BMBRI announces $385,000 in research funding for the National Barley Research Cluster

On January 15th, 2019, the Honourable Laurence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, delivered the official announcement for the National Barley Research Cluster (Barley Cluster) under the Canadian Agriculture Partnership (CAP) program.

The Barley Cluster is a $10.2 M research initiative that aims to improve the competitiveness of barley as a cereal crop choice for Canadian producers and to deliver barley quality that will meet the diverse and evolving needs of its customers. Funding for the Barley Cluster comes from the $6.3M Government commitment announced today, and a $3.9 M commitment from industry.

BMBRI is investing $385,000 over five (5) years to activities focused on variety development, barley disease, malting and brewing issues, crop management practices, and knowledge and technology transfer. Mary-Jane Maurice, Chair of the BMBRI states “The Barley Cluster is a significant research investment that will contribute to ensuring BMBRI members continue to have access to a supply of high quality malt barley.”

“The Barley Cluster is the result of the collaborative effort of the funding partners and Barley Council of Canada” said Gina Feist, Executive Director of the BMBRI . “It builds on the success of the previous Growing Forward II Barley Cluster and illustrates the importance of continued Government and industry investment in the agriculture sector in Canada.”

Industry funders for the Barley Cluster include the Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission, the Western Grains Research Foundation, Alberta Barley Commission, the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute, Manitoba Wheat and Barley Growers Association, and the members of the Canadian Field Crop Research Alliance) which include Grain Farmers of Ontario, Producteurs de grains du Quebec, Atlantic Grains Council, and SeCan.