January 17, 2014

Viterra invests US$5 million in wheat research and breeding

 

 

 

Viterra Inc. and the Crop Development Centre (CDC) in the College of Agriculture and Bioresources at the University of Saskatchewan have announced that Viterra is investing US$5 million to enhance the CDC's success in wheat research and breeding.

 

The five-year agreement, which builds on a longstanding partnership between Viterra and the college, focuses on development of wheat and durum varieties with enhanced yield, improved resistance to disease and insect pests, and improved quality characteristics for the marketplace.

 

"As Canada's grain industry leader, we continue to forge strong partnerships that build on our commitment to research and development for the benefit of our customers and Western Canadian agriculture," said Kyle Jeworski, Viterra's President and CEO for North America.

 

"Viterra's long and successful history of collaboration with the CDC has resulted in several innovative and high-performing seed varieties. By strengthening our relationship, we aim to support new wheat and durum varieties that have desirable quality specifications for our customers around the world, while providing farmers with more options to maximise the value of their crops."

 

The funding will support the nationally and internationally recognised wheat breeding programmes at the CDC led by Pierre Hucl and Curtis Pozniak. The researchers will set the breeding priorities, and Viterra will provide industry knowledge to ensure the CDC breeding is responsive to an evolving global marketplace.

 

"This significant investment from our longstanding partners at Viterra will enhance our capacity to provide innovative solutions for Western Canadian farmers and agri-businesses while helping to address food challenges around the world," said Karen Chad, University of Saskatchewan Vice-President Research.

 

With greater capacity for variety development and research trials across Western Canada, CDC researchers will be able to significantly increase the number of varieties developed and commercialised, providing increased choice for producers. Using the latest breeding tools, development time will be reduced for a greater number of varieties.

 

The estimated cost of developing a single new wheat variety is between US$500,000 and US$1-million. Wheat crops contribute US$11-billion annually to Canada's economy.

 

Viterra is Canada's grain industry leader, supported by the expertise of its people, a superior network of assets, and unrivalled connections to world markets. Headquartered in Regina, Saskatchewan, partnering with farmers to market and move their crops to areas of need around the world.

 

Located within the College of Agriculture and Bioresources, the Crop Development Centre is Saskatchewan's world-class plant breeding institute. With funding from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Western Grains Research Foundation, and many private and public sector partners, the CDC develops varieties of spring wheat, durum, canary seed, barley, oat, flax, pea, lentil, chickpea and dry bean for the economic benefit of Western Canadian farmers and agricultural industry members. Since its inception in 1971, the CDC has released more than 400 new plant varieties.