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Reagan Reed, a Ph.D. candidate in Khanday Imtiyaz's lab at UC Davis, has a way of describing his research that might make a plant breeder pause.

“I’m the sort of person who likes to break things to understand them,” he says.

What he breaks are genes involved in seed germination. Reed is investigating whether changing those genes can help seeds establish healthy plants under a wider range of conditions.

Turning genetics into commercial impact requires more than technical skill, it requires guiding teams, influencing decisions, and aligning strategy.
That’s why the UC Davis Seed Biotechnology Center built the 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀.
• 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 & 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀: Master the human side of innovation to maximize the impact of your work and elevate your career.

The 2027 International Pepper Conference is a 3-day conference, hosted by Allen Van Deynze. We welcome local and international growers, plant breeders and scientists, processors, equipment manufacturers and students.  The conference will include the latest developments in the peppers industry trends, technology, genomics, high throughput phenotyping and plant breeding. The tour will include visits to processors, grower fields and the latest in mechanical harvesting technologies. 

Kent Bradford is offering a new way of looking at biological data that, he says, “radically alters what we can see.” 

Traditionally, scientists see things in terms of averages to understand the behavior of plants, cells, molecules – all kinds of things. But now, the UC Davis distinguished professor emeritus argues, new technologies allow us to see data points as individuals and take a closer look at the statistical outliers. Usually dismissed as “noise” and “error,” they in fact offer a goldmine of new insights about how things respond to a stimulus.

SBC's Director of Research, Imtiyaz Khanday, is one of six people at UC Davis who received the Early Career Faculty Research Excellence Award, granted along with a $50,000 prize by the University of California Office of the President.

🌱 European University of California, Davis Plant Breeding Academy Class VIII: Session 5 in the books!

🌍 What an incredible global cohort!
We welcomed plant breeders from across the world—Japan, New Zealand, the USA, Spain, Turkey, South Africa, Israel, and more! Their engagement, thoughtful discussions, and insightful questions made this a truly exceptional learning experience.
No matter where you are in your plant breeding journey, we wish you continued success and look forward to seeing the impact you'll make in the field.

The Seed Biotechnology Center is proud to announce that the founding director of SBC, Dr. Kent Bradford, has authored the new book "Populations of Individuals" which is scheduled to be released on June 26, 2026 by Oxford University Press. 

This book: 

Venkatesan Sundaresan, a Distinguished Professor of plant biology and plant sciences, and Imtiyaz Khanday, an assistant professor of plant sciences, travelled to Hanoi, Vietnam to receive the prize at a special VinFuture Foundation ceremony Dec. 5.

As autumn arrived, twelve ambitious seed professionals stepped onto the UC Davis campus for the inaugural Seed Business 201: Vegetables course.

The UC Davis Plant Breeding Academy Class IX concluded their two year program with a ceremony and reception in Davis, California on September 12, 2025. The graduation event celebrated the 19 PBA graduates from 8 different countries.

Seed World Group's Marcel Bruins discusses how "effective communication serves as the bridge between scientific innovation and public understanding" after his visit with EPBA Class VIII earlier this year. 

Read the Seed World article here >>

The 2025 winner of the Plant Breeding Academy’s Outstanding Student Award is Sujit Tha, Head of Plant Breeding at CN Seeds Ltd in the United Kingdom. This prestigious PBA award was presented to Sujit by PBA Director, Jovan Djordjevic, at the ASTA (American Seed Trade Association) Leadership Summit in Washington DC on June 9. Jovan added: “At the UC Davis Plant Breeding Academy, we try to equip breeders not just with tools, but with clarity and confidence.

The California Seed Association hosted its annual Spring Student Tour on April 7-8 in the Salinas area, visiting several companies with some 40 California State University and UC Davis undergraduate and graduate students, who were introduced to the technologies and jobs associated with producing seed globally.

On the 8th, the tour was hosted at noon by Hartnell College and Seed Central, and joined by 60 students from Hartnell and local high schools for lunch, industry panelists’ testimonials, and a networking career fair.

Dr. Allen Van Deynze, SBC Director, says the SBC's mission—to innovate, foster partnerships, and offer continuous professional development for seed industry professionals—aligns with the California Department of Agriculture's strategic plan.

Read the article here >>