Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116will mean for them and dispel some of the common misconceptions people have about the modernization process. One of the most common misconcep- tions, he says, is that Canada Northern is the new premium class of wheat. In reality, CWRS is still the premium class for bread-making quality wheat. Another common misunderstanding, according to Beswitherick, is that some varieties will disappear as a result of this mod- ernization process. In fact, no varieties will be deregistered, something only the CFIA Variety Registration Office has the authority to do, he adds. Beswitherick adds it’s too soon to say what impact the changes may have on the marketability of specific varieties. However, he says it appears preliminary prices for CNHR varieties are significantly less than for CWRS. Informing the Market Brian Kennedy, grower relations and extension coordinator with the Alberta Wheat Commission (AWC), says AWC representatives were busy last fall and winter meeting with growers across the province to ensure they were up to speed on the CGC’s modernization plans. “We’re just trying to get information out there so there’re no surprises on Aug. 1, 2018 when growers go to market their harvest,” he says. Kennedy says one of the things he and his colleagues have been telling growers is to start thinking now about what they want to grow, even though they might not transition to a new variety for another two years. “We’ve been advising growers to talk to their local seed grower to see what grows well in the area. Because someone’s had really good luck with [a variety like] Har- vest they might not really know another variety that works well for them,” he says. “A seed grower in their area who has experience with growing a lot of differ- ent varieties [will] probably recommend a really good variety to move into. Seed growers generally are in the business for the long term. They’re not going to give bad advice knowing they’re going to lose a customer. They would rather give good advice and have that customer come back for 20 years.” Kennedy also recommends growers not be afraid to try a couple of different varieties to start with before determining what works best in their area and with their particular style of operation. While he agrees it’s too soon to tell how the changes will affect what farmers choose to grow, Kennedy says it stands to reason that sales of varieties moving into the Canada Northern class will drop since prices are expected to be lower than for CWRS varieties. “Their goal is to grow something that fits into the CWRS market and get the higher price. They’re not going to want to grow a Canada Northern Hard Red wheat and get a lower price for the same yield,” he says. Implications for Seed Companies Brent Derkatch, director of operations and business development with Canterra Seeds, says modernizing the wheat class system could have some serious implica- tions for Canadian seed companies. “The biggest thing is…the industry doesn’t collectively know yet what acre- age shifts might occur with the differ- ent classes and varieties within those classes,” he says. Another concern for seed sellers, according to Derkatch, is how grain han- dlers are going to react to the changes. “There’s now going to be another milling class that they need to deal with and segregation for both class and grade. Each grain company is going to have their own view about where the opportunities are going to lie,” he notes. “Part of the unknown is whether the grain handlers are going to choose perhaps to focus on only…maybe two or three milling classes 9 Advancing Seed in Alberta | fall.2016 in certain areas because of the segrega- tion challenges that are going to exist.” Derkatch says one of the biggest chal- lenges for seed companies will be antici- pating where demand is going to be and then communicating that information to seed producers so that inventory levels end up being where they need to be. “It comes down to being a little more visionary,” he says. “We’ll certainly spend time with grain handlers here in the coming months and try to find out what we can about their intentions both now and in the future related to the different milling wheat classes, and then communi- cate [those] expected demands with our key seed producers across the Prairies.” Savouring the Opportunity Greg Stamp, co-owner of Stamp Seeds in Enchant, Alta., says while he under- stands the uncertainty many in the seed business feel, he views the changes as an opportunity. “There are going to be new varieties to grow no matter if a class changes and farmers will be switching varie- ties, so the farmer will say, ‘I’m not sure what I’m going to grow so let’s talk to the seed grower and see what makes sense,’” he says. “The only thing that I could see catch- ing us is if there’s a variety that we don’t know is going to be moved and we have that in inventory…how much of that are we going to sell? [But] that’s really no different than me experimenting with some new variety that I hope sells well but doesn’t.” Stamp’s advice to seed growers is to make sure they communicate with their customers. “Communicating with our customers is going to be key – here’s what’s available, here’s what’s moving, here’s what we think you should look at for your farm,” he says. “That happens anyway but I think we [need to] be more proactive.” Jim Timlick