LISTEN: Rice Innovation at the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center

[00:00] Tim Burcham:

And I think in ten years I want people to look and say, man, that research that happened there has made a positive impact on my farm. It’s made a positive impact to my farm, not only economically, but it’s also improved my sustainability on my farm. Success looks like more production, less inputs, more sustainability while maintaining our productivity. I think that’s the key here is maintaining productivity, but also being more sustainable in that process.

[00:34] Intro/Outro:

Welcome to the Arkansas Food, Farms and Forests Podcast, the podcast bringing you the latest on food, fiber and forestry research from the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.

[00:49] Jenifer Fouch:

Welcome to Food, Farms and Forests. I’m Jenifer Fouch. Today we are going to the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center in Harrisburg, Arkansas. It’s also known as NERREC. We are learning more about this land-grant rice research and extension center today from Doctor Tim Burcham, director of this center. Thank you so much for taking the time to sit down with us and chat about NERREC.

[01:15] Tim:

Hey, I am delighted to be here, Jenifer, and thank you for having me on this this podcast. Excited about the opportunity to share what’s going on here at our new station. 

[01:24] Jenifer:

I know you have been super busy the last few months and the last few years with the construction of this center. Can you talk to us about that? What has it been like since?

[01:35] Tim:

Well, it’s been great. You know, we had that big grand opening there. August 30th was the actual date that we had the big grand opening, and, man, we had a big crowd here. Very exciting for everyone here. And of course, the new station. It’s around 26,000ft² of heated space here. And it’s just a beautiful facility as you come in. The front doors, of course, has the beautiful silo facade on the outside that, it makes it a landmark building as you drive up and down highway one between Harrisburg and Jonesboro, Arkansas. And then when you come in silo number one, that’s the front entrance. You’re greeted into the Nutrien Ag Solutions Grand Atrium there. And it really is a beautiful atrium area. It’s flanked then by the Jennifer Cox Smith Teaching Kitchen, the Seeds of Imagination Classroom that’s sponsored by Riceland Foods. And then you go right into the Greenway Equipment Company Exhibition Hall, which is our largest room that can seat over 200 people. We’ve probably had, Jenifer, between 350 and 400 people here for our grand opening that day. I had every chair in the building, and that was 301, and there were still people standing all around the perimeter. So, very good crowd, but, everything’s really going well right now.

[02:49] Jenifer:

Can you talk a little bit about the importance of what is going on inside that building and how this center reflects the evolution of Arkansas’ rice industry?

[02:59] Tim:

The Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center was born really out of the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board and the Division’s desire to have a new station in the northeast portion of the state. A large portion of the rice produced in Arkansas was produced in this four and five-county, area that is surrounding Poinsett County. Here, Poinsett County and Jackson County typically will swap between being number one in rice production each and every year. And really, when you take that four or five-county area, they’re producing about half of Arkansas’s rice, which really means that that’s about a quarter of the United States long grain rice, since we produce about half of the long grain rice in Arkansas. So a significant portion of our rice in Arkansas is produced up in this northeastern corridor north of I-40. So putting a new station here that is on this Henry silt loam soil. We’re also located on the western side of Crowley’s Ridge. Therefore, we’re in the Cache River critical groundwater area, which is another key component that we need to be looking at and studying as we look at water resources and how we conserve those. So the location of the station, it really was a key element in putting together research programs that will address all of those factors that will help our farmers stay productive going into the future.

[04:23] Jenifer:

So location was very important when deciding where are we putting the center.

[04:28] Tim:

It really was. When you look at the key aspects of the finding this farm, and I was not the personnel person that did the location for that. Dr. Chuck Wilson, actually worked through and help them find this particular farm. But some key elements that it has here is it does border highway one. So it has wonderful road frontage. It has a 32 acre reservoir. So we have surface water irrigation potential. Remember I mentioned we’re in this, critical groundwater area. And of course, then the Henry silt loam soils that are predominant for the rice production area in this region. So a lot of key aspects here that that make it an ideal location for us to look at all things that are important for us from a productivity standpoint and also from a sustainability standpoint. And that’s one of our key, components that we’ll be working toward is the sustainability issues that we’re looking at with regard to not only rice production, but all of our, row crop production. 

