By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.comA new research cluster was formed to increase the quality of malting barley production in Canada.The “Adding Value to Barley National Research” project was signed yesterday by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and several industry organizations.One of the main goals of the cluster is to pool research dollars together, focus on the development of breeding new varieties and encourage growers to seed more acres to barley.Cluster funding support comes from both government and industry. The Western Grain Research Foundation has pledged $1.5 million, while the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute said they are investing $435,000."We are pleased that the federal government has recognized the important role that barley plays in Canadian agriculture,” Matt Sawyer, Alberta Barley Chairman said in a release.In 2013, federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced funding for the creation of a new barley cluster under the Growing Forward 2 agricultural policy framework.