Here's What a Leading Lettuce Breeder Wants You to Know
Independent plant breeder Bill Waycott discusses his career in developing new lettuce varieties and the challenges facing the agricultural industry. He reflects on his transition from a Peace Corps volunteer to a specialist in lettuce genetics.
Why it matters
Understanding agricultural breeding is crucial for food security and adapting crops to changing environmental conditions and health safety standards.
Closeup of heads of Romaine lettuce near Five Points, San Joaquin Valley, Calif. —Ed Young/Design Pics Editorial/Universal Images Group—Getty Images In the town of Nipomo on the central coast of California, in Bill Waycott's fields, lettuces of the future are taking root. Red-furled or dark-leaved, these rosettes of crunchy goodness might someday make it to a store near you.
Waycott is an independent plant breeder, one of the small community of dedicated folks who devote their time and effort to the reproduction of a given plant or plants . For decades, he's focused mainly on breeding better lettuces, and he spoke to TIME about what could be in America's salad bowls in coming years and just how damaging the recent Cyclospora outbreak , traced to a farm run by greens behemoth Taylor Farms in Mexico , has been for lettuce growers.
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