Editorial: Self-reflection

As the debate over the fate of the Canadian Wheat Board was coming to a head a few years back, one of the key points repeatedly raised was how Canada’s quality assurance system gave it a leg up. Having a centralized sales desk meant there was an entity with a rational reason for maintaining and

wheat

Delivery deadline looms as wheat classes change

Twenty-five CWRS and four CPSR wheats are going to the CNHR 
class Aug. 1

Western Canadian farmers should deliver certain wheat varieties before July 31 or risk getting a lower price. Starting Aug. 1, 25 wheats in the Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) class and four in Canada Prairie Spring Red (CPSR), move to the Canada Northern Hard Red (CNHR) class (see variety list further down). The change, aimed


The wheat class review process

The focus was on addressing customer complaints that wheats 
in the CWRS class had reduced gluten strength

Customer complaints about lower gluten strength wheat in the Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) class started making headlines in 2013. But industry officials including Earl Geddes, then the executive director of the Canadian International Grains Institute (Cigi), and then Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) chief commissioner Elwin Hermanson, said the problem could be fixed. Chinese officials

Jason Voogt (left), Lynne Sweeney and Fred Grieg all say there will be a learning curve as the CNHR wheat class finds its feet.


New wheat class a mixed bag

Looming changes to the CNHR class will likely dilute some of the current 
benefits of the varieties that currently call it home

The Canadian Northern Hard Red (CNHR) wheat class is poised to expand Aug. 1, 2018 — but no one is exactly sure how the change is going to play out. The new CNHR class is already home to U.S. dark northern varieties, such as Faller, Prosper and Elgin ND. Next summer they’ll be joined by


Daryl Beswitherick, the Canadian Grain Commission’s (CGC) program manager for quality assurance standards, says it’s important for farmers to know what wheat varieties they are growing and what class they belong in so they aren’t declared incorrectly at the elevator.

New Canada Northern Hard Red wheat class took effect Aug. 1

The West’s ninth milling wheat class is the new home for Faller, Prosper and Elgin ND

Big changes to Western Canada’s wheat class system took effect Aug. 1, the start of the 2016-17 crop year, and more are coming over the next three years. They’re designed to enhance Canada’s reputation for high-quality, high-gluten-strength milling wheat, while giving farmers the opportunity to grow higher-yielding wheats that have slightly lower strength, Daryl Beswitherick,



The Canadian Grain Commission’s David Hatcher updated the Prairie Grain Development Committee’s annual meeting in Saskatoon Feb. 24 on coming changes to Western Canada’s wheat class system.

Alberta raises concerns about changes to Western Canada’s wheat classes

Moving some popular wheats to a new class could see lower prices for those wheats, 
Alberta Wheat Commission officials say

Alberta wheat growers are worried Western Canada’s revamped wheat class system could result in lower prices for farmers growing certain varieties. Their concerns were raised at the Prairie Grain Development Committee’s (PGDC) annual meeting here Feb. 24. Two popular wheats in Alberta — Harvest, a Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat and AC Formost, in

(Jack Dykinga photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Changes to CGC’s Western wheat classes coming Aug. 1

Come Aug. 1, Western Canada will get a new ninth milling wheat class, Canada Northern Hard Red (CNHR), that’s expected to open up opportunities for higher-yielding wheats, while preserving the quality reputation of the Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) and Canada Prairie Spring Red (CPSR) classes. U.S. Dark Northern Spring varieties Faller, Prosper and Elgin


The Canadian Grain Commission is still consulting the grain sector on proposed changes to Western Canada’s wheat class system, including the idea of a new milling wheat class that could be called Canada Northern Hard Red. The expert Prairie Recommending Committee for Wheat, Oats and Triticale is voting at its annual meeting at Banff in February.

Western Canadian wheat class consultations coming to a head

CGC proposing creating a new milling wheat class

Canada Northern Hard Red could be the name of a new western Canadian milling wheat class being proposed by the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC). However, both the class and the proposed name aren’t a done deal, say CGC officials Remi Gosselin and Daryl Beswitherick. “We’re going back to industry stakeholders and engaging in discussion to see

Selling Canadian wheat

Selling Canadian wheat

Expand Canada's brand beyond CWRS

Canada needs to do better at serving traditional markets with high-quality wheat while expanding its ability to serve developing markets, a study commissioned by grain industry groups says. Consistent quality and high-protein wheats have allowed Canada to overcome its freight disadvantage in premium wheat markets around the world, but Canadian exports are less competitive in key