(Alice McFarlane/farmnewsNOW Staff)

By Alice McFarlane

International Wheat Congress

International event attracts wheat scientists

Jul 23, 2019 | 10:30 AM

A conference focused on wheat is being held in Saskatoon.

The First International Wheat Congress (IWC) in Saskatoon will focus on six areas of wheat research including wheat diversity, genomics, production, breeding, protecting yield and uses.

Leading the host team at the University of Saskatchewan is Dr. Curtis Pozniak.

“It’s the first meeting of its kind that brings together all science disciplines in wheat, but not just science, policy, producers, human health, all of these will be discussed at the congress. So, I’m the host of that congress. We’re proud to bring it to the heart of the wheat belt.”

More than 80 speakers will present the latest advances in wheat research.

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Pozniak said with all of the new advancements you can’t replace a “hands on” approach.

“Technologies that we’re talking about aren’t magic bullets. They have to be integrated in a way so that breeding itself becomes as efficient as possible which still includes going out into the field and having the breeder make selections,” he said.

A priority of the IWC is to promote participation from all wheat growing areas of the world. A portion of each registration fee will be used to sponsor scientists from developing nations by reimbursing them for registration and travel costs.

The conference continues until Friday.

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alice.mcfarlane@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @AliceMcF