Agriculture Development Fund bolsters USask College of Agriculture and Bioresources research

A total of 35 new projects were funded in the College of Agriculture and Bioresources, with 23 projects receiving funding from industry supporters.

The projects are part of the announcements made by Federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable Heath MacDonald and Saskatchewan Minister of Agriculture, the Honourable David Marit on January 13 and January 21, 2026.

“Agriculture in Saskatchewan and the research done at USask to support this industry are critically important. They have real implications for the people of Saskatchewan, Canada and around the world,” said Dr. Trever Crowe (PhD), acting dean of the College of Agriculture and Bioresources. “Funding from the Agriculture Development Fund provides support for the research that drives growth and innovation.” 

The ADF is supported by Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (S-CAP), a five-year (April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2028), $3.5-billion investment by federal, provincial and territorial governments to strengthen competitiveness, innovation, and resiliency of Canada’s agriculture, agri‐food and agri‐based products sector. This includes $1 billion in federal programs and activities, and a $2.5 billion commitment that is cost-shared 60 per cent federally and 40 per cent provincially/territorially for programs that are designed and delivered by provinces and territories.

Industry co-funders include Alberta Beef Producers, Alberta Grains, Alberta Pulse Growers, Canadian Poultry Research Council, Manitoba Crop Alliance, Manitoba Forage Seed Association, Results Driven Agriculture Research, Saskatchewan Alfalfa Seed Producers Development Commission, Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission, Saskatchewan Chicken Industry Development Fund, Saskatchewan Cattle Association, Saskatchewan Forage Seed Development Commission, Saskatchewan Oilseeds Development Commission, Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission, Western Grains Research Foundation and the Western Dairy Research Collaboration.

Funding through the ADF enables essential and interdisciplinary USask research that supports producers and strengthens Saskatchewan’s agricultural leadership.

"Producers are constantly growing, changing and innovating farming operations to capture growing potential and maximize on-farm efficiencies,” said outgoing Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission board chair Jake Leguee. “[This funding] signals to producers that we have strong partners with federal and provincial governments to tackle agricultural challenges and continue to unlock our potential."

These projects support USask’s Agriculture Signature Area of Research in addressing issues of food security, production efficiencies and policy in the face of a changing climate and a growing global population.

For more information on all USask ADF funded projects, see the crops-related and livestock-related announcements.

Dr. Yongfang Ai (PhD) – From pulses to pints: Brewing beer with air-classified starch-rich flours from Canadian pulses – $111,450 (ADF) – Co-funded by Alberta Pulse Growers, Saskatchewan Pulse Growers 

Dr. Kirstin Bett (PhD) – Tools for Managing Bacterial Blight Diseases of Dry Bean for SK – Funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers and Western Grains Research Foundation

Dr. Bill Biligetu (PhD) – Development of novel hybrid bromegrass cultivars for western Canadian beef and forage sector – $195,315 (ADF) – Co-funded by Alberta Beef Producers, Manitoba Forage Seed Association, Results Driven Agriculture Research, Saskatchewan Cattle Association, Saskatchewan Forage Seed Development Commission 

Dr. Bill Biligetu (PhD) – Enhancing the productivity and sustainability of alfalfa through the development of high yielding and high nitrogen fixing cultivar – $145,916 (ADF) – Co-funded by Results Driven Agriculture Research, Saskatchewan Alfalfa Seed Producers Development Commission 

Dr. Adam Carter (PhD) – Optimizing wheat breeding trial design with remote sensing and spatial analysis – $186,117 (ADF)

Dr. Adam Carter (PhD) – Genetic mapping of the glabrous trait and seed colour in canary seed – $102,347 (ADF) – Co-funded by Western Grains Research Foundation 

Dr. Adam Carter (PhD) – Stability of solid-stemmed CWRS wheat and resistance to wheat stem sawfly (WSS) in high pressure environments – $232,597 (ADF) – Co-funded by Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission 

Dr. Adam Carter (PhD) – Stable preharvest sprouting resistance in CWRS wheat via improved low temperature seed dormancy – $151,160 (ADF) – Co-funded by Alberta Grains, Manitoba Crop Alliance, Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission 

Dr. Chantel Chizen (PhD) – Evaluating the soil carbon storage and economic outcomes of agricultural wetland management – $331,920 (ADF)– Co-funded by Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission 

Dr. Chantel Chizen (PhD) – Saskatchewan Soil Data Hub and interpretation guide – $101,700 (ADF) – Co-funded by Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission 

