Laura Reiter. (Photo courtesy WGRF)

Former Sask Wheat chair to lead WGRF board

Kevin Auch remains foundation's vice-chair

Reading Time: 2 minutes The Western Grains Research Foundation has a new chair. Laura Reiter, a farmer from Radisson, Sask., northwest of Saskatoon, was elected to the post following the first meeting of the new board following the organization’s 2023 annual general meeting. Reiter is a producer and trained agrologist who has spent time working in research and in […] Read more

(Flax Council of Canada photo)

Flax Council of Canada seeks new chief

Wayne Thompson moving to WGRF

Reading Time: 2 minutes Canada’s national market development organization for flax and flax products is officially in the market for a chief executive. The Flax Council of Canada said Tuesday its search for a new president is underway, after Wayne Thompson announced in August he has left the position to become executive director of the Western Grains Research Foundation […] Read more


(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Railways over revenue cap in drought year, CTA finds

CN, CP now owe $5.7 million in overages, penalties

Reading Time: 2 minutes Despite a dramatically lower Prairie grain handle in the last crop year, the Western Grains Research Foundation can expect a $5.7 million gift card from Canada’s big two railways by the end of next month. The Canadian Transportation Agency, which sets the maximum revenue entitlements (MREs) each crop year for Prairie grain handled by Canadian […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

CN over, CP well under 2020-21 grain revenue caps

Railways moved record-level volume during year, CTA says

Reading Time: 2 minutes Coming off a record-level Prairie grain handle, Canadian National Railway’s $1.042 billion in 2020-21 Prairie grain revenue is set to be trimmed by about $2.52 million. The Canadian Transportation Agency on Wednesday released its determination that CN’s 2021-21 Prairie grain revenue of $1,044,909,345 came in $2,399,676 above its maximum revenue entitlement (MRE) for the year. […] Read more


Since the WGRF’s inception in 1981, it has helped develop hundreds of wheat and barley varieties.

Take a new look at the Western Grain Research Foundation

The organization is ready to embark on the next 40 years of funding vital crop and agronomic research to benefit western Canadian growers

Reading Time: 5 minutes When you do a job well for a long time, it can sometimes go unnoticed — people simply get used it. That’s why every once in a while it’s good to take a step back and see things with fresh eyes. Agricultural research, for instance — just gets done. New varieties come out regularly, new […] Read more

CN trains in Vancouver. (CN.ca)

CN, CP roll over revenue caps for 2016-17

Reading Time: 2 minutes Canada’s big two railways have both overshot the maximum revenue they’re allowed to keep for ferrying the 2016-17 grain crop off the Prairies. The Canadian Transportation Agency on Thursday issued its annual determination of how much, if any, revenue Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) made over their maximum grain revenue entitlements […] Read more


Linda Hall is looking for the right combination of variety choice and agronomic practices to make oats more attractive to growers in central Alberta.

The Catch-22 of oat production

Tests in central Alberta yield some useful information on N rates and the effectiveness of plant growth regulators

Reading Time: 4 minutes Linda Hall has a soft spot for the humble oat, mainly because she doesn’t think it’s really all that humble. “Milling oats are a high-value crop,” Hall says. “We’re seeing companies like Richardson buying up oat milling capacity, so the markets are there if we can grow the right kind of oat.” It all depends […] Read more

(Jack Dykinga photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Prairie wheat commissions to collaborate on research funding

Reading Time: 2 minutes The Prairie provinces’ three wheat commissions are set to take a team approach to research funding through a new not-for-profit body. The Alberta Wheat Commission, Sask Wheat and the Manitoba Wheat and Barley Growers Association on Tuesday announced the formation of the Canadian Wheat Research Coalition (CWRC) to “facilitate long-term investments aimed at improving profitability […] Read more


Wheat being inoculated with fusarium at Western Canada’s largest fusarium “nursery” at Carman, Man.

A genetic solution to fusarium?

Across the country, several researchers are studying fusarium from every angle, from pathology to agronomy

Reading Time: 4 minutes In the early ’90s, farmers in the eastern Prairies started to ask questions about odd white “tombstone” wheat kernels. When they received the answer, some wondered whether the name would refer to the tombstone on the grave of the wheat business, especially when there was a huge outbreak in Manitoba in 1993. Near-panic ensued, as […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

CP, CN both top their Prairie grain revenue caps

Reading Time: 2 minutes The Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF) can soon expect a late gift of over $4.4 million in surplus Prairie grain freight revenue, according to a new ruling from the Canadian Transportation Agency. The agency said Dec. 22 it has determined Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) and Canadian National Railway (CN) went over their maximum revenue entitlements […] Read more