Advancing High Erucic Acid Rapeseed Research and Development in Canada

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The Canadian canola/rapeseed industry contributes $26.7 billion annually to Canada's economy. High Erucic Acid Rapeseed (HEAR) production is a small but profitable component of the Canadian canola/rapeseed industry, with Canada producing approximately half of the annual global supply of erucic acid oil. Erucic acid oil and its derivatives are used in lubricants and slip agents and erucic acid offers properties that petroleum-based products do not. Current hybrid HEAR cultivars are based upon a pollination control system that can pose challenges and inconsistencies when producing large amounts of commercial hybrid seed for western Canada. Developing HEAR hybrids with the Ogu INRA pollination control system is necessary to maintain profitable HEAR production in Canada, since HEAR and canola cultivars compete for the same production area. The proposed HEAR Collaborative Research and Development Project focuses on the development hybrid HEAR cultivars using the Ogu INRA pollination control system and the conversion of these hybrids using a new herbicide tolerance system (TruFlex). We will accomplish this by combining improved Ogu INRA parents from our industry partners with the previously developed HEAR germplasm from the University of Manitoba. Within the overall research goal, we will have multiple objectives focusing on the improvement of seed quality, abiotic stress and disease resistance using conventional breeding approaches in addition to gene-editing. This research will incorporate expertise in plant breeding, genetics, genomics, disease resistance and plant physiology at the UofM (Drs. Duncan, Li, Stasolla and Hill), expertise in hybrid development from Nutrien and a tradition of seed/oil/meal processing from Bunge. Our team will produce the world's first TruFlex HEAR hybrid. The use of the Ogu INRA pollination control system and new herbicide tolerance will add significant annual value to the Canadian economy, benefiting farmers, the seed industry and seed processors. This innovative research will also provide a unique, integrated educational venue for training highly qualified personnel (HQP) in plant breeding, plant genomics and plant physiology.