Western Grains Research Foundation

Western Grains Research
Foundation
Presented by: WGRF Chairman Dr. Keith Degenhardt
Presentation Overview
• WGRF Overview
• Wheat and Barley Check-off
• Barley Funding Breakdown
• DIAP Program
WGRF Overview
•
Largest farmer funded, grains breeding research investor
in Western Canada
•
Funds public research programs across the prairies
including AAFC and University research stations.
•
The WGRF Board is made up of 15 producer
organizations. Each producer organization has one seat
and one vote, there is also one non-voting AAFC
representative.
WGRF Members
AAFC (non-voting)
AB Soft Wheat Producers
Western Winter Cereal Producers
Agricultural Producers of SK
BC Grain Producers
Canadian Canola Growers
Canadian Seed Growers
Canadian Wheat Board
National Farmers Union
Prairie Oat Growers
SK Flax Commission
Western Barley Growers
Western Pulse Growers
Western Wheat Growers
Wild Rose Ag Producers
Keystone Ag Producers
The WGRF Board is responsible for:
1. Endowment Fund
2. Western Canada Wheat Check-off Fund
3. Western Canada Barley Check-off Fund
(excluding Alberta)
Wheat and Barley Check-offs
•Since 1993, western Canadian farmers have been
profiting with new and improved wheat and barley
varieties through participation in the WGRF
administered check-offs.
•Check-off funds collected from Canadian Wheat
Board final payments to producers:
- Wheat $0.30/MT generating $4.9 million annually
- Barley $0.50/MT generating $850,000 annually
Wheat and Barley Check-offs
• Farmers are our research partners and they impact the
research objectives that are set.
•90% choose to support the Wheat and Barley check-offs.
•To date over 80 new Wheat varieties and over 30 barley
varieties have been developed with the help of WGRF.
• Goals and objectives are set at the onset of research
agreements with regular reviews and annual progress
reports submitted.
Barley Check-offs
• Check-off Funded Research: The dollars invested into the check-off are used
to fund barley variety development through public breeding programs mainly in
Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
• Supported Research Programs: WGRF supports barley breeding programs at
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Brandon, MB, and the Crop Development
Centre at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, SK.
• Annual Funding: Over $600,000 per year is invested in barley breeding
research. This amount comes from producers through the check-off and from
the royalties received on certain varieties (which WGRF reinvests directly back
into research).
Barley Funding Allocation
WGRF Barley DIAP
• The WGRF lead Barley DIAP was submitted and approved. This
proposal has several contributors: The Canadian Wheat Board, Alberta
Barley Commission, Rahr Malt, and The Brewing and Malting Barley
Research Institute (BMBRI).
Barley DIAP includes the following research areas:
Lacombe Research Station:
Agronomy/disease
AAFC Brandon Breeding Research:
Malt barley
Food barley
Small feed & forage barley component to suit Manitoba conditions
WGRF Barley Funding
•
Breeding is a long term investment and requires reliable steady
funding. We have 10-year breeding agreements with both
AAFC and CDC.
•
The dollars WGRF invests in research is leveraged to attain
additional government funds that match or sometimes double
or triple the investment made by producers.
•
In 2005 an independent study found that WGRF’s investment in
barley research returned on average $12 to $1.
WGRF and the Future of Barley R&D
•
Under the new Growing Forward program from Agriculture and
Agri-Food Canada, WGRF will be increasing it’s role in plant
breeding by leading a Wheat Cluster and Barley DIAP.
•
The WGRF Endowment Fund is now operating a Directed
Research Program that will become a significant funder of
leading crop Research in western Canada.
•
WGRF believes funding research on barely traits is going to be
a very important aspect of barley breeding in the future.