By Scout Nelson
South Dakota State University (SDSU) will honor Edgar S. McFadden, the pioneering wheat breeder whose work helped protect food supplies and is credited with preventing starvation for millions of people worldwide. A public ceremony and reception on Aug. 29 will mark the dedication of a new sculpture, H.O.P.E. a Helix of Resilience: The Life, Journey & Legacy of Edgar S. McFadden.
“We honor Edgar McFadden and give our campus a lasting way to recognize an SDSU pioneer whose vision changed agriculture worldwide,” said Joe Cassady, SD Corn Endowed Dean of the SDSU College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences.
The dedication ceremony will feature remarks from South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden, SDSU President Barry Dunn, South Dakota Wheat Commission representative Jon Kleinjan, South Dakota Wheat Growers Association Executive Director Jennifer Scharpe, sculptor Reinaldo Correa, and Cassady.
McFadden graduated from State College, now South Dakota State University, and later became the institution’s official plant breeder. After losing federal funding for his position in 1920, he mortgaged his farm to continue researching solutions to wheat diseases that threatened crops across South Dakota.
His efforts led to the development of Hope in 1925, a wheat variety resistant to both stem and leaf rust. Although it was not the highest-yielding wheat at the time, its disease resistance made it a valuable breakthrough for farmers.
Over the following decade, breeders used Hope to develop higher-yielding wheat varieties while retaining its rust-resistant qualities. By the late 1930s, wheat varieties containing Hope genetics were widely planted in California and played a significant role in improving crop production.
Agricultural historians have credited Hope with helping strengthen food supplies during World War II. Reader’s Digest estimated that the variety prevented starvation for more than 25 million people and saved American farmers about $400 million in crop losses.
“Edgar McFadden transformed a boyhood determination to defeat the wheat disease known as ‘rust’ into Hope — a rust-resistant wheat that changed the world,” said Cassady, chair of the McFadden Endowment Board.
Created by artist Reinaldo Correa, the sculpture was installed earlier this year near the Edgar S. McFadden Biostress Lab and Raven Precision Agriculture Center. The dedication ceremony will begin at 3:30 p.m. and will be followed by a reception in the SD Corn Gallery, where visitors can celebrate McFadden’s lasting impact on global agriculture.
Photo Credit: south-dakota-state-university.jpg
Categories: South Dakota, Crops, Wheat