Scotland offers a unique climate for producing wheat, but to fully exploit the latest high-potential varieties and raise yields to help meet increasing global demand for food, growers need the tools to do it. That was the key message to emerge from discussions between a delegation from NFU Scotland (NFUS) and Limagrain UK during a visit to the company’s wheat breeding centre at Woolpit in Suffolk. The meeting was organised by Nickerson Direct, which supplies seed direct from breeder to farmer.

“To unlock the yield potential of the latest wheat varieties for Scottish growers it is an absolute necessity that organisations such as the Scottish Agricultural Colleges (SAC) and Home Grown Cereals Authority (HGCA) dedicate more trials work to investigate their suitability in Scotland,” emphasised Bill Angus, Senior Wheat Breeder, Limagrain UK. Outlining the dynamics of the market, he explained that the reason why both private and public sector trials in Scotland are limited is because the country represents just six per cent of the UK market for wheat seed, compared with a very high percentage in East Anglia.

“There is naturally a bias towards breeding wheat varieties which suit the needs of growers in East Anglia,” acknowledged Mr Angus. “Equally, to be a successful breeder in Scotland you have to produce top-class varieties, because conditions there really push and pull them to the limit. Wheat breeding is all about attention to detail and making sure that new varieties have better attributes than those which have gone before, and that depends on good trials together with good interpretation of data.”

Allan Bowie, who is Vice President of the NFUS and farms in Fife, stressed that whilst Scottish growers are excited about prospects for the industry’s future they need more information and access to technology which will deliver increased yields.

“The key to success is that we get the consumer on our side and push the quality and provenance of what we produce too,” commented Mr Bowie. “We must also engage closely with the distilling industry which is on our doorstep and ensure that they pay farmers a fair price. We also need low-input varieties which are unique to Scotland and suit the distillers’ needs. That is why we must talk directly to plant breeders such as Limagrain UK, evaluate potential new varieties and assess what is useful for Scotland.”

John Picken, NFUS’ Combinable Crops Chairman, emphasised frustration that policy makers had implemented NVZ regulations on Scottish growers, based on English conditions. He commented:

“There’s a lack of realisation amongst policymakers that Scotland is very different to England, in that we have 500,000 hectares of arable crops and a population of five million people. The demand to use groundwater for drinking is therefore far less in Scotland and unnecessary NVZ regulations are clipping our wings by restricting nitrogen use and preventing us from taking advantage of the yield potential of the latest varieties.”

Mr Picken, who produces wheat and oats on his farm near St Andrews, underlined the fact that NFUS would continue to lobby both UK and EU politicians on the matter and was hopeful the new Minister at Defra would adopt a commonsense approach to Scotland.

Bill Angus confirmed that average nitrogen applications to winter wheat had remained stable, at 200kg N/ha, for the last 20 years but emphasised that this would have to change if growers were to increase yields. He stated:

“We need a second ‘green revolution’ in Northern Europe to meet future demand for food from the Far East and Sub-Saharan Africa countries which have expanding populations and changing dietary needs. Nitrogen is the key driver of yields and we probably need to apply an extra 50kg N/ha in order to move from growing 10t/ha now to achieving 12t/ha in the future.”

Mr Angus suggested that growers would have to look to precision technology and a more targeted approach to inputs if advances in yield were to be made under tightening regulations. Pointing out that in New Zealand winter wheat yields of 13-14t/ha were not unusual, using nitrogen applications of 300kg N/ha, Mr Angus said that whilst Scotland has the perfect climate for growing wheat, limitations on nitrogen will determine yields.

Following a visit to Nickerson trial plots close-by, Mr Angus concluded:

“We are now taking wheat breeding into a new dimension, moving from the old-fashioned way of doing things to a new and very exciting era. Farmers grow wheat because it is relatively easy to do, but growing good crops of wheat is becoming harder. There is a need to raise the bar by looking closely at every aspect of production, including variety choice, seed rates, crop nutrition, fungicide use and precision technology, while in Scotland more investment must go into growing the crop.”

Nick Wallace, Scottish Regional Sales Manager for Nickerson Direct added that growers could see for themselves Nickerson, and other varieties, being grown on-farm with a range of agronomic inputs, at a field day organised by Nickerson Direct taking place at Allan Bowie’s farm in Fife on July 14. For more information contact Nick on 07860 202193