[05:30] Jenifer:

Great. Let’s talk a little bit about that. The mission to enhance rice production and promote sustainability. And then one of the main priorities there, which is maximizing water use efficiently. Can you expand on that sustainability and the water portion of it?

[05:45] Tim:

Well, water is a is the key ingredient in rice production. I mean, when we look at, we’re talking about a crop that loves to have, you know, a flood on it. And, you know, we put the flood on there really, for weed control. A lot of people do not understand that rice can grow without being in a flooded environment, but we do flood it and it’s happy in a flooded environment. And we would call that an anaerobic environment. And so water is a critical component here. So when we look at particularly west of the ridge or in this critical groundwater area, you’re going to see more and more of our producers, having to build large reservoirs and of course, reservoirs then take productive land out of production. And so it’s, it’s a tough situation and they’re very expensive to build. So, we’re looking at situation with our rice producers going forward, particularly on the western side of the ridge, where water is going to be a critical component in our productivity and being able to be sustainable going into the future. I would say also that our nitrogen management and sustainability issues associated with our nitrogen management are also key issues that we’ll be looking at here at the station as well. And that will transport right into other areas. When we look at the staffing that we’re trying to hire right now, we have a sustainable agronomist. That’s our very first hire. And that person will be doing predominantly rice and soybean, but certainly have the freedom to look at other crops that are important in this region, which would be, of course, corn, cotton. We do some sorghum here as well. So all of the key cereal crops that are here in northeast Arkansas. So when we look at that, that vision mission statement and it talks about this sustainable component, I think that we’re in a great position here with our location and with the scientists that we’re bringing on board to look at that and to make gains with regard to how sustainable we are moving forward.

[07:47] Jenifer:

And another very exciting portion of the work you were doing there at NERREC is education and outreach. Can you explain what all that entails? You have a rice discovery program, some hands-on activities for youth. Do you also do site visits for classes? Can you talk about the outreach and education part of it?

[08:09] Tim:

Man, I love to talk about that. And so I’m so excited. You know, whenever we did our vision and mission statements and guiding principles, one of the key components there that everyone wanted to see was an educational outreach that was particularly tailored to younger children. And of course, we’re, you know, from our 4-H programs, we’re going to be everything from first to 12th graders, no question about that. But we are tailoring a portion of the program here for I’m going to call it first through fifth graders. So grade school children. And so, with the extension service, we were able to hire Ashlyn Ussery. And she’s already on board for three years and has been developing curriculum and content for this new position. And so our vision there is coming true today, and that is that we have the parking lot set up for a bus to come up, pull up to the front door, the kids go in through silo number one into that beautiful atrium, and they go right into the Riceland Foods Seeds of Imagination Classroom, where Ashlyn has wonderful activities that they will take part in that, show them a lot about rice production. Show them a lot about what row crop production in general, what it entails. And she’s doing that in innovative ways that will help them remember. And hey, Jenifer, not only will we educate the children, but they’re going to go home with these crafts and different activities that they’re doing, and they’re probably going to surprise their parents with some of the information that they pick up. And so we’ll probably be educating some parents, with that as well. A lot of folks have, the idea that, agriculture is it it’s all driving a tractor. You know, we have this, this, misconception about what agriculture entails. But when you look at agriculture, you got everything from myself as an agricultural engineer to economist to agronomist, soil scientist. There is a tremendous amount of science involved in agriculture.

[10:08] Jenifer:

Let’s talk about the connection with farmers and the benefit that NERREC will have specifically for farmers as we’re conducting research there and doing the outreach. And how is it going to impact farmers, and what kind of feedback are we getting from them to make sure that we are working in a way that’s benefiting the entire industry?

