At the beginning of the 2008-2009 crop year, 1 August, the Canadian Grain Commission eliminated KVD or kernel visual distinguishability as a registration criteria for new varieties of wheat and added a new general purpose class.

Manitoba Pork Council chairman Karl Kynoch says the changes are allowing plant breeders to move forward in developing lines specifically suited for the livestock industry that could not have been registered under the old system.

Karl Kynoch-Manitoba Pork Council

Feed grain basically for the hog industry is the largest cost that we have.

If we can move that around, get some higher yields, higher yields will in turn return lower cost for feeding a hog, probably cost a little less per tonne of grain.

This is hugely important.

We've been asking for this for a long time because we've fallen way behind on getting some higher yielding varieties.

This has now allowed some of the varieties that wouldn't have met the kernel visual distinction before, it is now allowing those grains to move forward and be licensed.

Canada has fallen so far behind a lot of other countries on their yields.

A lot of countries have really increased their yields in the feed grains over the years.

The industry in the US with their corn has significantly increased their yields but yet we've fallen behind that.

So going forward we really are looking forward to seeing some of these new varieties out just to help us stay more competitive in the world markets.

Kynoch says the milling wheats yield in the range of 30 to 40 bushels to the acre range while the winter wheats produce 60 to 70 bushels to the acre but we need to see consistent yields in the 70 to 80 to 90 bushel range to be competitive with US corn.

He's convinced the changes will benefit livestock producers as well as grain growers who are selling to livestock producers or feeding it to their own animals.