lifescapes

LifescapesTEXAS A&M AGRILIFE

TEACHING • RESEARCH • EXTENSION • SERVICE

TEXAS A&M AGRILIFEMark A. Hussey

Vice Chancellor and Deanfor Agriculture and Life Sciences

Texas A&M UniversityCollege of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Texas AgriLife Research

Texas AgriLife Extension Service

Texas Forest Service

Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory

4

48 Giving52 Noteworthy56 Accolades58 Members

SERVICE

12WATER

20ENVIRONMENT

24HEALTHY FOODS

30WILDLIFE

36INTERNATIONAL

42YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

Texas A&M System

DEPARTMENTS

4

12

30

42

SPRING 2009

Mark A. Hussey, Ph.D.Vice Chancellor and Dean for Agriculture and Life SciencesTexas A&M AgriLife

Times may be tough right now, but we also have some tremendous

opportunities to serve the people of Texas and the rest of the world, for

that matter in the near future.

Our strengths are many, and they start with our outstanding people.

We can do great things only by having really talented people on board, and

we must find the resources to reward those we have and attract even more.

We are large and diverse, with more than 3,500 employees and a $350

million budget. It is critical that we continue to find innovative ways to work

together and to enlist new partners, particularly corporations, to fulfill our

land-grant mission of teaching, research, extension, and service. Being a part

of the Texas A&M System helps these moving parts work together seamlessly.

Our four state agencies are each among the top in the nation. Yet we have

to find strategies to help their budgets grow with the state, while offsetting

inflation.

Our college is the nation’s largest, and we proudly have a reputation of being

one of the more caring colleges, treating students as valued individuals.

Perhaps that’s why we attract so many who are among the first in their families

to pursue a college education.

No doubt, we face some tremendous challenges. But given our roots as

people of the land, the optimistic way we look at the world is an advantage.

By nature, we are problem solvers.

Lifescapes offers some examples of how we work together to improve the

lives of Texans and make our state and our world better.

My Perspective

2 LIFESCAPES | SPRING 2009

3TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE

OperationNo Fences


SERVICE

5TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE

Through a well-organized

network of specialists,

educators, and some 100,000

volunteers, Texas AgriLife

Extension provides disaster

relief coordination as one of

its many services. When

Hurricane Ike struck the Gulf

Coast in September 2008,

Extension and its partners

helped save thousands of

livestock after the fences

came down.

Tyler Fitzgerald didn’t find much left of hishome in Anahuac when he returned afterHurricane Ike slammed the Texas coast on

September 13, 2008. All that remained were theconcrete stairs that had led to the front door, thekitchen sink, some scattered cinder blocks, and asandy patch where the 1,100-square-foot houseonce stood.

“But I really didn’t have time to feel sorry for mywife and myself,” says Fitzgerald, a Texas AgriLifeExtension Service agent in Chambers County.“Hundreds of other families lost their homes too,and ranchers were beginning to search for cattle thatsurvived the storm.”

About 4,800 cows and 5,600 calves were lost whenIke’s 20-foot storm surge inundated parts of severalcounties. Fences were washed away.

With his wife, Nikki, safe with relatives in CollegeStation, Fitzgerald got to work helping area ranchersround up cattle within hours of the storm’s passing.He joined hundreds of other government relief

“It was truly

a situation

in which everyone

from all the

organizations and

from around the

community came

together to reach the

same goal.”— Larry Gray

Texas and SouthwesternCattle Raisers Association

LIFESCAPES | SPRING 20096

As part of the Hurricane Ike relief effortOperation No Fences, donors sent 6,500round hay bales and nearly 3,000 squarebales to feed hungry cattle displaced bythe storm.

7TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE

8

AgriLife Extension regional program directorDr. Monty Dozier made dozens of phone

calls as he coordinated Extension’slargest relief effort to date.


workers and volunteers during Operation No Fences,a massive livestock rescue effort in Chambers,Orange, Galveston, and Jefferson counties.

e operation, coordinated by AgriLife Extension,was joined by the Texas Department of Agriculture,the Texas Animal Health Commission, the Texasand Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, theIndependent Cattlemen’s Association, other stateand federal agencies, and agriculture-industrypartners.

“Extension had never been involved in a reliefeffort that large before,” says Dr. Monty Dozier, arelief coordinator and AgriLife Extension regionalprogram director. “When we walked in there thatfirst day I thought, What are we getting into?”

Operation No Fences was nothing short ofremarkable, says Larry Gray, who directs lawenforcement and theft prevention services for theTexas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association(TSCRA). He and the TSCRA Special Rangersworked closely with the AgriLife Extension agentsand specialists to coordinate the distribution of hay,water troughs, and water to livestock in the first fewdays of the relief.

“It was truly a situation in which everyone fromall the organizations and from around thecommunity came together to reach the same goal,”Gray says.

Some 12,000 head of cattle were rescued and senttemporarily to ranches out of the area. Donors sent6,500 round hay bales and 2,950 square hay bales totemporary distribution centers. Donations included255,000 pounds of cattle cubes and 68,000 poundsof horse feed. More than 300 troughs and tubs weredistributed throughout the area, with gallons ofwater numbering in the hundreds of thousands.

Winnie rancher Richie Devillier expressed hisgratitude for Operation No Fences, saying: “I thinkit’s great. e support and the feed, the hay, thewater troughs, the cubes, the medicine — everythingwe’ve gotten has been tremendous. It will renewyour faith in friends, or even just the human race.I’m not necessarily a people person — have not beenin the past — but I’m coming around.”

Dee Leggett, a rancher south of Anahuac, praisedAgriLife Extension and the other organizations fortheir help after he lost his home and hunting lodgeon the family’s 13,000-acre ranch. He also lost about300 head of cattle.

9TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE

Some 12,000 head of cattle wererounded up by volunteers on horseback

and in helicopters. The cattle weretransported to temporary pastures away

from the hurricane-ravaged counties.