[10:29] Tim:

Absolutely. Well, first of all, I would say that from the standpoint of the feedback there, we’re working with the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board. I mean, that is the and those are board positions. All of those are rice farmers. And so they’re hearing from their constituents, and then they come to the Rice Research Promotion Board, and they’re looking at research proposals that are put forward by the University of Arkansas and other research institutions. And they’re picking research proposals that are particularly of interest to them about and what’s going on in their particular operations right now, whether it be water saving, but, you know, potentially water saving type research, for example, alternate wetting and drying is a practice that is has been well researched at this point in time, but a lot of folks still struggling to implement that type of practice for water reduction strategies. But they’ll come in and look at that. And so that’s one of the things. And then from our extension side is, you know, for example, Doctor Jarrod Hardke, he travels the entire Delta region with his, plot work that he does. He’s hearing from our farmers as well as well are all the specialists and the county agents. Don’t forget the county agents that we have in each and every county in the state. They’re also getting that feedback that is coming back in, coming into the Division, coming in through not only county agents, our specialists, but then again through their representatives on the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion board. So that feedback is critical for us with regard to how we do our research and how we prioritize our research.

[12:07] Jenifer:

What would you say in your position as director, what does success look like to you? Maybe in ten years from now, what does success look like for NERREC?

[12:17] Tim:

Well, success looks like more production, less inputs, more sustainability while maintaining our productivity. I think that’s the key here is maintaining productivity, but also being more sustainable in that process. So when we look out in ten years, what I want to happen from the researchers at NERREC is for our farmers to look and say, look, that investment that we’re making to, promote research in rice research, soybean, other cereal crops here that is making a huge impact for the decisions I make on my farm. In the end, that’s what the land grant institutions are, what they’re here for. We’re here to to give them the unbiased information on products and services and how they are going to work on their farm. And I think in ten years, I want people to look and say, man, that research that happened there has made a positive impact on my farm. It’s made a positive impact to my farm, not only economically, but it’s also improved my sustainability on my farm. So if we do that in the next decade, I’ll be very well pleased.

[13:31] Jenifer:

Dr. Burcham, is there anything else you’d like to discuss about NERREC or specifically about research or rice in general that we didn’t get to talk about?

[13:42] Tim:

Just give a shout out to our staff we’re, you know, we’re a small staff at this point in time, but we’re a very productive staff. And so, of course, I serve as the director. Spring Sneed is the regional accountant here. Tanjia Kraft joined us a couple of months ago as our director of first impressions. And so she is doing a wonderful job in booking the different spaces for different groups that want to meet here. Wyatt Luebke and Nick Newberry are the, research manager and farm manager for the station. And then we have two program tech ones in Chris Loewer and Jimmy DuVall. Then I’ve already mentioned Ashlyn Ussery that is doing the education program, doing a wonderful job there. And then we have hourly employees that are really important to us. A lot of folks don’t understand how critical it is to have some hourly help as you’re doing these types of agricultural practices. And we have Orville Martin, who’s a retired gentleman that helps us with, both, on the farm labor as well as doing most of, the, road maintenance for us here. And Harry Mosier and, Caden Arnold are two of our student helpers that help us down here. Didn’t mention earlier, mention Scott Stiles is has an office here is the economist with CES and also Glenn Studebaker, the CES entomologist is located here. So, with the, ten total offices that we have eight faculty offices, we’re going to be, basically have, 5 or 6 of those filled up here at the first of the year in 2025. So our, process of moving and staffing the positions are coming along really quickly right now. So I’m excited about that. But I can’t say enough about our team members and the great job that they do. And working with the different researchers, whether they’re here at the station or coming from Stuttgart or Lonoke or wherever they might be coming from, they do a great job working with the faculty that have research projects here. So kudos to my staff.

[15:44] Jenifer:

I’m sure they appreciate the shout out, the people behind the scenes who are making it all happen in the building there

[15:49] Tim:

No doubt. They are the scene.

[15:51] Jenifer:

Dr. Burcham, thank you so much for your time and for sharing with us, the mission and, the future plans over there at NERREC.

[16:00] Tim:

Thank you so much for having me, Jenifer.

[16:03] Jenifer:

That was Dr. Tim Burcham, director of the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center. Thanks for listening. I’m Jenifer Fouch. Don’t forget to subscribe.

[16:14] Intro/Outro:

The Arkansas Food, Farms and Forests podcast is produced by the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. Visit aaes.uada.edu for more information.