b"Because of the strong pricing and export demand, domestic use is actually down, Shaw says. Domestic use of sorghum for feed and ethanol were negatively impacted from near-historic pricing. Her colleague David Drinnon, general manager at Richardson Seeds (a subsidiary of Nuseed), adds, however, that there was a large increase in sorghum silage interest recently likely because water continues to be a driving factor in many production areas where sorghums natural water use is an advantage over other crops.Tanner Antonick, Central U.S. sales manager for Alta Seedsthe U.S. brand for Advantasays he's also seen an increase in forage sorghum demand in places that havent had the rain to sup-port corn silage of adequate quality, such as the Texas panhandle. Sorghum grows well in these locations for silage, and with lower input costs compared to corn to boot. The company has also seen a massive increase in herbicide-tolerant varieties in 2021. Crop improvement specialists at the Center for Sorghum Improvement are currently working to add to the crops exist-ing drought tolerance, developing lines that have improved yield stability and opportunity under water stress. Additional agronomic emphases within public and private breeding programs, says Weinheimer, are traits linked to plant architecture such as height, stalk lodging and leaf structure. He adds that historically, agronomic trait focus in sorghum hasOne new sorghum market is the market for baijiu, an alcohol mostly revolved around crop protection, developing non-GMOmade from sorghum thats the most consumed beverage globally.A HEALTHIER, MOREPRODUCTIVE WORLD ISWHY WE TEST.INNOVATING AGRICULTURAL DIAGNOSTICSA healthy food supply is critical for our world today more than ever. We at Eurofins BioDiagnostics partner with our clients to identify seed-borne and seed-transmitted pathogens. We provide test results you can trust and the context you need to make informed decisions regarding the seed health of your crops.122/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2021"