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Hybrid Poplar News
NRRI's 'NextGen' Hybrid Poplar Receives IPC Certification
February 7, 2022
The Next-Gen Poplars team at the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) is proud to announce the International Commission on Poplars and Other Fast-Growing Trees (IPC) certification of its 'NextGen' cultivar, tradename InnovaTree™, hybrid poplar. This "geo-robust" variety grew faster than commercially available varieties on test sites throughout the northeastern quarter of the United States, from Minnesota through Michigan and into upstate New York and as far south as southern Indiana. Its parentage is Populus deltoides x Populus nigra (Eastern cottonwood x European black poplar).
NRRI is commercializing this cultivar under the tradename InnovaTree™, and it will be available for sale through Midwestern nurseries in 2023.
The IPC (International Commission on Poplars and Other Fast-Growing Trees) is a statutory body of FAO founded in 1947 to facilitate restoration of the severely degraded landscapes of Europe after the Second World War. Today it has 38 Member Nations on five Continents.
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As part of the University of Minnesota system research enterprise, the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) employs over 140 scientists, engineers, technicians, staff and students in two industrial research facilities. Through collaborative partnerships, we deliver the innovative tools and solutions needed to utilize and sustain Minnesota’s precious natural resources.
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Previous News Updates
NRRI's 'Geo-robust' Trees Developed for Future Green Markets
June 25, 2020
The Next-Gen Poplars team at NRRI (Natural Resources Research Institute) has developed “geo-robust” hybrid poplar clones that grow across many climate zones, from upstate New York to southern Indiana to northern Minnesota. That means those other regions won’t have to spend 25 years – as NRRI did – developing a hybrid specific to their region, which will save a tremendous amount of time and money. Read about these developments here.
ORNL Scientists Develop Plant-Based Materials to Grow Nation’s Bioeconomy
Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are developing new and valuable uses for lignin, a byproduct of biorefineries and the pulp and paper industry. Click on this link to read more: ORNL Developing New and Valuable Uses for Lignin.
Acetominophen from Poplar
A team led by John Ralph, a professor of biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, has been awarded a patent for a method to synthesize acetaminophen—the active ingredient in Tylenol—from a natural compound derived from lignin. Click on this link to read more: Acetominophen from Poplar
Using bacteria to convert biomass into renewable chemicals
A team led by professor Brian Pfleger in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, recently developed a pathway with the potential to convert biomass, like wood chips or grasses, into a widely used industrial solvent and aim to expand this work to produce an array of sustainable chemicals. Click on this link to read more: Bacterial Conversion of Biomass.