SOYLEIC is growing in more ways than one. The non-GMO soybean is moving beyond its original use for human consumption and into the dairy feed ration market.
It started in the late 2000s. Grover Shannon and his soybean breeding team at the University of Missouri’s (MU) Fisher Delta Research Center discovered a naturally bred non-GMO trait through research funded in part by Missouri soybean farmers and their checkoff. This trait was found to have a high-oleic, low-linolenic (HOLL) fatty acid profile. Further research showed high potential for this non-GMO bean.
“SOYLEIC has several inherent characteristics that make it superior not only to conventional soybean oils, but also to other HOLL oils currently on the market,” says Aaron Porter, Missouri soybean farmer and chairman of the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council (MSMC) demand committee. “With its higher level of oleic fatty acids, SOYLEIC is a superior heart-healthy choice when compared to conventional soy cooking oils, putting it on par with olive and avocado oil.”
SOYLEIC was found to be ideal for frying due to its neutral flavor and extended shelf life. A comparatively high smoke point increases fry life and decreases the frequency of replacing rancid or burnt cooking oil — a win-win for end-users.
By 2017, the SOYLEIC patents were licensed and beans were being grown by the first licensee, creating a path forward for the commercialization of the seed trait in both sales and breeding. Since that time, MSMC has established quality-control parameters, ensuring SOYLEIC would be well positioned in the human use and consumption market. Missouri soybean farmers have supported the development of a strong supply chain through the soy checkoff.
“SOYLEIC is unique because it is an example of the checkoff at work in a program that comes directly back to the farm,” says Bryan Stobaugh, Missouri Soybeans director of licensing and commercialization. “It is a U.S.-driven effort, and the packaging recognizes this product is ‘by soybean farmers for soybean farmers.’ Every farmer who has grown high-oleic soybeans has been offered a premium for their work.”
The return on investment is evident.
“SOYLEIC allows farmers to sell a checkoff product back into the marketplace to provide a healthy food product, experiencing the ROI themselves,” Stobaugh says.
Potential benefits to soybean growers who raise SOYLEIC beans include premiums, diversification of soybean acres and a high end-user demand. There are currently 21 licensees across the U.S. and one in Europe. The oil has been used in Nestle coffee creamers, frying oil for corn chips, kettle cooked chips and more.
“SOYLEIC is approved by some of the largest food manufacturers in the world,” Stobaugh says. “As they grow and change their brands to take a more sustainable approach with soy, high-oleic soybean oil will be incorporated in their products more often.”
As consumers remain health and environment conscious, SOYLEIC is uniquely positioned to fill the need for a heart-healthy, environmentally friendly cooking oil. However, the future of SOYLEIC is now pushing beyond this human use into the animal feed market. The dairy industry has been one of the first to welcome SOYLEIC meal in feed rations.
These results directly impact dairy farmers’ bottom lines.
“Dairy rations can benefit from the inclusion of a roasted or full-fat meal from high-oleic soybeans to create a more fat-driven milk,” Stobaugh says. “In the U.S. dairy market, milk is often paid on the amount of fat present because it makes specific products — butter, sour cream and others. If you change the protein inclusion to high-oleic soy in a dairy cow’s feed ration, you increase the milk fat, therefore creating a new bottom-line dollar for dairy farmers.
“We are seeing herdsmen and women working to create the exact dry matter ratio for their rations with the current nutritionists,” he says. “This minor change of the dry-matter protein to high-oleic soybeans (whole roasted or full-fat extracted meal) creates a new profit pathway for our dairy markets.”
It has come full circle, Stobaugh explains.
“The original use of soy as a forage legume crop brought to the U.S. to help feed our animals is circling back to help create a healthier milk fat that can support dairy farmers’ bottom line.”
A recent study found swapping 5% of ration dry matter with high-oleic soybeans increases net milk income by up to $0.27 per cow per day. Making the switch to high-oleic soybeans was also found to increase milk fat yield by an average of 65 grams per cow per day, or about 6%. Ground, roasted or whole soybeans, extruded meals and full-fat meals from high-oleic soybeans have key distinctions that make SOYLEIC a top choice for use in dairy rations, including less than 10% polyunsaturated fatty acids.
In a Penn State feeding study, increasing roasted soybeans from 5% to 10% of the cows’ diets increased milk fat 0.2 units. It was also found that high-oleic soybeans were lower risk for causing diet-induced milk fat depression.
Currently, one-third of SOYLEIC produced is being used for dairy feed while the other two-thirds remain in the human use and consumption market. The outlook is bright as food brands seek to support a non-GMO approach throughout their value chain, including livestock feed.
“I see the use of SOYLEIC in feed rations continuing to increase in both smaller and larger dairies,” Stobaugh says. “We are just tapping into the market, and I expect it to increase incrementally over time, in addition to expanding to other livestock.”
Though the future of SOYLEIC demand is bright, supply hurdles persist.
“As with any innovation, there are certain barriers to entry that protracts establishment in every mature market,” Porter says. “One challenge MSMC is currently addressing is the fact that there are only non-GMO varieties available to producers at this time. MSMC is working in cooperation with MU to bring forward GMO varieties to address issues farmers face, including severe weed resistance to many of the commercially available herbicide chemistries. The development of both transgenic and non-transgenic SOYLEIC soybean varieties with relative maturities for every region from Louisiana to Michigan and from the Carolinas to the Dakotas will offer a complete portfolio.”
The development of new SOYLEIC+TECH lines is in progress.
“There is a lot of potential in this new trademark combining SOYLEIC with herbicide tolerance,” says Stobaugh. “We are working with Enlist E3 to create these SOYLEIC+TECH lines that will be able to go straight to market. This provides the opportunity for SOYLEIC to be grown in many areas it has not before because of weed resistance. Our 2026 SOYLEIC+TECH portfolio will be a big change for the program as we expand with commercially viable herbicide technology in our seeds.”
The current lack of infrastructure brings its own challenges, Stobaugh explains.
“There are no delivery points in Missouri,” he says. “Any SOYLEIC grown in Missouri is currently done so under contract for identity preserved production or fed to dairy cattle. Most acreage of high-oleic in the U.S. is grown in the Midwest and the Northeast, so MSMC is working on ways to use Missouri’s rail and river systems to our growers’ advantage in transporting SOYLEIC grown throughout the state.”
Porter says there is still a positive outlook for producers interested in SOYLEIC varieties.
“Whether it is premium non-GMO cooking oil, high-oleic soybean meal or quality industrial lubricants, SOYLEIC assures opportunity for producers wherever soybeans are grown.”