New agreements to develop more wheat and barley varieties lead to more profitable crops, experts say
NORTH BATTLEFORD, Sask. – Area agriculture representatives believe the recently signed agreements to help develop more varieties of wheat and barley will better ensure crops are hardy enough to withstand the challenges faced by Western Canadian farmers.
The Canadian Wheat Research Coalition (CWRC) committed more than $22.6 million and the Canadian Barley Research Coalition (CBRC) invested more than $1.5 million, both over five years, to the core breeding agreements with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) to develop more wheat and barley varieties.
The CWRC is a collaboration of the Alberta Wheat Commission, Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission, and Manitoba Crop Alliance.
“We are very excited to be able to support the variety of development activities of Agriculture Canada,” Harvey Brooks, Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission general manager, and CWRC president, said. “We know those varieties that producers have had access to for the last number of years have been extremely beneficial and a high pay-off to producer funding. We are looking to carry that forward into the future.”