Every year many growers are faced with the decision whether or not to buy new wheat seed, or to go back to their bin. At first, it may seem as though going to the bin is the least expensive option. In fact, there are many ways that buying new Certified wheat seed can improve your ROI.
Here are the top 3 examples of Certified wheat seed boosting your return on investment.
1. Boost Your Marketing Power
Certified seed is the basis of variety-specific, identity-preserved programs. You can access these programs, and the premiums they offer, by using Certified seed.
Example: Warburtons Bakeries contracts variety specific, high-quality, Canadian wheat every year, and ships it to their bakery in the UK. The company sees value in the exceptional quality of Canadian wheat production, and offers a significant premium to growers who take part in their program. This all starts with Certified seed – a requirement of their contract.
2. Boost Your Genetic Potential
When you purchase Certified seed of a new variety, you are accessing the newest and best genetic potential on the market. From agronomic factors like disease resistance, to new specialty traits, you’re getting the best performance available.
Example: Midge tolerant wheat has been available to growers since 2010, and provides great value through reduced downgrading and yield losses. The trait has proven to be very valuable to growers and to the industry, with an estimate of $456 million net benefit contribution (Ference & Company, prepared for AAFC). To access this trait, growers must purchase Certified seed a minimum of once every two years.
3. Boost Your Risk Management
Certified seed provides a guarantee of quality in terms of purity because it is produced under stringent quality control measures. To ensure the seed is as pure as possible, land rotation and isolation requirements are in place, all off-types and weeds are removed, seed is segregated during harvest, handling and processing, and CFIA-accredited labs, graders and inspectors keep an eye on the entire process. In the end, your Certified seed gives more confidence at planting, and less dockage at delivery!