Farmers, researchers and grain companies now have a little more variety
when it comes to varietal testing.
BioVision Seed Research Ltd. has launched a service that will compete
directly with the Canadian Grain Commission, providing what it calls a
“simple, cost effective” way of determining what crop is in a farmer’s
bin, a researcher’s lab or an exporter’s terminal.
Testing services are in demand now that consumers increasingly want to
know exactly where their food is coming from. Issues such as identity
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such as BioVision.
The Edmonton-based testing service will cater to a wide range of
clients, but one of its focuses will be the malting barley industry
where varietal identity is critical, said Terry McIntee, Biovision’s
manager of test development.
“There are brewing companies that want specific varieties. They don’t
want just a malt barley, they want a specific malt barley.”
BioVision says it can offer that assurance.
An expert in varietal testing disagrees.
Jean Mellish, program manager with the Canadian Grain Commission’s
varietal identification unit, said the protein-based testing used by
BioVision is incapable of discerning between a wide range of barley
varieties and some durum varieties.
Until recently, the Canadian Grain Commission was the only outfit in
the country that offered this type of testing service, which is broadly
referred to as gel electrophoresis.
The agency has been using this type of test for regulatory purposes
since 1977. About five years ago, it also began doing commercial
testing using electrophoresis. But Mellish said when it comes to
barley, “its usefulness is waning.”
The commission has started to rely on DNA testing instead.
“I would never certify a barley cargo today without doing a DNA work-up
on it. There’s just too much at stake.”
Electrophoresis cannot distinguish between certain malting varieties
such as AC Metcalfe and AC Oxbow.
“You most certainly do not want to be shipping Oxbow to a client that
believes they have paid for Metcalfe and if you just did the protein
work-up on it you would have that problem of not knowing the
difference,” said Mellish.
Similar problems will arise once newer varieties of extra-strong durum
are released.
But Mellish said protein testing is still useful for other crops such
as wheat and certain types of durum. For instance, the technology was
successful in pinpointing a mix-up of AC Avonlea and AC Morse
foundation seed.
It recently detected the presence of unregistered U.S. wheat varieties
in the Canadian grain handling system.
Mellish insists she is not trying to prevent competition through
private labs. She just wants consumers to be aware of what they are
getting when they pay for electrophoresis, or protein-based tests. With
some crops like barley and genetically modified plants, DNA testing is
a better bet.
McIntee said one advantage of protein tests is that they can be
completed in a matter of hours compared to DNA tests, which can take
upwards of three days and require somebody with a PhD to run them.
Another benefit is that test results can be catalogued for future
comparisons.
The electrophoresis process involves crushing a seed sample and placing
it in a solution, which releases the sample’s proteins.
The solution is then placed on a paper-sized piece of gel that is
subjected to an electrical current. The proteins move across the gel,
leaving a distinctive pattern – the key to their varietal identity.
Those gel sheets can be dried or plasticized and placed in a three-ring
binder, building a library of protein fingerprints that can be used for
future comparisons, said McIntee.
Until that library is built up, BioVision will have to compare test
results to a database of registered varieties that have been released
into the public domain.
Mellish said that is another weakness associated with private company
testing services – they don’t have the same access to private seed line
genetics that the Canadian Grain Commission does.
BioVision charges $100 to test a sample of 25 seeds and $300 for a full
gel, which involves testing 100 seeds. The commission charges $155 for
every 30 seeds tested.
