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Kevin Murphy News Articles

Cross-college major bridges agriculture and human health

Students will study the connection from fields to dinner plates to human health in the new Human Nutrition and Food Systems major at Washington State University.

Available this fall, the new joint degree from WSU’s College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences (CAHNRS) and the Elson Floyd College of Medicine helps students learn how food systems and agriculture can benefit health.

“This is a broad major geared toward training students to become well-versed in different skills that span agriculture and nutrition,” said Kevin Murphy, a professor in WSU’s Department of Crop and Soil Sciences (CSS) and one of the developers of the new major. “We’re seeing a lot of students that are interested in human health and how it ties in to agriculture.”

WSU, BYU release three new quinoa varieties bred for global food security, nutrition

PULLMAN, Wash. — Passed from grower to grower, three new quinoa varieties co-developed at Washington State University are helping farmers in Rwanda and other African countries improve nutrition and food security.

Scientists at WSU and Brigham Young University today announced the release of Cougar, Shisha, and Gikungu, new varieties of quinoa, a seed crop rich in B vitamins, minerals, and fiber and one of the few plant sources of complete protein.

“These three are the best of the thousand lines shared with us by our colleagues at BYU,” said Kevin Murphy, director of WSU’s Sustainable Seed Systems Lab.

WSU awarded $10 million to increase nutrition in food crops

PULLMAN, Wash. –  An approach that promises to increase nutrition literally from the ground up, Washington State University’s Soil to Society project, recently received a five-year, $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

The project takes a comprehensive approach to increase the nutrient value in food made from six crops – wheat, barley, peas, lentils, buckwheat, and quinoa. Soil scientists will work to improve the soil quality where they are grown. Plant breeders will develop more nutritional varieties while food scientists will create products to bring to market, and health researchers will evaluate the impact of those foods.

The ultimate goal is to improve human health by increasing consumption of more nutritious, whole grain-based foods, said Kevin Murphy, program director and WSU associate professor in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences.

FFAR Seeding Solutions Grant to Improve Nutrition in Quinoa

PULLMAN (March 2, 2021)— Quinoa, a crop known for its protein quality and nutritional content, is widely consumed in the US. Despite its popularity, quinoa is still underutilized because it is imported, even though nutritious, high-quality varieties can grow and thrive in this country. The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) awarded a $1 million Seeding Solutions grant to Washington State University (WSU) to continue research for their Enhancing Human Health project that is identifying opportunities to improve the nutritional content of various crop varieties. This research is focusing specifically on quinoa and quinoa-based food products. Lundberg Family Farms and WSU provided matching funds and Ardent Mills, Brabender CWB and Seattle Food Tech/Rebellyous Foods provided additional support for a total $2,044,872 research investment.

Quinoa: Improvement and Sustainable Production

Kevin Murphy (Editor), Janet Matanguihan (Editor)

Quinoa is an ancient grain that has grown in popularity in recent years. It has been known as a good source of both protein and fiber. As the demand for quinoa increases a comprehensive and up-to-date reference on the biology and production of the crop is essential. Quinoa: Improvement and Sustainable Production brings together authors from around the world to provide a complete assessment of the current state of global quinoa research and production. Topics covered include quinoa history and culture, genomics and breeding, agronomy, nutrition, marketing, and end-uses. The book focuses in particular on the emerging role of quinoa in providing increased food security to smallholder farmers and communities throughout the world.
Quinoa will interest quinoa researchers, producers, crop scientists, agronomists, and plant geneticists, as well as advanced students working with this important grain.

New York Times: 5 Things to Know About Quinoa

This week, a new food is appearing on Passover tables around the country. The Orthodox Union, the authority on kosher foods, recently ruled that certain brands of quinoa could carry its “Kosher for Passover” symbol.

‘NPR, The Salt’
Can Quinoa Farming Go Global Without Leaving Andeans Behind?

Will Quinoa be the new corn . . . that might be a stretch  . . .

WSU releases new barley variety honoring longtime plant breeder Steve Lyon

MOUNT VERNON, Wash. – After more than 22 years of breeding wheat for Washington State University, Steve Lyon never expected to make a name for himself in the barley field. But this spring’s release of ‘Lyon,’ a new variety of barley, is one way his colleagues in Pullman have chosen to recognize his long-term contributions to small grains research.

“As a graduate student in Stephen Jones’ winter wheat program, I worked with Steve Lyon on a daily basis,” said WSU barley breeder Kevin Murphy.

Research cultivates seeds of opportunity

Western innovator: Researcher shines light on quinoa

PULLMAN, Wash.–Every week, Kevin Murphy gets e-mails from farmers interested in growing quinoa.

There isn’t enough seed available, so Murphy intends to grow more of the popular specialty crop next spring on a half-dozen farms in Washington and Oregon.

Quinoa will never rival wheat’s overall popularity, Murphy said, but it has the potential to become an important specialty crop for the Northwest.

New WSU feed barley has disease resistance package (Muir)
Washington barley growers will have another new variety to consider next spring.

Muir is a spring, two-row feed barley developed by Washington State University barley breeder Kevin Murphy in Pullman, Washington.

A Perennial Search for Perfect Wheat

This WSU breeding team’s pursuit of a wheat variety that sprouts year – after –  year instead of dying after producing seed was featured in the science section of the New York Times.