February 27, 2024 (Saskatoon, SK) –The Canadian Barley Research Coalition (CBRC), in a funding partnership with the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute (BMBRI),has committed $1.5 million over seven years to launch the Grant for Research Optimization for Western Canadian Barley(GROW) Agronomy Program.
Dr. Hiroshi Kubota, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada based in Lacombe, AB, will be the lead for the program for the next seven years.
The GROW Barley partners launched a competitive application process late last year and asked researchers to share their vision to advance barley agronomy across the Prairies over the next seven years. Matching funds will be sought to further the results that can be achieved through this program.
“The idea for GROW Barley grew from recognizing that barley agronomic research was needed to keep barley competitive with other crops. Barley is a unique crop with performance differences between it and other crops, and needs barley-specific agronomic research,” said Cody Glenn, Chair of CBRC and farmer from Climax, SK.
“The industry cannot fully realize the genetic gains from new varieties without adapting agronomic practices to match the genetic potential of new varieties.”
The program will connect the lead researcher with the steering committee annually to collaborate and adapt the program over the course of the seven years. The first field season will be in 2025.
Founded in 2020, CBRC is a collaboration between Alberta Grains, SaskBarley and Manitoba Crop Alliance with a focus on improving profitability and competitiveness for western Canadian barley through long-term research investments.
For more information, contact:
Shelley Lagasse
Program Manager
CBRC
Cell: 204-688-8399
slagasse@barleyresearch.ca