Corn Research Kernels
Ken Hough, Director, Research and Market Development
Damp Corn Storage and Processing Research
OCPA is finalizing plans with Casco to
conduct, in southwestern Ontario, a final year of data collection for this project, which has two primary objectives:
• Demonstrate the effects on corn starch yield and purity, as well as any
other efficiency factors (steeping time, throughput, etc.) which can be achieved by Casco through their milling
of damp (undried) corn. Approximately 320,000 bushels of corn between
18-23% moisture content is expectd to be contracted for about a week’s processing at Casco’s London plant in early
March, 2001. (Last winter, we tried to obtain this data from a similar week-long run at the Cardinal plant, but
quantities of corn above 18% moisture were insufficient, due to earlier maturity.)
• Refine management recommendations for
on-farm storage of damp corn to minimize risk and maximize quality for wet-milling
or other markets. All cooperators will
receive information on the recommended management practices, which are different
than those used for aeration drying of corn. Recommendations will be based on
the fairly broad experience obtained over the past two winters with cooperators
in eastern Ontario, and, in the last year, with a small number of cooperators
in southwestern Ontario. A small group of cooperators will be selected for an
in-depth assessment and refinement of damp corn storage management procedures.
Interested cooperators who have on-farm storage facilities with adequate bin aeration capacity are being sought to participate in the project. All participants will be required to sign a delivery contract with Casco-London specifying the delivery date and corn grade/condition criteria (minimum Grade 3; 18-23% moisture content, undried). As an incentive, all damp corn delivered in accordance with the contract will receive a ‘project incentive payment’ of 20 cents/bushel (payment from OCPA out of project funds and Casco contributions). This will offset about 1/2 to 2/3 of the projected ‘moisture adjustment charge’ levied by Casco for corn at 18-23% moisture (see newsletter for further details on corn drying charges).
An information day is being planned for early November in London, to provide recommended damp corn storage management
procedures, further information on contract requirements, and additional background on overall project goals, to
growers who may be interested in participating in the project. Further details are available from the contacts
listed below.
• For information on storage/aeration facility requirements and/or damp
corn storage management recommendations – Dr. Ralph Brown, University
of Guelph School of Engineering, ph. 519-824-4120, x3922; e-mail <rbrown@uoguelph.ca>, or Ken Bennett,
519-824-4120, x6141; e-mail <kbennett@uoguelph.ca>
• For information on ‘damp corn project’ delivery contracts, grade/condition
specifications, etc. – John Peake, Casco, London, ph. 519-680-4402; e-mail
<john.peake@casco.ca>
• For more details regarding general
project objectives (but not the specifics noted for the previous contacts)
– Brian Doidge, University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus,
ph. 519-674-1525; e-mail <bdoidge@ridgetownc.uoguelph.ca>
Genetic Engineering for Fusarium Ear MoUld Resistance
With the impending March 31, 2001 completion of the current phase of the joint AAFC Eastern Cereal and Oilseed
Research Centre (ECORC, Ottawa) and University of Guelph, project discussions are now underway for ongoing research
to:
• continue development, verification and field evaluation of the Fusarium resistance technologies ‘discovered’
in the current project
• expand the genetic engineering research into new potential Fusarium resistance strategies/technologies.
In the current project, at least one technology/option to address every technological aspect for producing Fusarium resistant corn has been developed:
All of these project ‘technologies’ are now available for licensing by project partners, who have ‘freedom to operate’ (FTO) to conduct their own transformations. (Inbred lines produced within the project operations cannot be licensed, however, due to FTO restrictions.) Research on each of these aspects will continue under the current project until March, 2001. Funding has been provided by the Ontario Agri-Food Technologies (OAFT)-led consortium including OCPA, Ontario Pork, Hyland/Zeneca, Novartis Seeds, Pioneer Hi-Bred (all ‘Full’ Partners), and AgrEvo, Cargill, Dow-Agro/Mycogen and King Agro/Limagrain (‘Supporting’ Partners). Matching grant funding from the CanAdapt program and the AAFC Matching Investment Initiative (MII) are gratefully acknowledged, as is OMAFRA support provided to the U. of G. Plants Research program for this project.
Current participants, as well as some prospective partners, including several companies who have expressed interest over the past couple of years in joining the project, are being solicited for partnership involvement in the next phase of the research (with objectives as noted above). Out of fairness, prospective participants will need to ‘buy in’ at a higher investment level, given that the existing partners have borne the extra risk of a possible ‘no useful results’ outcome.
OCPA is extremely pleased with the excellent progress which has been achieved by the current research, as well as the cohesive U. of G./ECORC research partnership that has developed. However, further development and verification of the current technologies are needed over the next few years, before enhanced Fusarium resistance traits based on these technologies becomes available in commercial corn hybrids. As well, new avenues of genetic engineering for Fusarium resistance can be explored.
Please contact Ken Hough, OCPA, with any inquiries/suggestions for potential partners
or funding avenues, or for further information on the continuing research.
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