Researchers plan to develop a new oat variety resistant to Fusarium Head Blight (FHB), curbing the threat the major disease has on Western Canada's reputation as the world's most reliable supplier of high-quality oats. The three-year study is funded in part by the Western Grain Research Foundation's (WGRF) Endowment Fund.

"FHB is a major new disease of oat in the eastern Canadian prairies," says lead researcher Dr. Andy Tekauz of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) in Winnipeg. "Due to mycotoxin contamination, harvested oat grain may be unsuitable, compromising its designated uses for food or feed, and affecting sales."

The three-year study will identify sources of resistance to FHB in cultivated oats and its wild relatives, transfer this resistance to high-yielding and quality germplasm, validate the resistance by measuring toxin accumulation, and share and transfer information on resistance sources and promising hybrid lines with oat researchers.

More information on the study is available in the April edition of Western Grains Research Magazine, now on the Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF) Web site, www.westerngrains.com. Western Canadian wheat and barley growers are major investors in breeding research through the Wheat and Barley Check-off Funds, administered by WGRF. The Research Magazine offers "Ideas and issues for farmer research investors."

An oat variety resistance to FHB would be of clear benefit to Canadian producers and the industry, says Tekauz, noting Western Canada has a reputation for being the world's most reliable supplier of high-quality, wholesome oats for food and race horse feed.

From the late '80s and through the '90s, the growth of oats in Western Canada has been significant. In Manitoba and Saskatchewan, the yearly average increase in oat production was 832,000 tonnes a year between 1998 and 2002. In Alberta, it was 650,800 tonnes over the same time period.

This growth is threatened by the emergence of FHB in oats and the westward spread of it from Manitoba and southeastern Saskatchewan. "Research during the past three years has indicated FHB is present in most oat fields in southern Manitoba," says Tekauz.

Data from previous research, by Tekauz and co-workers, reports Fusarium seed infestation occurring at moderately high levels, or at an average of 28 percent, among 15 oat varieties tested. As a result, considerable deoxynivalenol (DON) is accumulating in oat grain. This toxin was recorded at average levels of 5.6 parts per million (ppm). As a comparison, an acceptable DON level for wheat and barley crops, which are in a long-time fight against FHB, is less than 1 ppm.

Tekauz says mycotoxins in oats poses a health risk for humans and livestock who consume the whole or processed grain. Since oats are marketed aggressively as the healthy food choice, he says, the presence of mycotoxins could easily damage oat's image.

The only feasible option to manage FHB in oats for the long term, says Tekauz, is to breed for improved resistance. A registered fungicide is not a likely option, as available fungicides for wheat provide only 50 percent control. For barley, no fungicides are registered, despite the presence of the disease since 1994.

The Endowment Fund, the original core fund of WGRF, has supported over 200 research projects since 1983. Research Reports on many of these projects are available on the WGRF Web site.