Inside Cornell AgriTech: Germplasm, Robots and Hemp

On this week's podcast, we continue our trip to Geneva, New York, for part two of the Cornell story. I spend some time with Christine Smart, director of Cornell AgriTech, and her husband Larry Smart, professor of plant breeding and genetics and head of Cornell's hemp program.

Christine takes me through the history of the Agritech campus — from its 1882 founding to its living plant libraries and cutting-edge robotics labs. We talk Liberty Hyde Bailey, the USDA germplasm repository, and a future where UV light replaces pesticides and robots roam the fields.

Then Larry brings us inside Cornell's hemp research: from gene editing for disease resistance to the painstaking process of seed multiplication. He shares his work on a CBG-only hemp line with zero THC and CBD, designed to open animal feed markets, and explains why F1 hybrids could unlock hemp's yield potential the same way they did for corn.

And stay tuned, because next week in part three we'll hear from two of the rising stars in Cornell's hemp program — PhD students Jane Hamilton and Luis Monserrate.

Learn More

Cornell University – Hemp Program

https://hemp.cals.cornell.edu

Cornell AgriTech

https://cals.cornell.edu/cornell-agritech

USDA National Clonal Germplasm Repository

https://www.ars.usda.gov/northeast-area/geneva-ny/plant-genetic-resources-unit-pgru/

Yu Jiang Lab – Agricultural Robotics & Sensing

https://cals.cornell.edu/yu-jiang

Liberty Hyde Bailey Museum

https://www.libertyhydebailey.org

News Nuggets, from HempToday

Emergency rules take effect in Texas, restricting hemp intoxicant sales to adults over 21

https://hemptoday.net/emergency-rules-take-effect-in-texas-restricting-hemp-intoxicant-sales-to-adults-over-21/

French co-op, leading European supplier of hemp planting seed, has a new director

https://hemptoday.net/french-co-op-leading-european-supplier-of-hemp-planting-seed-has-a-new-director/

Kazakh government backs China deal as foreign investors eye neighbor's hemp sector

https://hemptoday.net/kazakh-government-backs-china-deal-as-foreign-investors-eye-neighbors-hemp-sector/

Thanks to our Sponsors

Kings AgriSeeds

https://www.kingsagriseeds.com

IND HEMP

https://indhemp.com