2-2 IAN Pinto Bean Seed

 GRANT PROMOTES IDAHO BEAN SEED EXPORTS TO MEXICO

The Mexico state of Chihuahua and Idaho share a common interest—pinto beans. Idaho produces the finest quality pinto bean seed in the world, and Chihuahua leads Mexico in production of edible pinto beans. The bean industry in both states will benefit from a $60,000 Specialty Crop Block Grant awarded to the Idaho Bean Commission in August.

Money from the grant will finance educational exhibits at the Chihuahua Agricultural Exposition over the next two years, and fund two tests of Idaho certified pinto seed in the state. Here’s Idaho Bean Commission Administrator Diana Caldwell: “We generally have a long dry harvest season and you need that to produce good seed. We also have a lot of irrigated land that is rich and volcanic.”