How can hybrid rice help meet the global demand for increased food production? That’s the topic of the next installment of the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture’s Food and Agribusiness Webinar Series.

Addressing the issue will be Michael A. Gumina, global CEO for RiceTec Ag. He will be welcomed by Bobby Coats, professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness at the University of Arkansas and moderator of the webinar series.

“This webinar will provide an overview of the current and future role of hybrid rice technology in global food production,” says Dr. Coats. “We will review the impact that hybrid rice has had on the US market, the adoption of hybrid rice in the global market and a forecast of the evolution of hybrid rice over the next 20 years.”

To register for the webinar, which will begin at 10 a.m. on Thursday (Nov. 12), click on https://uaex.zoom.us/webinar/register/d1753b665ff1bfe334538d7d4481ef37.

This webinar’s presenter, Michael Gumina, has been engaged with production agriculture and the seed industry for over 35 years. He is currently the lead executive for RiceTec AG which is a privately held, leading global hybrid rice seed business.

Prior to joining RiceTec, he was an executive with DuPont Pioneer where he was responsible for global seed production operations and a member of several key global and regional management teams.

He has been a member of the American Seed Trade Association board of directors, serving as board chairman in 2011-12, and the board of the International Seed Federation. He was appointed to a term on the USDA Agricultural Trade Advisory Committee by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in 2013.

He has also been a member of numerous non-profit boards and advisory panels including the Iowa State Seed Science Center, Iowa 4-H Foundation, ChildServe and most recently the First the Seed Foundation.

Gumina is a graduate of Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, with a degree in agronomy.

To learn more about the University of Arkansas Webinar Series, visit http://www.uaex.edu/farm-ranch/economics-marketing/food-agribusiness-webinars/