The new crop year begins Aug. 1, 2024, and each year the Canadian Grain Commission provides updates on grain grade changes and variety designations that will apply for the next crop marketing cycle.
The CGC, led by new Chief Commissioner David Hunt, announced some smaller changes for 2024-25 following consultation with the Western and Eastern Standards Committees.
List of new varieties of food barley
Food barley varieties are unique and different from malting and feed barley varieties as they have unique quality characteristics desired for food, such as high beta-glucan content.
To help Canadian producers and the agricultural sector realize the benefits of developing and cultivating these varieties, the CGC is developing a list of variety designations for “Barley, Canada Eastern Food,” which will come into effect on July 1, 2024, and “Barley, Canada Western Food,” which will come into effect on August 1, 2024.
Update on evaluation of soybean seed coat discoloration
As part of CGC’s Grain Grading Modernization Project, the Official Grain Grading Guide will be updated to clarify soybean seed coat discoloration assessment, effective August 1, 2024.
The changes include definitions of factors related to soybean discoloration and updates to the grading chart. The committee also plans to add new photographs to the web version of the guide to assist in the evaluation of seed coat discoloration.
Changes to the format of tables in the Official Grain Grades Guide
CGC grading tables will be updated to be clearer, easier to use, and more accessible. Beginning August 1, 2024, grain grades will be formatted in columns and grain grade factors will be listed in rows. This is a change in format only; the grade factors and tolerances will not change.
To aid in the transition, the commission says both the new and old versions of the tables will be available in the online version of the Official Grain Grading Guide for at least six months.
