Research and Development

Viterra is committed to supporting research and development activity in Australia and is participating in industry-leading research, particularly in canola, barley breeding and malt projects. We provide funding to a variety of organisations and initiatives.

Canola Development

Viterra has established a canola research and development program aimed at providing growers with increased access to innovative seed varieties with higher yields and increased adaptability to drought.

Globally, canola is Viterra's main research focus, with Xceed Oasis CL Canola and Roundup Ready Hybrid Canola (napus) representing our primary efforts. We conduct yield, quality, agronomic, seed production and disease evaluation trials at sites around the country to identify elite genetics to select and advance the best locally adapted varieties and hybrids for Australian growers. These sites are also used for grower crop tours and for training. Viterra's Australian program complements our global research and development program, which involves more than 60 employees, including breeders, scientists, agronomists and technicians. The research conducted by our global research and development team creates synergies and promotes cross-pollination of resources and expertise, resulting in significant benefits for Australian growers.

Seed Trials

Viterra conducts trials of promising seed varieties in commercial grower demonstration sites across Australia. We use the trials to compare the agronomic and quality attributes of the new seed varieties from a range of crops, including barley, canola, oats, pulses, oil seeds and pasture species. The demonstration sites are located across the diverse climatic and geographic regions of the grain-producing districts of Australia.

University of Adelaide Barley Breeding Program

Viterra's involvement in the University of Adelaide's Barley Breeding program represents one of its largest R&D investments. This collaboration is responsible for the development and commercialisation of new barley varieties suited to key markets and Australian production areas. The project has the potential to benefit the whole supply chain through better-yielding barley varieties for growers, increased volumes through grain storage and handling networks for bulk handlers, improved malt quality for maltsters, and superior-quality grain and ingredients to sell to domestic and international markets.

Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant BioSecurity - Phosphine Resistance

Grain growers and bulk storage operators use phosphine - the dominant fumigant in the Australian grains industry - to ensure insect-free grain to meet domestic and international end-user demands. However, an increasing number of phosphine-resistant grain pests are compromising the chemical's efficacy. This has prompted the industry to gain a better understanding of how it works in order to ensure its long-term viability. The Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant BioSecurity project aims to improve fumigation efficiencies and secure new strategies to overcome resistant-insect populations.

Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics - Reducing Water Use in Malting

The malting process requires large quantities of water and prolonged drought in parts of Australia has put pressure on the malting industry. The focus of this Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics Development project is on developing malting-quality barleys with a reduced beta-glucan content with the aim of reducing water usage in commercial malt production by 40 per cent. This in turn will reduce reliance on one of Australia's most precious natural resources and provide a more sustainable future for the malting industry.

Lowering the Carbon Footprint of Malting

In addition to its water requirements, malting is an energy-intensive process. This project aims to reduce the carbon footprint of malt production to ensure Viterra malt remains environmentally sustainable and socially responsible. Malting barley varieties are being screened to determine their ability to be malted with a reduced carbon footprint, and the underlying traits that would permit this are being investigated to enable the breeding of barley with these characteristics.

Solution for Premature Yeast Flocculation (PYF)

This program involves the molecular 'finger-printing' of barley/malt microbes as a step to identifying bacteria that cause Premature Yeast Flocculation (PYF), a phenomenon where yeast fails to ferment fully during the brewing process. PYF is an intermittent problem that can affect brewing performance. Viterra is working with the University of Tasmania and key customers to develop a novel method of identifying the barley and malt that contribute to PYF, to enable pre-selection risk to be assessed and the grain segregated accordingly.

Oat Development

Viterra formed a five-year partnership agreement with the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) in 2009 to jointly promote and invest in the development of oat milling varieties.

SARDI's National Oat Program facilitates research and breeds new varieties, with continued funding support from the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC). These varieties are designed with improved agronomic, yield and milling traits to support growers, the domestic milling market and food manufacturers. Viterra assists with the evaluation of new breeding lines and commercialisation of new milling oat varieties, and supports agronomy work.