Fitzgerald, in particular, exemplified the spirit ofAgriLife Extension and the Operation No Fencesrescue operation, Leggett says. “He got hurt as bad asI did. It’s a hard thing to do when you’ve losteverything but you’re out helping everybody else.”

Weeks after Ike struck, helping ranchers recoverremained Fitzgerald’s priority, whether his daysinvolved delivering fence posts or organizinginformational meetings for local ranchers.

“ere’s not one challenge that you can put overthe other,” Fitzgerald says. “ey all go hand in hand.You’ve got to have fences, food, and water before youcan bring back the cattle.”

“It will renew

your faith in friends,

or even just the

human race.

I’m not

necessarily a

people person . . .

but I’m

coming around.”— Richie Devillier, rancher

Winnie, Texas

11TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE


Rethinking theRio Grande


WATER

The Rio Grande Basin

Initiative is a joint effort

among Texas AgriLife

Extension and Texas AgriLife

Research and their New

Mexico State University

counterparts. Since 2001,

the project has helped

irrigation districts, farms, and

cities save close to a trillion

gallons of water in a region

where demand is greater

than supply.


The plight of the Rio Grande was never sostark as when the 2,000-mile-long riverstopped flowing into the Gulf of Mexico in

2001. A sandbar separated the two bodies of waterfor almost a year. Spring rains eventually got watersflowing again, but nature had added an exclamationpoint to the river’s deteriorating condition.

Coincidentally, 2001 also saw the birth of a federalinitiative, funded through the U.S. Department ofAgriculture’s Cooperative State Research, Education,and Extension Service, to focus on waterconservation and efficient irrigation in the river’sbasin. Since then, the project known as the RioGrande Basin Initiative has helped save morethan 3 million acre-feet of water, or almost 978billion gallons.

at’s enough to supply some 15 million peoplewith water for one year, based on average water usecalculated by water industry sources.

Citrus grower Jim Hoffman is one of the manyRio Grande Basin residents who have learnedhow to conserve a precious resource throughthis collaborative initiative.

“I’m no longer

wasting water, and

. . . I’ve been able to

significantly reduce

the amount of

fertilizer I use —

by 20 to 25 percent.”—Jim Hoffman, citrus grower

Edinburg, Texas


Sonia Kaniger and other irrigation districtmanagers have seen major water savings as aresult of the Rio Grande Basin Initiative’s cost

analysis studies to justify equipment andpiping upgrades.

For its efforts, the project was recognized by theTexas Commission on Environmental Quality withthe 2008 Texas Environmental Excellence Award,the state’s most prestigious honor for environmentalprotection.

How has the project saved so much water?Dr. Bill Harris, acting director of Texas A&M

AgriLife’s Texas Water Resources Institute andproject director of the initiative, says efforts havefocused on helping three major water users conserveresources: (1) irrigation districts, (2) farms, and (3)municipalities, which include commercial, industrial,and residential users.

“One of the major problems with the Rio Grandeis that it’s oversubscribed,” Harris says. “at meansthat there are more legal rights to its water than there

“I sleep better

knowing that we

no longer have

to rely on a

100-year-old,

inefficient pump.”

—Sonia Kaniger, general managerSan Benito Irrigation District


is water. So by making those who have straws in theriver, so to speak, more efficient, we save water. Andevery gallon of water saved is another gallon someonecan use.”

e almost 1 trillion gallons of water saved so farincreases each year because of more efficientirrigation and canal systems, Harris says. “is iswhere one of the largest savings has been realized.Some systems were losing huge amounts of water, insome cases as much as 50 percent. But by workingwith irrigation districts and the U.S. Bureau ofReclamation, we have been able to help districts lineopen ditches or convert them to pipes for moreefficient conveyance.”

Sonia Kaniger, general manager of the San BenitoIrrigation District, relied on the initiative to supplyher with cost analysis studies to justify the expense ofconstructing a new $11 million river-pumping plantand underground piping.

“Improvements are expensive but cost-effectivebecause the volume of water conserved far exceedsthe cost of piping,” Kaniger says. “And I sleep betterknowing that we no longer have to rely on a 100-

year-old, inefficient pump to supply residents of RioHondo and San Benito and 57,000 acres offarmland.” In addition to saving water, the new plantwill save about half a million dollars yearly inoperations, management, and energy costs.

Dr. Juan Enciso, an AgriLife Extension irrigationengineer in Weslaco, works with growers to improvetheir on-farm water delivery systems.

“Flood irrigation worked well when water wasplentiful,” he says, “but that’s not the case anymore.We’re working hard to use new technologies todeliver less water to crops while not affecting yieldsor crop quality.”

Jim Hoffman, who farms 60 acres of Rio Redgrapefruit and several varieties of oranges northwestof Edinburg, says working with Enciso has helpedhim to better manage his crop inputs.

“By using drip irrigation, I’ve been able tomaximize production,” he explains. “I’m no longerwasting water, and since I’m also fertilizing throughthe drip system, I’ve been able to significantly reducethe amount of fertilizer I use — by 20 to 25 percent.I’ve maintained, and in some cases increased, myprevious production levels.”

Rio Grande Basin Initiative personnel teachparticipants about irrigation system efficiency andabout reducing biological and chemical hazardsthrough alternative treatment of water andwastewater. ey also provide technical and economicanalyses and teach people how to save water in theirhomes and landscapes, control salinity and drainage,reuse agricultural water supplies, and save water inurban environments. Each of these conservationmeasures makes for one less straw in the river.


CarbonGreen-Up


ENVIRONMENT

To limit air pollutants that

contribute to global warming,

Congress may pass new laws

setting an annual cap on

carbon dioxide emissions from

power plants and industry,

creating a “carbon market.”

Texas AgriLife Research is

working to enhance

agriculture’s role in a

potential carbon economy in

the Lone Star State.


Agriculture can play a vital role in counteringthe buildup of greenhouse gases in theatmosphere, one of the primary causes of

global warming. Growing plants absorb atmosphericgreenhouse gases and release them when burned,according to Dr. Bruce McCarl, a Texas AgriLifeResearch economist and Nobel Prize co-recipientfor his study of climate change (see “Accolades,”page 56).

