Grainswest - Winter 2024

Winter 2024 Grains West 6 GrainsWestmarks10years connectingfarmers, foodand ideas AMONG THE TOPICS TACKLED IN the first issue of GrainsWest , was UPOV 91. Hinting at the eventual outcome of the initiative, the magazine posed the ques- tion “will the tale of UPOV 91 end happily ever after?” An international project, the UPOV framework is intended to ensure plant breeders can protect and profit from their work, and so spur investment in crop variety development critical to Canadi- an farmers. The story was published in January 2014 as legislation to bring the nation’s Plant Breeders’ Rights Act in line with UPOV moved through Parliament. The Legislative amendment was passed in 2015. GrainsWest flagged this as a turning point for Canadian agriculture, for better or worse. Just under a decade later, ahead of our tenth anniversary a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) report released EDITOR’S MESSAGE this past October strongly declared the move to update the Act has had a positive effect on production, yield, farm cash receipts and export value. The report’s calculations clearly put the results in the “better” category. This past fall, in a reassuring echo of the CFIA’s good news, the Cereals Canada 2023 New Wheat Crop Report noted that despite generally poor conditions during the growing season and below-average production, the 30-million tonne Canadi- an wheat crop was of high quality across all classes. This positive news cannot be chalked up to pure luck. Such a widespread outcome must be the product of strong, regionally suited crop varieties in combination with well-tuned field practices. The decade-long view of Canadian agriculture is that it has been able to absorb much of what nature has thrown at it. Farmers, agronomists, researchers and plant breeders have all con- tributed to the industry’s success. Agricul- ture has manufactured its own luck in the form of increased resilience. In agriculture, success demands attention to the long game. With time and effort, yield and profit trend upward and new opportunities are created. It has been our job to document the stories that mark this often-incremental progress. As we celebrate 10 years of connecting farm- ers, food and ideas, expect more news, updates and deep dives on topics from agricultural research, agronomics, equip- ment and technology to farm finance and grain marketing. As we embark on our second decade working with Alberta farmers and agriculture professionals from across Canada, we certainly do consider ourselves lucky. A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT As with the years-long evolution of Canadian Plant Breeders’ Rights legislation, the payoff of agricultural initiatives often takes time. For 10 years we’ve kept our finger on the pulse of this industry, and though farmers have routinely faced numerous challenges, the decade has been notably upbeat. Following deeply pes- simistic times, our early issues captured the emergence of a new optimism among young farmers that remains strong. Taking the long view, that has been a win for Alberta agriculture. Illustration: Michael C. Byers