Arkansas Soybean Breeder Named Society Fellow

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Pengyin Chen, professor of crop, soil and environmental sciences

Pengyin Chen, professor of crop, soil and environmental sciences and soybean breeder for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, has been named a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy.

The award will be formally presented at the ASA Awards Ceremony Nov. 5 during the scientific society’s annual meeting in Tampa, Fla.

Chen has implemented one of the nation’s top soybean breeding programs as part of a comprehensive research program encompassing soybean cultivar breeding, germplasm enhancement and molecular marker development. During the past decade he has released 12 new soybean cultivars and eight germplasm lines.

He has also developed and identified edamame types and provided the basis for a new industry for the state. This program included the 2012 release of “UA Kirksey,” the first edamame vegetable soybean variety developed in the United States and licensed for commercial production.

Chen has remained a prolific writer amid his research, publishing seven book chapters and 135 refereed journal articles while receiving grants totaling $6.2 million in research funding.

ASA has been selecting outstanding members as Fellows since 1924. Members of the society nominate worthy colleagues based on their professional achievements and meritorious service. Only 0.3 percent of the society’s active and emeritus members may be elected Fellow.