Dr. Trever Crowe (PhD) – Advancing sustainable bison production through grazing management and ecosystem services enhancement in Saskatchewan’s Prairies – $257,301 (ADF)

Dr. Natacha Hogan (PhD) – Development and use of novel testing strategies to understand and mitigate toxicity of ergot alkaloids in beef cattle – $239,975 (ADF) – Co-funded by Alberta Beef Producers, Saskatchewan Cattle Association 

Dr. Randy Kutcher (PhD) – Harnessing genetic resistance and cold plasma for sustainable management of bacterial leaf streak in wheat and barley – $243,058 (ADF) – Co-funded by Alberta Grains, Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission, Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission 

Dr. Randy Kutcher (PhD) – Tan spot of bread and durum wheat: identifying new sources of resistance and dissection of resistance by GWAS – $143,814 (ADF) 

Dr. Eric Lamb (PhD) – How long to wait? Forage recovery following intensive grazing – $83,577 (ADF)

Kathy Larson – Unpaid labour on Saskatchewan cow-calf operations – $66,000 (ADF)

Dr. Michael Nickerson (PhD) – Development of high-protein extruded snacks from pea/faba bean concentrates with low glycemic index – $113,860 (ADF)

Dr. Michael Nickerson (PhD) – Development of machine-learning models for enhancing the quality and performance of Canadian peas and pea ingredients – Funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers

Dr. Kwabena Nketia (PhD) – Above the Swarm: Proactive Pest Intelligence – Stage 1 of AI-Imagery-Driven Detection and Intervention at Field Scale – Funded by Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission

Dr. Martin Reaney (PhD) – Integrated processing of pulses and oil crops for sustainable oil-rich protein production – $207,000 (ADF) – Co-funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers 

Dr. Martin Reaney (PhD) – Advancing green chemistry: Bis compounds as building blocks for industrial applications – $258,000 (ADF)

Dr. Derek Peak (PhD) – The nature of soil carbon in SK soils: Bridging the gap between laboratory and spectroscopic methods – $432,413 (ADF) – Co-funded by Saskatchewan Oilseeds Development Commission

Dr. Gregory Penner (PhD) – Fine-tuning dry-rolled barley grain processing for finishing beef cattle – $139,007 (ADF)

Dr. Gregory Penner (PhD) – Treated whole canola seed as a local source of bypass fat for lactating dairy cows – Funded by Western Dairy Research Collaboration, Sask Oilseeds and Results Driven Agriculture Research

Dr. Sean Prager (PhD) – Quantification and genetic basis of pyrethroid insecticide resistance in pea aphids – $211,550 (ADF) – Co-funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, Western Grains Research Foundation 

Dr. Karen Schwean-Lardner (PhD) – Innovative and sustainable platform enrichments to advance broiler welfare in Canada – $40,000 (ADF)– Co-funded by Canadian Poultry Research Council, Saskatchewan Chicken Industry Development Fund  

Dr. Tim Sharbel (PhD) – Preserving tradition: Innovative approaches to curb riceworm infestation in Northern Saskatchewan wild rice – $336,210 (ADF)

Dr. Anze Svara (PhD) – Apoboost: Enabling crossbreeding for elevated saskatoon berry production – $262,775 (ADF)

Dr. Bunyamin Tar’an (PhD) – Expanding chickpea growing areas in Saskatchewan – $97,135 (ADF)– Co-funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, Western Grains Research Foundation 

Dr. Bunyamin Tar’an (PhD) – Multi-traits mapping in chickpea using nested associated mapping (NAM) population – $195,848 (ADF) – Co-funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, Western Grains Research Foundation 

Dr. Nicholas Tyack (PhD) – Identifying the barriers to adoption for new crop varieties in Saskatchewan – Funded bySaskatchewan Wheat Development Commission

Dr. Flavia van Cleef (PhD) – Impact of annual forage species diversity on fermentation dynamics, digestibility, and nutrient utilization in rumen simulations – $206,724 (ADF)

Dr. Ana Vargas (PhD) – Building the grounds for developing climate-smart lentil cultivars – $221,069 (ADF)– Co-funded by Saskatchewan Pulse Growers 

Dr. Ana Vargas (PhD) – Elucidating the molecular basis of resistance against Chocolate spot in faba beans – Funded by Western Grains Research Foundation

Dr. Kaidi Wang (PhD) – Plasma-activated water as a sustainable solution to control Campylobacter in poultry processing facilities – $207,000 (ADF)