b'From Darwin to DraftThis years National Association for Plant Breeding meeting explored the intersection of brewing and breeding.By Marc Zienkiewicz, Seed World Canada Senior EditorIMAGINE THIS:youre sipping on an American lager, savoring its crisp, clean taste. Little do you know, the jour-ney of that beer started over 150 years ago in the fields of the University of Illinois.This isnt just any corn used in the beer from Riggs Beer Company in Urbana, Ill.; its the product of one of the longest-running breeding experiments in history, a direct descendant of Darwins ideas on natural selection.Attendees of the National Association for Plant Breeding (NAPB) meeting heard the story during a day-long tour of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaigns corn breeding program led by Martin Bohn, associate professor of Maize Breeding and Genetics at the university who helped organize this years NAPB meeting.Shortly after Darwin published On the Origin of Species, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign embarked on a mission. They began experimenting with a white corn variety from a local farm, selectively breeding it for high andMatt Riggs of Riggs Beer Company in Urbana, Ill, speaks to low oil and protein concentrations. Over time, they producedattendees of the National Association for Plant Breeding.four distinct corn varieties, each with unique traits.Enter Steve Moose, director of the Corn Functional Genomics Lab and a professor of crop sciences at the university. Large brewers typically remove the germ from corn grits or The corn used in our American lagers is a result of this long- use corn syrup to avoid these issues. However, a simple Google term breeding experiment, really guided by his expertise. Thesearch led us to the Illinois breeding experiment and its low-oil low-oil corn variety they developed has found a perfect home incorn variety.our brewing process, solving a crucial problem for us, explainedThe brewerys connection to this special corn is more than Matt Riggs, who operates the brewpub along with brother Darin. just academic. It turns out Moose taught Riggs during his col-Oil is the enemy of beer. It compromises foam stability, shelflege days. When Riggs reached out to him about the oil problem, life, and overall quality due to oxidative reactions, he explains. Moose was intrigued. He had only a small amount of the low oil 76/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2024'