Farmers ready their equipment and then head to the field to plant a new crop. As the seed rolls out of the drill, every kernel holds the hope of being part of a bumper crop, and producers can dream high prices will be the norm by the time of harvest, five months ahead. While the magic combo, big yields and high prices aren’t often realized, spring allows for such hopes.
Of course, a lot can happen from seeding to harvest; too much rain, too much heat, bugs, weeds, disease, a veritable minefield for a crop to make it through, but from the seat of the tractor in May, farmers can imagine all of them staying at bay. Ultimately though, the greatest hope of spring for producers is often less recognized. At this time of year, researchers see new funds dedicated to their work, and it is the result of farm research that holds the greatest promise for the producer.
For example, a University of Saskatchewan release noted new money coming it’s way. “The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) will invest $3.2 million in a unique bio-manufacturing facility at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) that will use cutting-edge “engineering biology” technologies to accelerate agri-food innovation and help address food security needs,” said a release.
“Developing canola varieties more resistant to climate change, flavourings for the plant-based meat industry, and non-animal enzyme alternatives for the dairy industry are a sample of the innovations to be advanced by the new Engineering Biology Agri-food Innovation Centre within the university’s Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS).”
And research makes strides as a second USask release noted. “Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) researchers at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) are members of an international consortium of leading academic and commercial seed companies from the USA, Canada, Europe and Israel, that has announced the successful mapping of the canola pan-genome (its entire set of genes). The International Canola Pan-genome Consortium was established in 2019 to advance the canola agricultural industry by capturing the broad genetic diversity of this crop.”
The mapping of the genome will set the table for greater strides in research moving forward. That is one of the intriguing things about research, how a discovery today opens the window for another researcher to see the next step in answering some questions, whether yield-related, disease resistance, or how to survive in drier conditions.
Canola is a fine example of what research can achieve, developed as a crop from rapeseed and grown in areas today not dreamed of 25 years ago.
That is what makes research so critical, and seeing investments made is laying the foundation for the sector tomorrow.
- Calvin Daniels
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Disclaimer: opinions expressed are those of the writer.