Pulse Crop Development Workshops Cater to producer Needs

Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food

The upcoming Pulse Crop Development Workshops scheduled for Swift Current, Moose Jaw and Sedley on January 31 and February 1 and 2, respectively, aim to provide the latest on pulse crops where it matters most, according to Provincial Special Crops Specialist Ray McVicar.

“There is a lot of pulse crop production in southern Saskatchewan ," he explains. "We found that there are many people who don’t get the chance to attend Pulse Days in Saskatoon in January. We organize these workshops every year in association with the Saskatchewan Pulse Growers to make industry development information more readily accessible to southern Saskatchewan producers.”

Pulse crop production in Saskatchewan has increased tremendously during the last two decades—rising from 30,000 acres in 1981 to five million acres in 2005. This increase is a result of a strong partnership between public and private stakeholders who have worked together to enhance the pulse industry, explains McVicar.

“These stakeholders include Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food (SAF), Saskatchewan Pulse Growers (SPG), the University of Saskatchewan, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and many private companies involved in basic and applied research, processing, handling, market development and export, as well as biological and chemical product manufacturing.

“SAF continues to play a significant role in the pulse industry,” continues McVicar, “mainly in the areas of research and extension. Plus, through the Agriculture Development Fund (ADF), SAF provides funding for pulse research conducted by scientists at different levels.”

The workshops will feature industry displays and presentations: Market Movers for the Pulse Industry with Marlene Boersch of Mercantile Consulting Venture in Winnipeg; new research developments with Yantai Gan of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada>; agriculture business centres for Saskatchewan with Ken Evans (SAF); and new pulse crop varieties with Bert Vandenberg and Tom Warkentin of the University of Saskatchewan. There will be a session on insect pest management with Dan Johnson of the University of Lethbridge and Scott Hartley of SAF, and there will also be a talk entitled Pulse Futures: Food, Fuel, Nutraceuticals with Bob Tyler of the University of Saskatchewan.

McVicar believes it is important that growers and industry players like processors and others have a chance to get together.

"The whole industry is built on partnerships among the marketers, processing companies, researchers, the governments—both Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food," he says. "We have really grown together, to the point where Saskatchewan is a major player in the pulse world. So we stage these workshops because we have made this entire journey together."

To pre-register, call the Agriculture Knowledge Centre at 1-866-457-2377 by January 27, 2006.

For more information, contact:

Ray McVicar
Provincial Special Crops Specialist
Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food
(306) 787-4665