Origin and history of Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center (DB NRRC)

Authors: Jia, Yulin

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Other
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/1/2023
Publication Date: 12/20/2023
Citation: Jia, Y. 2023. Origin and history of Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center (DBNRRC). Abstract. 66(2):34-36. www.grandprairiehistory.org

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The state of Arkansas has been one of the largest rice-producing states in the USA for decades. The National Rice Germplasm Evaluation and Enhancement Center (NRGEEC) was dedicated on October 22, 1998. The NRGEEC was named after U.S. senator Dale Bumpers, who was instrumental in its establishment and retired after 24 years in the US senate. The largest rice research center in the US funded by the federal government, the DB NRRC is in the heart of the rice-growing region in Stuttgart, Arkansas. The DB NRRC consists of 42,000-square feet of laboratory and office space and 14,000-square feet of greenhouse space—facilities that allow research activities with rice plants year-round. Research conducted at DB NRRC focuses on issues that are national in scope, resulting in new scientific knowledge and tools that impacts scientists, rice breeders, farmers, millers, processors, and consumers. Research is conducted through collaborations established once every five years with universities, state experiment stations, international research institutions, and private industry. The focus of the program at DB NRRC has been developing a better understanding of the function of genes and physiological processes that control economically important traits including yield, quality, disease resistance, and stress tolerance in rice. This research has resulted in the development of over 20,000 new genetic stocks and rice germplasm with novel genes and traits that can be used by breeders and geneticists to develop improved cultivars for production by U.S. farmers. DB NRRC research also has furthered understanding of plant response mechanisms to stress caused by biotic stress, such as pathogens, insects, weeds, and abiotic stresses such as temperature extremes, changing availability of water, and soil nutrients. The facility is home to the Genetic Stocks – Oryza (GSOR) collection, which consists of more than 38,000 genetic seed stocks. The germplasm collection is maintained in a 1,578-square-foot seed storage room that is temperature and humidity controlled. The DB NRRC also has an auditorium that seats 150 people and is where the 25th year of innovative research was celebrated. The DB NRRC employs about 38 people including nine PhD-level researchers, and frequently hosts visiting scientists and Postdoctoral Research Fellows from around the world who wish to participate in collaborative research. The combined group of nine ARS scientists and nine UA Rice Research and Extension Center scientists constitutes a major concentration of rice researchers in Stuttgart, Arkansas, in the USA.