Manitoba is still buckwheat capital of Canada, even though its seeded acres of the crop have been steadily declining.
A plant breeder determined to improve the agronomics of the drought resistant crop believes new developments will revive the crop’s popularity, particularly demand for high-quality buckwheat in Japanese noodle restaurants.
Clayton Campbell, president of Kade Research Ltd. who since 1972 has been breeding the ancient crop that originated in China, said a couple of cold, wet years in the early 1990s put a dent in the number of acres planted from which it has never recovered.
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In 1992-93, when the crop’s popularity peaked, 62,000 acres were seeded. Last year only 15,000 acres were seeded, down from 30,000 in 2002.
“We had two real bad, cold, wet years, and the acreage went way down,” Campbell said.
Farmers searching for alternatives should look to buckwheat’s advantages, which include low input costs, returns of around $8 a bushel and later planting and harvesting without the need for new equipment.
In dry years, buckwheat will survive weather that would burn wheat to a crisp or cause it to head out prematurely, Campbell said. Later planting, around the first week of June, generally offers faster maturity of 90 to 110 days.
“It’s a short season crop, too. If they lose the first crop, they can go with buckwheat. It’s a summerfallow substitute.”
He said researchers are developing more frost-tolerant varieties and opening new marketing opportunities by adding characteristics not found in common buckwheat using a self-pollinating wild species discovered in China.
A new green testa variety, which is worth four to five times more because of its green colour on the inside groat, is in high demand with Japanese handmade noodle makers.
“We are competing against China. They can sell to Japan way cheaper than us, but as their prices have gone up, their quality has gone down,” Campbell said.
“For the first time now with the green testa, we can be competing in the Japanese market. That’s the big money stuff.”
Japanese diners are serious noodle lovers, he added. “Yakisoba” means wheat noodle in Japanese while “soba” means buckwheat noodle. It is a high-end dish compared to the more plebian dried wheat noodle variety, and the greener the colour, the better.
“It’s much like we’d go out for a good steak or a very special meal,” he said.
With an eye on the new markets opening up in Japan, the federal and provincial governments have focused on reviving the crop’s popularity by channeling nearly $600,000 in Agri-Food Research and Development Initiative grants into the sector.
Manitoba agriculture minister Rosann Wowchuk said recent meetings with representatives of the Japanese Buckwheat Millers Association found a lot of interest in Manitoba buckwheat, especially in Asia.
“We have been actively building a strong trade relationship with the Japanese market based on Manitoba’s position as Canada’s premier exporter of buckwheat for Japan’s noodle production,” Wowchuk said.
“Research that improves our buckwheat will strengthen our reputation for quality crops and help to create more trade opportunities.”
The buckwheat funding has three main thrusts, which are improving end-use characteristics, verifying health benefits and improving agronomics.
“Japanese millers buy buckwheat based on the colour of the outer layer on the inside groat, called the testa layer,” said Campbell. “They’ll pay an arm and a leg for darker, green-coloured testa.”
Campbell has used ARDI grants to breed buckwheat with increased chlorophyll, which gives the plant better broccoli-coloured hues. After thousands of crosses, with attention given to agronomic and quality characteristics, he has come up with a strain that offers the dark green testa that the market demands.
Campbell has been working with Carla Taylor of the human nutritional sciences faculty at the University of Manitoba, who is investigating the possible health benefits of the new lines. Her work, which is looking at buckwheat’s potential to mimic the effect of insulin on blood sugar in diabetics, is due to be released in the coming months.
ARDI chair David Gislason said the multi-pronged research program for buckwheat helps growers get better returns for the crop.
“The more we have to offer from the point of view of end-use characteristics and nutritional benefits, the higher the price we can obtain,” he said.
“At the same time, we need to offer Manitoba producers the increased ability to grow the crop successfully.”
