Soybeans.
They are so plentiful in rural Georgia farm fields at certain times of the year that most of us passing by rarely give them a second — or even a first — thought. But Georgians — and Savannahians in particular — have a storied history with the crop.
Now a major source of protein used worldwide in animal feed, vegetable oil and other products, the first soybeans grown in the United States were planted right here in Savannah some 250 years ago.
It’s a fact University of Georgia agricultural scientists know well. And they are celebrating that significant event by bringing researchers from around the world to Savannah for the 10th World Soybean Research Conference in 2017. The global event is expected to draw thousands of participants and account for nearly 10,000 room nights over the course of the five-day conference.
“Hosting this conference will help put Savannah on the world stage,” said Jeff Hewitt, Visit Savannah’s vice president of business development.
“In the past, this event has been held in South Africa and China, and now we have the opportunity to showcase all that our city has to offer — and fill nearly 10,000 hotel rooms in the process.”
The conference, which is the premiere international event on soybean research, will be held at the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center in September 2017.
Thousands of participants from across the world convene at this conference each year, with especially high attendance expected in 2017 because of the significant 250th anniversary.
“From its first planting in Savannah almost 250 years ago, the soybean has become one of the most important crops in the U.S. and the world,” said Wayne Parrott, a professor at UGA’s Institute of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Genomics
The upcoming Savannah event will bring together the largest group of soybean researchers assembled in the U.S. in the past 20 years, Parrott said.
The WSRC features research programs promoting the exchange of scientific information on soybean research.
The conference will include both a technical program and a trade show that showcases all aspects of the industry.
“Bringing the World Soybean Conference to Savannah is the result of a tremendous collaboration between our local hotel community, the Trade Center and the faculty at UGA,” said Joe Marinelli, president of Visit Savannah.
“Having this conference in our city will bring the eyes of the global agriculture research industry on Savannah, which hopefully will lead to similar types of events in the future.”
According to the New Georgia Encyclopedia, the first soybean crop raised in America is thought to have been planted in Savannah by Samuel Bowen in 1765.
After the East India Trading Co. ship on which he was employed arrived in the American colonies from China, Bowen declined to return abroad and instead settled in Savannah, where he planted and harvested a soybean crop.
“The exact location of that planting has not been determined,” Marinelli said. “But it’s my understanding that conference organizers are working on that in the hopes of having the site pinpointed and an historical marker erected in time for the conference.”