AAFC Core Breeding Agreement

Term: 5 years, beginning in 2020

Status: Ongoing

Funding Amount: Over $22.6 million

Lead Researcher(s): Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Funding Partners: Canadian Wheat Research Coalition (CWRC), a collaboration of the Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission, Alberta Wheat Commission, and Manitoba Crop Alliance.

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Project Description

The CWRC assumed responsibility for producer funding of wheat varietal development from the Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF), which includes working with AAFC to ensure adequate funding is in place to deliver improved genetics and profitability to producers. This funding will provide for continuation of “core” activities for the AAFC’s wheat breeding programs, supporting plant breeders, technicians, and specialists who are working to deliver field-ready varieties to western Canadian farmers.

The AAFC CBA will provide new wheat cultivars to farmers with greater yield potentials, resistance to priority diseases such as fusarium head blight (FHB), rusts, and common bunt, and resistance to pests such as the orange wheat blossom midge and wheat stem sawfly. AAFC will be concentrating on the development of wheat varieties in the Canadian Western Red Spring (CWRS), Canadian Western Amber Durum (CWAD), Canadian Prairie Spring Red (CPSR), Canada Western Soft White Spring (CWSWS,) and Canada Western Red Winter (CWRW) classes.