Canadian Grain Commission launches discussion on falling number and DON

Winnipeg - Canadian Grain Commission - As part of its grain grading modernization initiative, the Canadian Grain Commission invites grain sector stakeholders to provide input on whether falling number and deoxynivalenol (DON) should become official grain grading factors.

 

Currently, falling number and DON are not official grading factors in the statutory Canadian grading system for any type of crop. However, they increasingly play a critical role in grain contracts and the assessment and price that grain sector participants, including producers, receive for their grain. As well, advances in technology and analytical testing now provide the opportunity to test directly for these important characteristics using methods that are increasingly accessible to the sector.

 

The Canadian Grain Commission would like to hear from stakeholders whether they support the use of falling number and DON as grading factors within the Canadian grain grading system, and what the impacts would be if these changes were implemented.

 

A full discussion document is available on the Canadian Grain Commission’s website. Interested stakeholders are invited to provide their input in between March 11, 2019 and May 10, 2019.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.