth Institute Conference.
Amaranth – Crop Culture of the 21st Century
Dr. Prof. Magomedov I.M.
Faculty of Biology and Soil Science, Saint-Petersburg State University, Russia
Downloadable documents: PDF Amaranth – Crop Culture of the 21st Century
The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education grants program of the United States Department of Agriculture is aimed at supporting sustainable innovations for the whole of American agriculture. Since 1988, SARE has invested in 4,000 projects nationwide.
Rob Myers, Ph.D.
University of Missouri
USDA-SARE
North Central SARE
Downloadable documents: PDF Amaranth Production Practices in the U.S.
Innovesca is a food technology company that produces high quality, all-natural ingredients with optimized nutrition from underutilized plants in developing regions. Founded with a dedication to improving human life through food innovation, our products are based on the simple idea that “every bite counts”. We develop processing technologies that unlock the inherent nutrients of whole foods post-harvest to maximize nutrient release and absorption. Thus, we utilize these natural sources of nutrition in a more robust way.
Mary Beth Wilson PhD, Biomedical Engineering Co-Founder, Innovesca
Amaranth’s Increasing Role in Mexico: How to look at it from a livelihoods framework
Puente a la Salud Comunitaria contributes to food sovereignty and advances the health and well-being of rural communities in Mexico by promoting the consumption, production, and commercialization of amaranth. We envision a world where families and communities live with dignity and exercise their food sovereignty through the sustainable cultivation, consumption, exchange and commercialization of local healthy food sources. We believe amaranth is a strategic crop for achieving this vision owed to its pertinence with the local customs and adaptation to the local environment.
Peter Noll
Former Executive Director, Puente a la Salud Comunitaria, Oaxaca, Mexico
Phone (52) 1 951 518 6642
Downloadable documents: PDF Amaranth’s Increasing Role in Mexico
Celiac Disease is the most common genetically-induced food intolerance worldwide, with a prevalence of around 1% and growing! Wheat is among the 10 most common allergens responsible for food allergy (Wang et al. J Clin Invest, 2011) Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS) – diagnosis of exclusion; cases of gluten reaction in which both allergic and autoimmune mechanisms have been ruled out.
Lara A. Field, MS, RD, CSP, LDN
Founder of Feed Kids, LLC
Pediatric Nutrition Advisor for University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center
PDF of Full Paper
3,345 total accessions
3,193 (94%) available
3,235 (97%) backed up at the NCGRP
72 seed orders 2012
969 packets distributed 2012
512 (15%) accessions distributed 2012
2,339 (70%) have permanent PI numbers
David M. Brenner
North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station
Department of Agronomy, Iowa State University
Downloadable documents: PDF Status of the Amaranthus Seed Collection