Burning fossil fuels such as coal releases carbonthat has been trapped underground for millions ofyears. Fossil fuel use is the source of more than 80percent of greenhouse gas emissions.

Tighter regulation on carbon emissions in theUnited States now being considered by Congress may create a carbon economy that benefits Texasfarmers and ranchers. Production agriculture couldsee a new income stream from a “carbon market”

created by annual caps on carbon dioxide emissionsfrom power plants and large industries. For example,Texas farmers, whose crops generate carbon creditsby taking greenhouse gases out of the air, might sellthese credits to a power plant to offset emissions thatare above certain limits.

McCarl says there are many strategies for carbonsequestration natural and artificial means ofremoving carbon from the atmosphere. He believesthat forestry and soils could play a more significantrole. Trees, for example, are 50 percent carbon, andsoils hold many times more carbon than theatmosphere does.

Dr. Frank Hons, an AgriLife Research soilscientist, has investigated crops for their carbon-capturing potential; he says that dryland wheat,sorghum, and bermudagrass hold promise.

“Forages that have continuous groundcover, such as

Dryland wheat is among the crops thatAgriLife Research soil scientist Dr. Frank Honssays show potential for capturing carbon and

providing cleaner air for Texas.


“U.S.

agricultural lands

have an estimated

potential to store

an additional

five billion

metric tons of

soil carbon by 2050.”— Dr. Frank Hons, soil scientist


coastal bermudagrass and switchgrass, tend to have alot of carbon associated with their root systems,” hesays. “Where there’s sufficient rainfall and fairly fine-textured soils, they will have the best benefit. Youcould start at Dallas and move southward.”

Although irrigated crops also capture carbon, saysHons, some of the benefit is lost when fossil fuels areused to pump irrigation water.

“Practices that increase soil organic carbon includeadopting conservation tillage, like no-till; conversionto perennial grasses and crop intensification, whichcould be doubling crop rotations; and annualcropping versus crop or fallow,” Hons adds. “U.S.agricultural lands have an estimated potential tostore an additional five billion metric tons of soilcarbon by 2050.”

e bioenergy market could have the mostpotential for producers, particularly those involved inethanol and electricity production, McCarl suggests.AgriLife Research has pioneered a tall sorghum thatcan yield 20 dry tons to the acre. at type of denselypopulated crop could significantly reduce the amountof carbon released when processed at an ethanolplant, he says. However, the switch to bioenergysorghum or other feedstuffs will present newchallenges for Texas agriculture, including anincrease in pests and crop diseases that will requireresearch and management to overcome.

“Texas is the largest carbon-emitting state by afactor of two,” says McCarl. “If we can co-fire energysorghum with coal, I think there is great potential toreduce emissions.”


TastyPrevention


HEALTHY FOODS

Texas AgriLife Research is

striving to improve the safety

of the state’s agricultural

products and to use traditional

and molecular breeding

techniques to enhance the

natural health-promoting

compounds in fruits,

vegetables, and nuts. At the

Vegetable and Fruit

Improvement Center, scientists

are proving that components of

these foods fight disease.


Shoppers look at produce bins and see peppers,carrots, onions, watermelons, and citrus.Scientists look at the same bins and see

cancer prevention, heart health, stronger bones, andless obesity.

Dr. Bhimu Patil, director of the Vegetable andFruit Improvement Center, a component of TexasAgriLife Research and the Texas A&M UniversityDepartment of Horticultural Sciences, compares thetwo views to ingredients in a food processor set onpuree: seamlessly blended and served up toconsumers in tantalizing proportions that could chopa devastating dent in human disease.

At the Vegetable and Fruit ImprovementCenter, Dr. Bhimu Patil and his team arestudying the biological compounds in fruitsand vegetables that protect us from diseaseand improve health. Grapefruit and othercitrus fruits have shown promise in the fightagainst cancer.

“I think we could

take it up to

11 servings for

women

and 13 for men.

. . . Just go ahead and

eat your fruits

and vegetables.”—Dr. Bhimu Patil, director

Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center

“People eat an average of 2.1 servings of fruits andvegetables a day,” says Patil. “e recommended rateis five per day, but I think we could take it up to 11servings for women and 13 for men. e more, themerrier.”

But Patil knows that research is needed to providethe answers most likely to convince people toincrease their consumption to the healthiest levels. Athis center, that research mixes agricultural, medical,and food and nutrition scientists. Sharing discoveries,Patil says, is what helps translate information intoproduct development and get both products andinformation out to consumers more quickly.

e center has already shown some promisingdiscoveries. One of the most recent findings, basedon research by Dr. Kendall Hirschi, is that a carrotcalled sCAX1 helps people absorb more calcium,which in turn helps prevent such diseases asosteoporosis.

Dr. David Byrne’s research has shown that peachextract inhibited the proliferation of estrogen-independent breast cancer cells. Patil and Dr. G.Jayapraksaha isolated the potential cancer-preventingcomponents of sour orange that stopped colon cancertissue growth in lab tests, and found that citruslimonoids may also have potential as a drug againsthormone-dependent breast cancer.

Backing up to the farm level, Patil says discoveriesshow that specific levels of crop irrigation andfertilizer application have an impact not only onyields but also on the amount of health-promotingphytochemicals in produce.

“Plant breeding and production techniques canmake a difference in the bioactive compounds,” hesays. “We’ve confirmed, for example, that globeartichokes can be produced in Texas, and furtherdetermined that artichokes can have a positiveimpact on heart health and diabetes.”


e center also is revitalizing tours and camps forschool children, encouraging them to make increasedfruit and vegetable consumption a potentially life-changing choice.

“Many students saw plants as more than foodresources and realized the importance of anti-cancerproperties and interdisciplinary connections,” saysDr. Claire Hemingway, Botanical Society of Americaeducation director, after hosting a teen camp atthe center.

