Nebraska Agronomist Ken Cassman honored by Swedish Academy of Sciences

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Ken Cassman, an agronomist at Nebraska, stands in a field of corn
Thursday, January 5, 2017

Nebraska Agronomist Ken Cassman honored by Swedish Academy of Sciences

The Swedish Academy of Sciences has named University of Nebraska-Lincoln agronomist Kenneth Cassman the recipient of the 2017 Bertebos Prize for promoting education and research in the food chain.

The Bertebos Prize is awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry and is sometimes referred to by scientists as Sweden’s “Nobel Prize in Agriculture.”

The academy cited Cassman, the emeritus Robert B. Daugherty Professor of Agronomy at Nebraska and fellow of the University of Nebraska system's Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute, for his key role in developing the concept of ecological intensification of agriculture production. “His extensive scientific production has great importance for applications in agriculture,” the citation stated. 

The concept addresses how best to minimize the gap between the current crop yields on farms and the potential yield achievable by using the best-available technologies and knowledge, while minimizing negative environmental impacts. The Global Yield Gap Atlas that Cassman and his colleagues have developed provides robust estimates of untapped crop production potential on existing farmland based on current climate and available soil and water resources. Scientists believe maximizing yield is a key component of producing enough food to feed the world’s population by 2050.

Read the full story on Nebraska Today. Swedish Academy of Sciences honors Cassman. 

For more about the Global Yield Gap Atlas project, visit www.yieldgap.org.