Dr. Valerio Hoyos-Villegas joins PSM
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EmailWelcome Valerio Hoyos-Villegas who joins the PSM faculty to lead the dry bean breeding program.
“Raised on Beans.” Originally from a farming background near Manizales, Caldas, Colombia, Valerio worked in Crop Physiology at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, where he observed the impact his work had on the local economy, and Maize Breeding at CIMMYT before venturing abroad for a master’s in Crop Physiology at University of Missouri-Columbia, and obtaining his PhD right here at MSU (2015) in dry bean breeding and genetics. He then went to AgResearch –a Crown Research Institute located in Christchurch, New Zealand, where he completed a first-of-its-kind pedigree analysis of the important forage species and cover crop white clover, Valerio then moved to McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where he led many initiatives to emphasize the impact of plant breeding on the future of global agriculture.
“Plant breeding must become part of the national agricultural agenda,” Valerio says. “We need to train new plant breeders at a modern level—integrating technologies like genomics and data science and others. Technology has relevance to plant breeding, and vice versa, and cooperation is key—between agriculture faculties, the federal government and other stakeholders. We all benefit from this because all new scientists — whether they end up in industry, academia, or creating new companies — start in academia.” As a plant breeder, Valerio is an advocate in support of the science. “Plant breeding is integral to our modern lives and as climate and economies change, we have to make sure we have the right plant varieties and technology for the future—no matter what.”
VHV brings with him a deep appreciation for his role in nurturing agriculture and preserving its diversity, as well as an award winning science program and commitment to organizing stakeholders toward common goals. “My lab focuses on the development of superior cultivars of edible pulses, such as dry bean and chickpea, under a sustainable intensification production systems, with a focus on breeding, genetics and genomics, germplasm exploration, quantitative genetics, abiotic stress tolerance, disease resistance, quality, agronomic performance, human nutrition, and sensory profile.” Valerio adds they also work in the development of high-throughput phenotyping tools for plant breeding applications. For his efforts in plant phenotyping, Valerio was the recipient of the 2024 Early Career Awardfrom the North American Plant Phenotyping Network (NAPPN).
“I am particularly proud of my students and lab members, they are a major source of energy and motivation in my work” -adds Valerio when pointing his students’ winning streak of recognitions from the Canadian seed industry (2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024).
Valerio is currently running projects in both labs during the transition and finding great synergy. “We’re accelerating the rate of progress in plant breeding by working two labs.” Meanwhile, he and his wife have settled on a two-acre spread in Haslett, where they plan to start producing their own food soon.
See VHV Profile page on PSM Website
Valerio Hoyos Villegas made his industry debut as MSU’s new dry bean breeder recently at a the Michigan Bean Commission’s “Dry Bean Production and Outlook meeting” where Farm Service Radio recorded a 5 minute interviewstarting at the 3 minute mark. In the broadcast, the host credits research at MSU with restoring quality and productivity to the state’s dry bean industry.
