New USask crop research chair receives Sask Wheat support

 The Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission (Sask Wheat) has committed $6.5 million to support the establishment of the Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission Applied Genomics and Pre-breeding Chair at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

The new research chair will design and deploy cutting-edge technologies and strategies to assess genetic diversity for delivery into new crop varieties, with a primary focus on wheat.

“We are grateful for the Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission’s support in advancing crop research,” said Dr. Angela Bedard-Haughn (PhD), dean of the College of Agriculture and Bioresources at USask. “This new chair will bolster USask’s leadership in the development of productive, climate-smart varieties that support a sustainable food production system.”

The chair will focus on applying genomics to pre-breeding activities and bridge the gap between discovery research, exploration of gene banks, genomics and breeding. This research is necessary to connect crop wild relatives and commercial varieties. The goal is to translate gene discovery into better adapted varieties for Saskatchewan climates and agronomic pressures therefore providing producers with more rotational options to increase profitability for their operations.

“The University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre is home to some of the best researchers and breeders in the world. This directed funding for a chair position is an investment by wheat growers into our future to develop improved wheat varieties for Saskatchewan,” said Jake Leguee, board chair with Sask Wheat, a farmer-funded commission that supports public-sector research and wheat breeding in Saskatchewan and Western Canada.