Yet these discoveries and educational ventures areonly the tip of the iceberg, Patil adds and hedoesn’t mean the lettuce.

“We know about only 30 or 40 compounds in thefruits and vegetables,” he says. “ere are anestimated 80,000 to 100,000 compounds total. Weneed to learn about each of those compounds andsee which ones are good for us and how to usethem better.”

In the meantime, Patil suggests, “Just go ahead andeat your fruits and vegetables.”

“Many students

saw plants as more

than food resources

and realized the

importance

of anti-cancer

properties and

interdisciplinary

connections.”

—Dr. Claire Hemingway, education directorBotanical Society of America



And thislittle piggywent wild


WILDLIFE

Feral hog herds have been

multiplying in Texas for years.

From 1993 to 2003, their

reported damage increased

105 percent per year, with a

price tag of about $52 million

annually. Now an estimated

1.5 to 2 million of these

animals roam the state, and

they’re moving from rural to

urban areas.


In Texas, it’s been business as usual for feral hogs:rooting up pastures and cropland, stripping fruittrees, dirtying ponds and streams, undermining

fences, and stealing feed.AgriLife Extension experts suspect that feral hog

numbers have been steadily increasing for some time.But during the 1990s, the rate of increase apparentlypicked up speed, according to Dr. BillyHigginbotham, Texas AgriLife Extension Servicewildlife and fisheries specialist based at the AgriLifeResearch and Extension Center at Overton.

In 2004, Higginbotham and his colleague Dr.Clark Adams surveyed 775 landowners in 115counties, about half the counties in Texas. Four out offive landowners said they had feral hogs on their

Feral hogs, which have been damaging Texasranches and croplands for years, are now

moving to suburban and urban areas,where they can root up lawns,

recreation areas, and municipalgrounds overnight.

Feral hog photos on page 1, previous page, andnext page courtesy of Texas Parks and WildlifeDepartment


property. e survey also indicated that the rate ofincrease in hog activity since the mid-1990s hadnearly doubled.

Among the landowners surveyed, the averageestimated cost of damage done by feral hogs was$7,515 per respondent, Higginbotham says. Damagedone by feral hogs in Texas is conservativelyestimated to cost about $52 million per year.

A conservative estimate of hog numbers statewideis 1.5 to 2 million. But because it is nearly impossibleto take a comprehensive census, the total could bemuch larger, Higginbotham says. Some hunters killthe hogs for meat, but hunting alone cannot controlthe population.

ere may be some hope. In a 2006–2007 studyfunded by the Texas Department of Agriculture(TDA), Higginbotham and his colleagues examinedhow teaching landowners better hog-controlmeasures might reduce damage. Two methodslandowners use to control feral hogs are snares forcapturing individual animals to be sold for meat andlarge baited cages with gates, used to catch groups ofhogs. e survey found that landowner educationcombined with direct control by AgriLife Extension’s

“is was a

great program

from Extension.

e trapping and

hunting of the

wild hogs on our

ranch and the other

ranches adjoining us

greatly reduced

our problems.”—Melinda Smith, landowner


Wildlife Services which includes aerial hunting could reduce damage to agricultural enterprises byas much as 66 percent. As a result of this project,TDA has provided an added $1 million to WildlifeServices to continue direct control efforts across thestate into 2010.

Landowner Melinda Smith wrote about theprogram: “Hogs have virtually destroyed the haymeadows and pasture land, making it almostimpossible to travel over with hay equipment,sprayers, or shredders. All our land needs to be diskedand leveled and replanted due to hog damage thepast several years. is was a great program fromExtension. e trapping and hunting of the wildhogs on our ranch and the other ranches adjoining usgreatly reduced our problems.”

Marion County landowners David and GretchenArnold wrote: “After capturing seven hogs, there waslittle evidence of hog activity in the area for severalmonths. e program is excellent, and werecommend it for everyone who has feral hogs on ornear their property.”

More recently, feral hogs seem to be expandingtheir destruction into urban areas, saysHigginbotham. “ey’re not just confined to thecountry anymore,” he says.

Higginbotham has received reports of feral hogs insuburbia digging up cemeteries, plowing up golfcourses, destroying suburban lawns, and devastatinghospital grounds.

ey also cause thousands of dollars in damagesand injuries when they wander onto roadways andare hit by vehicles, most often at night. Feral hogs areusually dark-colored, and their eyes lack the reflective

layer that makes deer and other animals visible todrivers at night. When a feral hog runs in front of avehicle on a dark road on a moonless night, the driverhas little time to react.

In Anderson County, the city of Palestine hasbecome the “poster child for urban feral hogdamage,” says Mark Price, AgriLife Extension agent.Hogs are venturing to within a couple of blocks ofthe courthouse, he says.

Hospital administrators complain about expensivedamage to the landscapes and worry about patientsor staff encountering hogs in the parking lot at night.

Rural landowners are familiar with the havoc aferal hog herd called a sounder can wreak in asingle evening, Price says. But town residents find itastounding.

Why the increased reports of hog incursions intourban areas? Are the numbers really exploding, or isit just public perception?

Higginbotham frankly admits this is not knownfor sure, but he expects it’s both. Increased awarenessby landowners may play a role, but the hog numbersare definitely rising.

Teardrop-shaped traps have proven to be themost effective for capturing feral hogs inlarger numbers on farms and ranches.


GrowingHope in

Guatemala


INTERNATIONAL

The Norman Borlaug Institute

for International Agriculture is

improving agriculture in more

than 100 countries around the

world. The Food for Progress

project in Guatemala is one of

11 major projects in which the

institute is helping native

people live better by

increasing food production.


During a trade mission to Central Americain late September, then U.S. Secretary ofAgriculture Ed Schafer stopped in

Guatemala City and praised the efforts of theNorman Borlaug Institute for InternationalAgriculture.

Schafer was briefed on the institute’s Food forProgress project activities, funded by the U.S.Department of Agriculture, including biodieselproduction and food processing.

