A new hard white wheat breeding line developed by the University of Saskatchewan Crop Development Centre provides the same level of sprouting resistance as the best registered Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat varieties.

The breeding line, also called germplasm in breeding circles, will be released in 2002 to the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Plant Gene Resources Centre in Saskatoon, an internationally prominent gene bank, says wheat breeder Dr. Pierre Hucl. "From there, breeders can access the material to breed sprouting resistance into their hard white wheat lines.

"We bred this line specifically for strong sprouting resistance, and not for quality or yield, so it’s strictly a breeding tool," he says. Hucl’s wheat breeding program is funded in part by the Wheat Check-off Fund, administered by Western Grains Research Foundation.

Pre-harvest sprouting – the germination of wheat kernels before harvest – can cause substantial losses for farmers. Pre-harvest sprouting uses up valuable protein and starch, resulting in quality losses. Sprouting resistance is traditionally more of a problem in white-seeded wheat. "The only recourse to sprouting resistance for farmers is growing varieties with maximum sprouting resistance," he says.

Hucl, along with other researchers in Western Canada, is breeding hard white wheat lines, aiming for the same quality characteristics as CWRS. White wheat with CWRS characteristics could give whole wheat bread a lighter colour and sweeter flavour, which is an advantage in some markets. As well, white wheat is known to have a slight flour extraction advantage for millers. A movement is afoot by the industry to officially adopt hard white wheat as another Prairie wheat class.

"The current hard white wheat lines that are out there could use a boost in sprouting resistance," says Hucl. "Hopefully, this breeding line we have developed can help breeders introduce this important characteristic for farmers into their lines."

Hucl has been breeding with the sprouting-resistant line for a number of years, he says. "We should have some CWRS-quality white wheat lines with good sprouting resistance ready for registration testing in the near future."

New breeding tools, such as the doubled haploid technique, are being used to speed development of hard white wheat lines. "We are able to yield-test lines at multiple sites within three years of making a cross, instead of six years or more," he says.

"If hard white wheat becomes the next western Canadian wheat class, we want to ensure farmers have a range of well-adapted varieties to choose from, so they can capitalize on this exciting potential new market."

The Wheat Check-off Fund, administered by Western Grains Research Foundation, contributes approximately $3 million annually to breeding programs in Western Canada. Sask Pool is also currently supporting hard white wheat breeding at the University of Saskatchewan Crop Development Centre.