Gene editing is becoming a baseline tool to drive innovation in Canadian crop research and new varieties.
Tag Archives Plant breeding
Gene editing’s growing sway in plant breeding
Crop variety development in Canada is evolving to incorporate gene editing more as a breeding tool; one researcher notes that Canada’s regulatory approach will help drive innovation
Plant breeding picks up the pace
Thirteen years of breeding and production can now be done in five
Glacier FarmMedia – The pace of plant breeding has quickened by leaps and bounds, from selective breeding to the use of transgenics. Still, the process of breeding seeds with desired traits, rechecking for trait and yield performance and increasing those numbers for commercial availability all takes more than a decade. Or does it? Why it
How scientific minds changed toward perennial grains
Early boosters were voices on the fringe: Today, perennial crops are sought by researchers worldwide — including Manitoba
In the early days of kernza — a perennial grain crop related to wheat — plant breeders at The Land Institute in Kansas couldn’t get a government grant to save their lives. “We got very nice compliments on our writing of the grant proposals and harsh criticism on the value of actually doing the work,”
Filling in the genetic road map for better barley
AAFC has announced the first completed reference genome for a Canadian malt barley variety, and researchers say it’s the first step towards quicker, better breeding selection
Barley breeders have got their first look under the proverbial hood when it comes to genomic selection, and researchers say it bodes well for future varieties coming down the pipe. Why it matters: The first reference genome in Canadian malt barley sets the stage for a more streamlined, less expensive breeding process. Ana Badea, a
Opinion: Plant-breeding innovations fuel future
This new technology can help solve some of the biggest challenges of tomorrow
Just as we’ve seen the importance of science and innovation in combating the current public health challenge, they stand to play an equally important role in helping agriculture tackle the challenges it faces ahead. New pests and major weather events are increasing, making the job of producing food for a growing population even more challenging.
Bibeau says government committed to federal plant breeding
Seed royalty consultations stalled
The Canadian government is committed to plant breeding, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau told members of the Canadian Farm Writers’ Federation on Tuesday. Some farmers and seed industry officials suspect Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) variety development work, along with many other programs, will be on the chopping block post-COVID-19 as the government tackles its
Reporter’s Take: Farmer-owned AAFC?
In 2019 Canadian farmers grossed almost $37 billion from crop sales. Each started with a seed. That’s why getting farmers to pay more for plant breeding — often referred to as “value creation” — is important. It’s also contentious. Nobody wants to pay more and a lot of farmers worry royalties will enrich seed companies
AAFC sits on value creation sidelines
In the meantime farmers and the seed industry are seeking consensus on how to proceed
After farmer push-back Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) has hit pause on end point and trailing royalties consultations aimed at getting producers to contribute more money for plant breeding. But the controversial issue isn’t dead. Some farm groups and the seed industry are trying to find consensus on how to proceed. “What we’re trying to
USDA limits review requirements of some biotech farm products
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Thursday a rule that will simplify or waive agency reviews of certain biotech farm products, including plants and seeds that have been genetically modified or engineered. As a result, some products could be sold to farmers without a USDA review — a move that
Kernza plant breeder recognized
Faces of Ag: Doug Cattani has spent his career working on perennial grasses
And to think, he could have been an accountant. Plant breeder and researcher Doug Cattani received provincial recognition in October for his work in developing perennial grains. Since 2010, Cattani has worked with Kernza, the trade name for organically produced intermediate wheatgrass, which is being developed for grain production. As a perennial grain, Kernza causes
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