“I’m impressed that these projects are providingGuatemalans with the tools they need to developbusiness enterprises that can be sustained afterproject funding is finished,” Schafer told Dr. BillDugas, then deputy director and now interimdirector of Texas AgriLife Research.

“Since 2005,

tens of thousands

of Guatemalan

farmers have been

able to increase their

income and

improve their

quality of life,

thanks to this project.”—Johanna Roman,

Latin American programs coordinatorBorlaug Institute for International Agriculture


Guatemalans are learning to grow, harvest,and process more of their own food supplythrough the Borlaug Institute’s Food forProgress project.


Dugas and Borlaug Institute representatives werevisiting project sites and meeting with theGuatemalan farmers, including many indigenousMayan women. “e pride we see and gratitude wereceive from those who benefit from these projects isheart-warming and humbling,” Dugas says.

“Since 2005, tens of thousands of Guatemalanfarmers have been able to increase their income andimprove their quality of life, thanks to this project,”says Johanna Roman, Latin American programscoordinator for the Borlaug Institute. “is is a majorbenefit to local communities, as most of the farmerswe work with make less than two dollars per day.”

For the past three years, the project has helpedteach Guatemalan farmers how to improveagricultural techniques, develop cooperatives, andbuild new agribusiness opportunities. Borlaug

Institute representatives have also helped themestablish product development labs; build compostingunits, greenhouses, and irrigation systems; anddevelop new agribusiness “incubators” to improvecompetitiveness.

Food for Progress has created a biodiesel programthat is helping the Guatemalans develop alternativefuel without competing with food production. InEscuintla, two facilities for processing biodiesel fromnative jatropha plants have been completed, withequipment on the way.

Michaela Cux, a Mayan woman representing the15-member Mujeres Trabajadores (Women Workers)association of Maya de Santa María Visitación, metwith Schafer and told him how she and others hadlearned good practices for food manufacturing andprocessing through the project.


“I’m impressed that

these projects are

providing

Guatemalans with

the tools they need

to develop business

enterprises that can

be sustained after

project funding

is finished.”—Ed Schafer, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

Food for Progress helped convert a kitchen insidean agricultural cooperative in Solola into a food-processing center where Mayan women now preparemeals from local fruits and vegetables. A secondmodern food-processing facility was also establishedin the region. rough these centers, Borlaug Institutepersonnel demonstrate how to prepare and processsuch foods as pickled vegetables, jellies, salsa, andpicante sauce. ey have also helped develop newproducts, including tropical fruit juices, pastries, trailmixes with dehydrated fruits, and edible tropical fruitarrangements.

Because the first was so successful, the USDAawarded a second four-year Food for Progress projectto the Borlaug Institute in 2008. “We owe a debt ofgratitude to the USDA for funding these projectsand allowing us to take a lead role in theirimplementation,” Roman says. “Because of theirsupport, we’ve helped thousands of Guatemalans intheir fight against poverty and malnutrition, and we’llbe able to help thousands more.”

For more information on the Borlaug Institute andits international projects, go tohttp://borlaug.tamu.edu.


Little Kids.Biz Ideaz.


YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

Ten-year-old tycoons in the 4-H

Kids with Biz Ideaz program

develop a product and sell it at

school, while catching a

glimpse of how they might

succeed in running a small

business when they grow up.


Can selling fruity yogurt smoothies to juniorhigh kids lead to establishing a successfulItalian restaurant?

Such is the dream of 10-year-old Luis David Leonof Conroe, Texas, who’s getting a glimpse of what’sinvolved in starting a business through a special 4-HAfterschool program called Kids with Biz Ideaz.

“I’m learning a lot about what it takes to go intobusiness for yourself,” he says. Luis has settled onSmoothie Queen, an enterprise that will repackageyogurt with varieties of fruit to sell to his classmatesin the lunchroom at Travis Intermediate School for$1.50 to $3 per cup. “We already know thatstrawberry is the flavor that people like best,” he says.He and his two grade-school partners in SmoothieQueen will feature the berries in a good many oftheir yogurt cups.

Using a computer provided by 4-H, Luis hasdesigned his own business cards and an advertisingflyer. He says that what he’s learning may help himget into the restaurant business someday. “My dad isa chef at an Italian restaurant, and I like to cooklasagna, so owning a restaurant is something I thinkI’d like to do,” he says.

Helping kids see the possibilities involved instarting their own small businesses is a goal of theKids with Biz Ideaz program, says Caroline Cruz, acounty Extension agent for urban youth developmentwith the Texas AgriLife Extension Service. 4-H TeenTeachers and other volunteers support Cruz in herwork with Luis and some 70 other children ages10–13 involved in the after-school program inMontgomery County.

Besides developing a business plan for their

PREVIOUS PAGE: Graciela Octaviano, 10, plansto market her yogurt smoothie business by

offering free samples. ABOVE: Luis David Leon,10, goes over a computerized flyer for his

business with Extension agent Caroline Cruz.OPPOSITE: Marquis Miles, 11, hopes to one

day run a sports equipment business.


“I’m learning

a lot about

what it takes

to go into business

for yourself.”

—Luis David Leon, age 10Kids with Biz Ideaz member

Conroe, Texas

product, these “biz kids” will put together a displayadvertising their businesses for a “trade show” in thespring. Community business leaders are invited tocritique the presentations and recognize the mostoutstanding efforts.

Now in its fourth year, the program is also active inselected schools in El Paso, Brown, and Williamsoncounties. It is funded under a U.S. Department ofAgriculture grant that supports a national Children,Youth and Families at Risk initiative.

Dr. Jeff Howard, associate leader of the State 4-HProgram, notes that each county’s 4-H staff offers avariation on the Kids with Biz Ideaz theme, based oncommunity needs and opportunities. All seek toensure that the young people involved have the keyelements of entrepreneurship modeled for them andare encouraged to consider self-employment as acareer choice.

“Many of the children we are working with heredon’t have the financial advantages other kids do,” hesays, “and a number of them come from rural parts ofurban counties that have declining employmentopportunities.”

