Irwin Goldman

Irwin Goldman is a Professor in the Department of Horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he has been a faculty member since 1992. He directs comprehensive breeding programs for carrot, onion, and table beet, focusing on improving quality traits and developing germplasm with enhanced nutritional and culinary properties. His research emphasizes plant secondary metabolites with potential health benefits and innovative approaches to vegetable improvement.

Goldman's research spans several key areas:

• Genetic basis of flavor compounds and quality attributes in root vegetables
• Development of disease-resistant vegetable varieties
• Plant secondary metabolites and their human health implications
• Open-source breeding initiatives promoting germplasm accessibility
• Historical and evolutionary aspects of vegetable domestication

His recent publications reflect diverse interests in vegetable genetics, including QTL mapping for disease resistance and quality traits, development of haploid induction systems, genetic control of root morphology, and sustainable production methods. Research consistently integrates fundamental genetic discoveries with applied breeding objectives.

Goldman maintains an active teaching program, offering courses on vegetable crops, food sovereignty, plants and human wellbeing, and evolutionary biology. He mentors numerous graduate students and oversees a research program that bridges traditional breeding with modern genomic approaches. His germplasm releases through the Wisconsin breeding programs have been widely adopted commercially.