“Malting barley can be a challenge to grow in eastern Canada, mainly because of the high concentration of deoxynivalenol (DON) producing mycotoxin due to FHB and a lack of locally adapted varieties,” says Khanal. That is why his program focuses on developing malting barley varieties adapted to eastern Canada, with low DON accumulation. He also spends some time on food barley, specifically breeding for high beta-glucan and high protein attributes. Once a variety is ready for the marketplace, an agreement between the breeder and seed company is created. The seed company will receive breeder seed and sometimes even foundation seed to help with bulking up for farmer use. This process of creating enough seed for sales can take one to two years. Many small production crops, such as barley, oats, and non-genetically modified (GM) soybeans, still face production challenges and seed treatments are an important management tool. Kamal’s research is part of the National Barley Cluster, with support from the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP) AgriScience Program, and industry support from the Canadian Field Crop Research Alliance (CFCRA) and the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute (BMBRI). Laura Ferrier is an agronomist with Grain Farmers of Ontario. l ONTARIO GRAIN FARMER 29 MARCH 2022 One of Khanal’s goals is to make the barley breeding program faster and more efficient so that farmers can have new varieties earlier. Always read and follow label directions. AgSolutions, INTEGRITY and KIXOR are registered trade-marks of BASF; all used under license by BASF Canada Inc. © 2022 BASF Canada Inc. Chances are you’ve trusted Integrity® herbicide for your corn. But did you know you can expect the same exceptional performance in soybeans? Powered by Kixor® herbicide, it provides superior early-season control of key grass and broadleaf weeds to help maximize yield potential. And with a reduced rate for soybeans, you’ll minimize costs – not control. Visit agsolutions.ca/integrity to learn about all it can do for your soybeans. After all, performance like this is too good to limit to just one crop. Get the same great weed control in soybeans as you get in corn. WHY PLAY FAVOURITES?
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