More than 1,200 children have gotten their firsttaste of entrepreneurship from the 4-H program, andmany first “graduates” have returned as volunteers toteach business basics to younger participants.

One of the program’s highlights is a three-daysummer camp that brings 40 youngsters from thefour locations for additional business training at theTexas 4-H Conference Center in Brownwood.

Part of the learning experience is the trip itself,Howard says, explaining that the buses bringing thekids to camp usually stop for tours of interestingenterprises along the way. e group from El Paso,for example, stops at a shrimp farm in the middle ofthe desert.

“e kids see how this entrepreneur used what hehad saltwater from deep wells and his ownimagination to make a profitable business raisingand selling shrimp hundreds of miles from the Gulf,”Howard says.

Texas 4-H hopes to build on its work with at-riskyouth by seeking additional funding for programsaimed at helping high school students from low-income families prepare for college. Programsstarting up in May in south Harris County and inCameron County in the Rio Grande Valley willdemonstrate how 4-H clubs working in the schoolscan help students raise their science and math testscores and gain work-related skills that will enhancetheir chances of college admission.

“Many of the

children we are

working with . . .

come from rural parts

of urban counties

that have declining

employment

opportunities.”

—Dr. Jeff Howard, associate leaderState 4-H Program


Agustin “A. J.” Jaime, 12, looked into makingsalsa or trail mix before deciding that yogurtsmoothies offered the most profit.


Giving

Charlie Smith, with his wife,Jean, their granddaughter Heather Miller

Haliburton ’00, and their great-granddaughterHannah Haliburton.


A BETTER FUTURE FOR AGGIES

Even though Charlie and Jean Smith of Houstonnever attended Texas A&M University, the couplehas been among the institution’s most ardent — andgenerous — supporters.

e Smiths founded Data, Inc., a business thatcollected and sold geophysical data for the oil and gasindustry, which they sold in 1994. But it was theirdecades in the cattle ranching business, when theyraised registered Charolais cattle, that brought theminto contact with Texas A&M, particularly with theuniversity’s animal science department.

“We got to know the people at Texas A&Mthrough the Department of Animal Science andstarted our giving there,” says Charlie Smith. “enyears later a few of our granddaughters started goingto A&M, so we got interested in giving to theschool’s Agricultural Leadership program and otherareas.”

Since 1991, the Smiths have made donations tothree College of Agriculture and Life Sciencesdepartments, as well as to the Chancellor’s CenturyCouncil and other university organizations.

“Charlie and Jean Smith have given generously tothe departments of Animal Science; AgriculturalLeadership, Education and Communications; andEcosystem Science and Management,” says Dr. MarkHussey, vice chancellor and dean for agriculture andlife sciences. “We’re privileged to have the Smith’ssupport and are honored they think so highly of thestudents, faculty, and programs in the College ofAgriculture and Life Sciences.”

Over the past 14 years, contributions by the Smithsto Texas A&M have surpassed $684,000.

eir gifts include the Endowed Fund forExcellence in Agricultural Development; the CharlesB. and Jean G. Smith COALS Endowed ScholarshipFund in Animal Science; the Charles B. and Jean G.Smith Endowed Scholarship for AgriculturalLeadership; and the Charles B. and Jean G. SmithEndowed Scholarship in Rangeland Ecology andManagement (the department has since beenrenamed Ecosystem Science and Management).

“e Smiths have a passion for A&M and itsstudents and understand the need for philanthropyand scholarship assistance so young people can havea better future,” says Hussey. “We’re grateful to themfor all they have done for the university and for themany students whose lives they have changedthrough their generosity.”

Along with their gifts to Texas A&M, the Smithsalso give to Oklahoma University and StanfordUniversity, where Charlie Smith received hisbachelor’s and master’s degrees, respectively, and tothe Society of Exploration Geophysicists.

For more information on giving opportunities in

agriculture and life sciences, please contact the College

of Agriculture and Life Sciences Development Office at

979.847.9314 or visit our Web site at

http://giving.tamu.edu


GIVING THE

PASSION OF

A LIFETIME

In the world of miniature roses, breeder Ralph S. Moore is called

father, patron saint, and king. Now the title benefactor can be added.

Moore, who celebrated his 102nd birthday in January 2009, has

donated all of his rose breeding stock to Texas A&M University’s

Department of Horticultural Sciences to ensure continued rose

research through the department’s Robert E. Basye Endowed Chair in

Rose Breeding. Moore continues to collaborate with Basye Chair

holder Dr. David Byrne to develop new varieties.

Although best known for his miniature roses, Moore has also done

groundbreaking work in developing shrub roses, striped roses, halo

roses, Hulthemia roses, rugosa hybrids, moss roses, and crested roses.

Moore’s gift to Texas A&M includes 80 rose patents, a book collection,

and a $100,000 cash contribution for program operation.

A metal sculpture of roses climbing an arbor, created by his son

Keith Moore, will be placed in the Horticulture and Forestry Sciences

Building atrium to honor Moore’s lifetime of work.

Thanks to Moore’s donation, Texas A&M will continue his goal of

creating beautiful, disease-resistant roses adapted to a wide range

of climates.

“I am excited by this opportunity and the partnership with Texas

A&M,” Moore says. “Obviously, I have a lot of respect for the rose-

breeding program Dr. Byrne has created there.”

To support Moore’s work and honor his legacy, the university will

establish an endowment, the Ralph Moore Excellence Fund.


It would be hard to find better examples of the spirit of giving back

to the community than the late David R. and Eula Wintermann of

Eagle Lake, Texas. In the early 1970s, Wintermann (1911–1997) was

instrumental in the creation of the Eagle Lake Rice Research Station, a

satellite of the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at

Beaumont. The station was renamed the David R. Wintermann Rice

Research Station in his honor in 2002.

Wintermann was a successful rice farmer and a strong supporter of

the Texas rice industry. He and his wife, Eula, were dedicated to their

community and to wildlife conservation. They were instrumental in the

development of the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge,

the Wintermann Library, the Prairie Edge Museum, the Eagle Lake

Community Center, and Rice Memorial Hospital.

