Through a co-funding partnership with the Agriculture Development Fund (ADF) and other producer commodity groups, Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF) is pleased to announce $3.5 million of new funding towards 25 crop-related research projects out of the Endowment Fund.

“The WGRF Endowment Fund supports research on a broad range of crops” said Dave Sefton, WGRF Board Chair. “As a regional producer organization, WGRF brings the research spending power of all farmers in western Canada together. This investment by producers in the research projects announced today will likely lead to improved crop production for western Canadian producers,” noted Sefton.

“Establishing co-funding partnerships across western Canada is an important step towards leveraging producers’ dollars to maximize  investments in crop research,” said Garth Patterson, WGRF Executive Director. “We want to make WGRF a forum where producer organizations can come together to direct research on a western Canadian basis.”

Some of the projects receiving funding include: Mapping of blackleg in canola, fusarium resistance in cereals, new technologies to assess sprouting damage in wheat, addressing the challenges of growing canary seed, pulse disease management, improving weed management for Saskatchewan growers, and Improving the nutritional value of oats.

WGRF has targeted a total of $15 million in new funding over the next four years. WGRF has established relationships with Agriculture Development Fund (ADF) in Saskatchewan, Agri-Food Research & Development Initiative (ARDI) in Manitoba and the Agriculture Funding Consortium (AFC) in Alberta as well as other producer commodity groups that will double this investment to $30 million in these priority areas:

• Agronomy
• Variety Development
• Minor Crop Development
• New Crop Uses Utilization
• Crop Risk Management
• Post-Harvest Management

For further information, contact:

Mike Espeseth
Communications Manager
Western Grains Research Foundation
306-380-2553