Purdue Plant Breeder, Geneticist Receives World Food Prize
Gebisa Ejeta didn't set out to receive worldwide acclaim for his agricultural research. The Purdue University Distinguished Professor of Agronomy's sole focus was on helping fellow Africans, especially those in his native Ethiopia, grow enough food to feed themselves.  "When people tell you that your work has saved lives and that people begin to refer to it as a symbol of goodness for the cause of science or the cause of the poor, that's a lot more than I had a perception of out there," Ejeta said. "That's overwhelming and humbling." Thursday the plant breeder and geneticist received the World Food Prize for his work in developing sorghum varieties resistant to drought and Striga, a parasitic weed common on the African continent. Because of Ejeta's efforts, sorghum yields are significantly higher in many African nations. The World Food Prize, considered the Nobel Prize of agriculture, was presented to Ejeta during a ceremony in the Iowa State Capitol Building in Des Moines.