In 2002 and 2007, the David R. and Eula Wintermann Foundation

provided gifts that made it possible for the Beaumont center to

acquire 113 acres of prime rice-farming land west of Houston. AgriLife

Research scientists have helped to increase Texas rice yields from an

average of 1,700 pounds per acre in 1945 to 7,300 pounds in 2007.

In September 2008, Wintermann Foundation members were

honored in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new research farm.

Recognized were foundation chair Jack M. Johnson; his wife, Judi

Johnson, the Wintermanns’ niece, who has supported the station

since its establishment; and directors Donald N. Bendy and

Steve Balas.

FOUNDATION

SUPPORTS

RICE RESEARCH


Noteworthy


e cots emergency responders sleep on are smalland hard. e camp food they eat is hot, but nothome-cooked. e workdays are long; the wait toreturn home, even longer.

Emergency response is tough, but helping others iswhat Texas Forest Service responders live for, saysMarty Martinez, assistant chief regional firecoordinator. With only 180 forest resource protectionemployees, the agency is the lead for all-hazardresponses, including suppression of wildfires andmanagement of disasters such as hurricanes,tornadoes, and flooding.

From 2005 to 2008, the Texas Forest Servicespent 797 days out of 1,253 in emergency mode,responding to 6,353 wildfires that burned 2.5million acres, Martinez says. Despite competing forout-of-state resources such as firefighting personnel,dozer crews, and air support, responders saved28,135 homes.

In addition to wildfire suppression, the TexasForest Service simultaneously responded to 22 all-hazard events, including Hurricanes Katrina, Rita,Dolly, and Ike; flooding statewide; tornadoes inTulia/Cactus and Eagle Pass; and the Alon Refineryexplosion. In February 2003 the Forest Service ledthe recovery of the Space Shuttle Columbia after itdisintegrated in the skies above Texas.

“In the years I have been with TFS, I have workedside by side with people who have lost everythingthey had,” Martinez says. “I have had people tell me

their house was gone, but they continued to work,wanting only to help others who had also losteverything.”

is spirit of service in the face of all obstacles anddangers is at the heart of the Texas Forest Servicemission.

e Texas Forest Service was created in 1915 bythe 34th Legislature as a part of the Texas A&MSystem. It is headquartered in the John B. Connallybuilding in College Station. To learn more aboutincident response, visithttp://texasforestservice.tamu.edu.

TEXAS FOREST SERVICE

RESPONDS TO ALL HAZARDS

The Ironwood Hotshots head out to fightthe Cathedral Fire in Brewster County inApril 2008.


Serious diseases carried by ticks coming from Mexico pose new

threats to the Texas livestock industry. “Expansion of the fever tick

quarantine zone has been quite alarming,” says Dr. Tammy Beckham,

director of the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. In July

2008, the fever tick quarantine zone was expanded to include an

additional 307,000 acres. Now over 1 million acres are under

preventive quarantines.

“We must continue to work to push the fever tick back toward the

border and also monitor for any additional vector-borne diseases that

could enter through our southern border,” Beckham says, pointing out

that a disease as devastating to livestock as tick fever could potentially

lead to large economic losses for the state.

The lab is seeking additional funding to develop more rapid

diagnostic testing that can be performed both on a large scale at a

major facility and on a handful of cattle in a rancher’s corral.

Having a strong diagnostic program for a range of exotic animal

diseases also has a positive effect on public health. If diseases that can

be transmitted from animals to humans such as avian influenza

can be detected early, chances of minimizing an outbreak among

people improve.

The Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory is one of a

dozen core institutions making up the National Animal Health

Laboratory Network. This network provides front-line surveillance and

response to the most dangerous animal diseases.

PROTECTING LIVESTOCK

AND PUBLIC HEALTH


AgriLife Research food scientist Dr. Luis Cisneros and plant breeder

Dr. David Byrne, at the Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center, have

found that plums, peaches, and nectarines may be just as beneficial to

health as the much-touted blueberry. After testing more than 100

varieties of plums and other stone fruits against five brands of

blueberries on the market, the researchers found that the stone fruits

matched or exceeded the blueberries in antioxidants and

phytonutrients, which prevent disease.

The research team also found that the phytonutrients in plums

inhibited the growth of breast cancer cells in the laboratory without

adversely affecting normal cell growth. Future studies will focus on

cardiovascular disease and cancer using animal models and on

identifying the specific compounds that fight disease.

The research indicates that plant breeders ultimately will be able to

produce new crop varieties with the best ratio of phytochemicals for

disease prevention and inhibition. These fruits will be available as fresh

produce and in dietary supplements.

FINDING BETTER

DEFENSES AGAINST

DISEASE


Dr. Bruce McCarl, a Regents Professor of agricultural economics for

Texas AgriLife Research, and several hundred fellow scientists serving on

the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were joint

recipients, with former vice president Al Gore, of the 2007 Nobel Peace

Prize for their efforts to document and disseminate greater knowledge

about man-made climate change.

McCarl has worked on the climate

change issue for more than 20 years,

studying how agriculture could be

affected and how it could play a role in

mitigation (see story on page 20).

Portions of this work were done jointly

with the IPCC, which was established in

1988 by the World Meteorological

Organization and the United Nations

Environment Programme.

McCarl’s studies show that Texas is

vulnerable to negative aspects of climate

change. Drought, high temperatures,

hurricanes, and rising seas regularly punish the state, and under climate

change, these factors will only increase.

Texas also must reduce greenhouse gas emissions, he says, because it

has approximately twice the emissions of any other state, including

California.

McCarl came to the Department of Agricultural Economics at Texas

A&M in 1985 from prior faculty positions at both Oregon State and

Purdue universities. He earned his undergraduate degree in business

statistics at the University of Colorado and a doctorate in management

science at Penn State.

