Jim Anderson is a Professor in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Anderson received his B.S. in Agronomy from the University of Minnesota in 1987, M.S. in Crop Science from the University of Kentucky in 1989, and Ph.D. in Plant Breeding from Cornell University in 1992. Dr. Anderson came to the University of Minnesota in 1998 after previous positions at North Dakota State University and the USDA-ARS in Pullman, WA.
Dr. Anderson leads plant improvement programs focusing on wheat, intermediate wheatgrass (Kernza®) (initiated in 2011), and field pennycress (initiated in 2013). Research on each species includes cultivar development and the investigation of breeding/genetic principles related to crop improvement. Research is focused on identifying genes underlying economically important traits including disease resistance and grain quality and using marker-assisted and genomic selection for cultivar and germplasm development.
Dr. Anderson has developed 16 varieties and is the co‐developer of 8 others in four different market classes of wheat. He has authored/co-authored 140 articles in peer-reviewed journals and teaches a plant breeding course.
