On January 7, 2017, Prof. Zhang Liming, Deputy Director of the Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences (SAAS), accompanied by the sweetpotato specialists from Crop Research Institute of SAAS visited our center. After in-depth and fruitful discussion, bilateral cooperation on sweetpotato research between SCCB and SAAS was officially launched.

AS one of key research unit in sweetpotato cultivation and breeding in China, SAAS has bred and released the ‘Jishu’ series sweetpotato cultivars for commercialization, bringing significant impact in R&D. The team is a member of Chinese Sweetpotato Agri-Research System under the support of Ministry of Agriculture. Our center focuses on sweetpotato molecular breeding since its foundation and has made progress on germplasm evaluation, regulation of starch metabolism and storage root development, mechanism on stress response. Profs. Zhang Peng and Wang Qingmei highlighted the key progresses and issues encountered on both sides and reached an agreement on complementary collaboration. The bilateral collaboration will promote R&D and partnership.

During the forum, the SAAS delegates visited SCCB laboratory and the SIPPE greenhouse.