A new Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat that accumulates less deoxynivalenol (DON), the mycotoxin sometimes produced after a fusarium head blight infection, is being recommended for registration. It took an extra year of testing, but at its annual meeting in Winnipeg Mar. 2 the Prairie Recommending Committee for Wheat, Rye and Triticale (PRCWRT) gave
New CWRS wheat coming with less DON when hit by fusarium head blight
BW980 almost didn’t make it because in one year of testing, its gluten strength was lower than the check variety, prompting another year of testing
NFU investigating farmers’ grain-grading complaints through survey
The Canadian Grain Commission says if farmers don’t like the grade being offered, ask the commission to grade it
The National Farmers Union (NFU) has launched a survey into grain-grading complaints from western farmers in the wake of what the farm group claims is “the Canadian Grain Commission’s (CGC) reduced regulatory role.” “As a grassroots farm organization the NFU is starting to hear repeated stories of grain farmers being dissatisfied with their treatment by
Just two wheat varieties subject of polling
One variety was tabled and three others withdrawn
A lack of data sidelined three potential wheat varieties at the recent meeting of the PRCWRT and another was tabled, leaving just two to face voting. They were BW5007 and GP202, intended for the Canada Western Red Spring wheat and Western Special Purpose (CWSP) classes, respectively. BW5007 and GP202 were supported for full and interim
Wheat recommending committee reforms paying efficiency dividends
The process was sparked by a 2013 letter from then agriculture minister Gerry Ritz
Ordinarily voting over whether to recommend new wheat, rye or triticale varieties for registration can stretch on well into the afternoon. This year it was over before the morning coffee break at the annual meeting of the Prairie Recommending Committee for Wheat, Rye and Triticale (PRCWRT) in Winnipeg Mar. 2. Many participants said they thought
Veteran AAFC barley breeder Bill Legge retiring
AC Metcalfe was a huge hit with farmers, maltsters and brewers and one of his best-known career achievements
Bill Legge, the plant breeder who developed AC Metcalfe, Western Canada’s most popular two-row malting barley for around 15 years, is retiring. Legge has been breeding barley at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) Brandon Research Centre for 30 years, Tom Fetch, an AAFC plant pathologist and chair of the Prairie Grain Development Committee (PGDC), said
Baker Colony enters ranks of five-time corn yield competition winners
Its winning yield of 274.69 bushels an acre also broke the previous record set in 2013
Baker Colony, located near MacGregor, Man., has joined an elite group of five-time winners of the Manitoba Corn Growers Association’s yield competition. The win is their second in a row and sets a new record — breaking their own set during a previous win. In the 45-year history of the competition there are only two
Electronic voting option for Manitoba Canola Growers Association election this year
During their annual meeting members passed a bylaw allowing for electronic voting but defeated one to give the board the authority to replace preferential ballots with other voting systems
The Manitoba Canola Growers Association (MCGA) plans to include electronic voting, as well as a mail-in ballot, during board of directors elections this fall. “We want to make our organization as democratic as possible and we can only do that if we get more people involved,” MCGA president Chuck Fossay said in an interview Feb. 27. MCGA members
VIDEO: Baker Colony wins Manitoba Corn Growers Association’s 2016 corn yield competition
Baker Colony of MacGregor has won the Manitoba Corn Growers Association’s corn yield competition two years in a row. The 2016 award ceremony was held Feb. 15, 2017 during the CropConnect banquet in Winnipeg. Manitoba Co-operator reporter Allan Dawson asked Baker Colony’s Mack Waldner how they did it.
Saskatchewan farmer pays up after breaching plant breeders’ rights
Seed companies warn infringers potentially face significant costs, not only for unpaid royalties but also the investigation and court costs
Canada has had plant breeders’ rights (PBR) regulations for 25 years, yet some farmers still breach them. Dustin Hawkins, who farms near Kincaid, Sask., is the latest to be penalized for the unauthorized advertising and sale of durum wheat varieties AC Transcend and AC Strongfield, whose rights are held by FP Genetics and SeCan, respectively.
Manitoba surveying farmers on KAP funding system
The Manitoba government wants “farmers’ and stakeholders'” feedback on potential changes to Keystone Agricultural Producers’ (KAP) funding model — and fast. The deadline to fill out an online survey or download and email it in is March 9, the government said in a release Thursday. “The current approach to funding our province’s general farm organization