MCCARL SHARES IN NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

Accolades


Dr. Doug Starr, a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, is professor of

agricultural communications and journalism in the Department of

Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications. A

faculty member since 1986, he earned his degrees from Louisiana

State University and Florida State University. His 60-year career

has included work as a photographer, columnist, and educator.

Dr. Jeffrey Savell is a Regents Professor and the E. M. “Manny”

Rosenthal Chair holder in the Department of Animal Science. He

joined the faculty in 1979 after earning three degrees at Texas

A&M. Savell has taught more than 5,000 undergraduate and

graduate students and has received 30 awards for teaching,

research, and extension. In addition, he conducts research on

meat and meat products through his appointment with Texas

AgriLife Research. He has written or co-written more than 700

publications and garnered $10 million in grants and contracts.

Dr. X. Ben Wu is professor and associate head for graduate

programs in the Department of Ecosystem Science and

Management. He joined the faculty in 1995. His degrees are from

Lanzhou University in China and the University of Tennessee. He

has written or co-written more than two dozen major articles or

books in the past five years and garnered nearly $4 million in

grants and contacts during his tenure here. He is a member of a

research team that recently discovered that the amino acid

arginine could help fight human obesity. For more information,

see http://agnews.tamu.edu/showstory.php?id=956.

PROFESSORS HONORED FOR TEACHING EXCELLENCE

Three faculty members from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences are recipients of the

2008 Distinguished Achievement Award for teaching excellence, given by the Association of

Former Students at Texas A&M University.

The last time we published Lifescapes, in fall 2007,

we were called Texas A&M Agriculture. In January

2008 we changed our name to Texas A&M AgriLife.

We also renamed two of our agencies, the Texas

Agricultural Experiment Station and Texas

Cooperative Extension, which are now Texas AgriLife

Research and the Texas AgriLife Extension Service.

Our five college and agency components now reside

under the Texas A&M AgriLife brand.

Why the change? Beginning in 2006, we

undertook a strategic positioning initiative to

determine how three of our components the

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas

A&M University, the Texas Agricultural Experiment

Station, and Texas Cooperative Extension were

perceived in Texas and around the world.

The study showed that, although our teaching,

research, and extension efforts have greatly

advanced agriculture and the life sciences, people

did not clearly understand our agencies

and their missions. The strategic positioning

initiative focused on ways to reach out to a larger

audience and a changing state population, attract

new resources, and build new partnerships

while strengthening relationships with our

existing partners.


Our rebranding efforts centered on the message

“Agriculture is Life!” We know that discoveries and

innovations in agriculture and the life sciences

directly affect the quality of the food we eat, the

clothes we wear, the air we breathe, the water we

drink, the homes we live in, and even the fuels we

put into our vehicles. When it comes right down to

it, life itself is the core value that we seek to sustain

and enhance. As Texas A&M AgriLife, we are

working every day to improve life and improve

Texas. Simply put, that’s what we’re all about.

Here is a brief introduction to the five components

of Texas A&M AgriLife.

TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE:NEW NAME FOR A NEW ERA

Members

College of Agriculture and Life SciencesEstablished in 1911, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences is the third-largest college at Texas A&M

University, with approximately 6,500 students. With 14 departments and more than 80 undergraduate and

graduate degrees, it offers the university’s greatest breadth of programs. Its prize-winning faculty includes two

Nobel laureates, and more than $261 million in research grants and contracts have been awarded over the past

five years. Since 2004, undergraduate student diversity has increased faster than for the university as a whole.

Texas AgriLife ResearchTexas AgriLife Research, established in 1887, is Texas’s only public, statewide agency dedicated to research in

the agricultural, environmental, and life sciences. In College Station and at 13 research centers across the state,

our scientists and professionals work to improve the productivity, efficiency, and profitability of agriculture, while

maintaining a sustainable environment. Through its many collaborations and partnerships, AgriLife Research is

helping to strengthen Texas’s global market position by meeting modern challenges here and around the world.

Texas AgriLife Extension ServiceEstablished in 1915, the Texas AgriLife Extension Service improves lives, businesses, and communities across

Texas and beyond through high-quality education targeted to meet locally identified issues and needs.

Employing some 960 professional educators, assisted by some 100,000 Extension-trained volunteers, AgriLife

Extension serves all 254 Texas counties. Our experts maintain programs in food and fiber production, marketing

and policy, environment and natural resources, family and consumer sciences, nutrition and health, 4-H and youth

development, and community economic development.

Texas Forest ServiceThe Texas Forest Service, established in 1915, leads the state in forest and tree development and conservation;

wildfire prevention, mitigation, and protection; urban and community forestry; and forest sustainability. With 350

employees in 60 offices statewide, the Forest Service is also the state’s lead agency for all-hazard responses,

including wildfire suppression and disaster management. Most recently, the agency played an important role in

the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Dolly, and Ike and in the Alon Refinery explosion.

Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic LaboratoryThe Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) performs diagnostic testing for the livestock and

poultry industries, pari-mutuel drug testing for the Texas Racing Commission, and companion-animal testing for

zoonotic diseases. It also oversees Texas’s Salmonella Pullorum-Typhoid Program and has the state’s only

Biosafety Level 3 veterinary diagnostic lab. Established in 1967, TVMDL has two full-service laboratories, in

College Station and Amarillo, and two poultry laboratories, located in Center and Gonzales. Each year, TVMDL

receives more than 220,000 submissions from Texas, surrounding states, and other nations and runs

approximately 1.4 million tests.


State Headquarters at Texas A&M University

AgriLife Research and Extension Center



Texas AgriLife Extension Service County Office

OUR STATEWIDE PRESENCE


Produced by

AgriLife Communications

Copyright 2009

Texas A&M System

Printed on recycled,

chlorine-free, acid-free paper

All programs and related activities of

The Texas A&M University System

are open to all persons, regardless of

race, color, age, sex, disability,

religion, or national origin.

Not printed at state expense

TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE http://AgriLife.tamu.edu

Texas A&M System

Texas A&M UniversityCollege of Agriculture and Life Sciences


Texas AgriLife Extension Service



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