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South Dakota State, General Mills collaborate on oats lab

General Mills will house its oat variety development lab at South Dakota State University.  The Minneapolis-based food company and SDSU announced Thursday the opening of the Oats Research Laboratory, which will focus on advancing sustainability and quality of oats in the U.S.

“We’re honored to be here working alongside some of the brightest agricultural researchers in the country,” said Jim Kirkwood, vice president and chief science and technology development officer at General Mills, quoted in a news release issued by SDSU. “Our company has made a public commitment to source 100 percent of our oats by 2020 from growing regions that demonstrate continuous improvement against industry-based environmental metrics. Having a venerable institution like SDSU as a partner will allow us to do more innovative oat breeding research in the labs and fields – and get us to that goal.”

The collaborative oat research facility includes labs, greenhouses and access to field trials.  A news release says General Mills agronomists and plant breeders will work in the lab alongside the university’s plant science researchers and experts.  They’ll focus on improving the nutritional qualities of oats, better performing oat varieties and increased sustainability.

“At South Dakota State University, we believe strongly in public/private partnerships and the synergies they bring to research and innovation,” said Dr. Barry H. Dunn, president of the institution, also quoted in the news release. “This relationship combines an international innovator in consumer foods and the leading land-grant institution in the country’s second largest oat-producing state. The new laboratory will be a powerful shared opportunity to enhance agricultural productivity and food production, and help stimulate sustainable economic growth and prosperity.”

Oats are at the core of General Mills’ business, with more than 600 products in the company’s U.S. portfolio containing oats. In fiscal 2015, 25 percent of the company’s U.S. retail sales volume comprised products containing whole grain oats. In 1941 General Mills introduced Cheerioats, the first ready-to-eat cereal made from oats, now better known as Cheerios. As one of the largest buyers of North American oats, General Mills says it hopes that partnering with the top researchers and agronomy students at SDSU will enable the company to improve the quality and supply of oats, and increase the profitability of the crop for U.S. farmers.

South Dakota is ranked second in U.S. oat production behind Wisconsin.