Highlights from Canola Week 2024
Chris Davison opened Canola Week with new data showing that canola contributes $43.7 billion annually to the Canadian economy. The figure has doubled in the past decade. Davison, president and CEO of the Canola Council of Canada, also discussed challenges like weather extremes, labour disruptions and trade issues with China, and highlighted opportunities in biofuels and global markets. Davison emphasized the importance of continued innovation and collaboration for the industry’s future.
Canola Week is all about science and innovation to improve the crop. Researchers, agronomists and representatives from the canola industry across Canada and the world came to Saskatoon in early December to share solutions and insights. The agenda included dozens of presenters. This article shares a few highlights.
Optimize oil and protein content
April Nichol, seeds marketing leader at Corteva Agriscience, discussed the future of canola seed. She highlighted the industry’s challenges, including climate change, trade barriers and the need for renewable energy. Nichol noted a significant increase in crush capacity in Western Canada, which will boost domestic markets. She emphasized the importance of optimizing canola’s oil and protein content through breeding and gene editing. Nichol stressed the need for collaboration to ensure canola’s sustainability and profitability.
Make renewable diesel from canola oil.
Imperial Oil has invested $700 million in a renewable diesel facility in Edmonton, Alberta with capacity to produce 250 million gallons per year. Jason MacDonald, fuels policy advisor with ExxonMobil Product Solutions Company, updated on the project, which could use 2.5 million tonnes of Canadian canola seed per year, requiring additional crush capacity and transportation infrastructure. MacDonald emphasized the need for policy support to drive investment and economic benefits in Canada’s renewable fuel sector.
Design better roots.
Cquesta engineers crops to capture and store atmospheric carbon using root genetics. Tim Ulmasov, CEO of Cquesta, emphasized the role of plants in carbon capture and detailed Cquesta’s research on deeper root systems that store more carbon. He shared successes in gene editing, achieving high reproducibility in crops like camelina. Cquesta aims to create a seamless value chain for carbon trading, collaborating with seed companies and carbon aggregators to ensure farmers benefit from carbon sequestration efforts.
Jonathan Lynch, distinguished professor emeritus at Pennsylvania State University, added to the root conversation. He detailed the development of “topsoil foraging” in common beans and soybeans, which increased yield and incomes in Africa and China. He also described various root traits, such as fewer nodal roots and reduced root respiration, that improve drought and low-nitrogen tolerance in corn.
Improve nutrient efficiency.
Claudia Wagner-Riddle, a professor in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Guelph, presented on a collaborative network for improved nitrogen management in Canada, CanN2ONet. The network, involving six universities, colleges, Environment Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), aims to address nitrogen losses and improve metrics through benchmark studies, data integration and models. The network plans to use inhibitors and variable rate applications, with a tall tower in Yorkton, Saskatchewan for regional-scale N2O measurements. The goal is to develop transparent, representative metrics and train the next generation of environmental scientists.
Haben Asgedom Tedla, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), shared results from experiments comparing urea and enhanced efficiency nitrogen fertilizers. Nitrous oxide emissions were higher with urea than with enhanced efficiency nitrogen fertilizers. Data from observations across provinces indicated that soil moisture variation by management zone was one of the major factors that determined the performance of nitrogen fertilizers. This highlights the importance of soil moisture in improving nitrogen use efficiency and the need for variable-rate nitrogen applications.
Improve water use efficiency.
Phillip Harder, research director and hydrologist at Croptimistic Technology, emphasized the importance of snow management and stubble retention for improved water retention and yield. Farms can increase soil moisture with stubble to trap snow and reduce the amount of moisture lost to the atmosphere from blowing snow. We need to increase the rate of transpiration if we want more efficient water use, Harder says. He also noted that crop water use exceeds precipitation, but where is that extra water coming from? We need to understand multi-year soil moisture.
Explore biopesticide.
Tim Dumonceaux, research scientist with AAFC, described research (led by his colleague Susan Boyetchko before her passing) that identified Bacillus atrophaeus strain PENSV20 as an effective bio-control agent. In greenhouse trials, it demonstrated strong protection against sclerotinia stem rot. Field trials are coming. They’re working with Montana BioAgriculture, who have opened a Canadian division. The researchers want to make PENSV20 available to farmers to protect their canola crops.
Enhance yield through competition and sharing.
Aaron Mills, research scientist with AAFC in Charlottetown, discussed the Yield Enhancement Network (YEN) and its impact on cereal production in the Maritimes. The Maritime YEN program includes yield competition among participating farmers and gives annual awards for the best yield, best percentage of potential yield and highest nitrogen use efficiency. Mills highlighted that YEN growers achieved 20 per cent higher winter wheat yields compared to provincial averages. The program also identifies and shares high-yield practices for Maritime spring wheat; practices that include early planting, certified seed and sophisticated statistical models. Future plans for Maritime YEN include greenhouse gas sampling, soybean root modulation work and economic analysis to add value and sustainability.
