Dr. Derek Barchenger, Senior Scientist and Head of the Global Pepper Breeding Program at the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg), will present the 2026 Borlaug Memorial Lecture at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Barchenger was recognized with the Norman E. Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application in 2025 for advancing pepper breeding to enhance nutrition, productivity and climate adaptability for hundreds of thousands of smallholder farmers worldwide.
Over 41 million tonnes of peppers are produced annually, mostly by smallholder farmers who rely on the crop not only for income but also as a critical source of essential micronutrients, including vitamin C and provitamin A. Barchenger has made it his life’s work to improve the productivity and climate resilience of the diverse Capsicum species, which include bell and chili peppers.