LU Hemp Institute

Our Industrial Hemp Team

Dr. Babu Valliyodan (ValliyodanB@LincolnU.edu) is the Chair of the LU Hemp Institute and an Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology and Genomics at Lincoln University in Missouri. He is an expert in deploying genetic and genomic tools for sustainable agriculture. Dr. Valliyodan uses his genomic expertise to develop and assess industrial hemp cultivars. Also, his laboratory is conducting molecular and biochemical fingerprinting of hemp towards trait discovery. He applies genomics-assisted breeding strategies including genome editing technologies for hemp variety improvement. Dr. Valliyodan is an author of more than 70 publications in peer-reviewed journals.

Dr. Jaimin Patel (PatelJ@LincolnU.edu) is an Assistant Professor of Plant Pathology at Lincoln University of Missouri. Dr. Patel is the author of more than 50 scientific and extension articles and serves as the senior editor of Plant Health Progress, a peer-reviewed journal of applied plant health. Currently, he uses his plant pathology expertise to study industrial hemp and specialty crop diseases, and to develop disease management strategies.

Dr. Clement Akotsen-Mensah (Akotsen-MensahC@LincolnU.edu) is an Assistant Professor and State Extension Specialist for Integrated Pest Management (IPM).  He also serves as the Interim Director of the Innovative Small Farmers' Outreach Program at Lincoln University Cooperative Extension and Research. His main research interest is to develop integrated pest management solutions, particularly for small-scale industrial hemp and specialty crop farmers in Missouri.  His research uses different approaches to identify and evaluate traps and attractants for pest monitoring, use of trap crops to manipulate insect behavior, develop predictive models, screen insecticide and integrate different tactics for major pests of agricultural importance.

Dr. Eleazar Gonzalez (GonzalezE@LincolnU.edu) is an Assistant Professor and State Extension Specialist in Agriculture Economics and Marketing at Lincoln University. His research and educational programs include activities for enhancing civic awareness of the hemp industry and maximizing the economic benefits of Missouri producers. His current involvement at the Hemp Institute includes hemp industry analysis, economic benchmarking, and marketing and financial management training.

Chris Boeckmann (boeckmannc@lincolnu.edu) is the Superintendent of Farms at Lincoln University.   As the Superintendent of Farms, Chris is responsible for the coordination and oversight of the research and demonstration activities at the Lincoln University Farms.   His role in the Hemp Institute is to insure the resources to support the research activities at the Lincoln University farms are available to the Research personnel.   Chris will also work closely with the researchers to coordinate field activities and field days at the University facilities. Busby Farm.