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The Great Lakes Yield Enhancement Network had a successful first year. Forty wheat growers in Michigan, Ohio and Ontario collaborated in this pilot program.
Jody Pollock-Newsom, executive director of the Michigan Wheat Program, says growers put in a lot of work this first year, but the content is proving its worth.
“You get this 25- to 30-page report that really shows you how you stack up on all these different items,” she says. “You’re really looking at your potential—so competing against yourself. When we look at how these input costs are rising, we’re looking at our potential because every bushel counts. Programs like this are meant to help growers find what can you do a little bit better to get those extra bushels, but still make sure you make money.”
More than $300 was spent on testing for each grower during the 2021 season, including soil and tissue sampling. 50 data points are pulled from those tests to look at the impacts of weather, growing degree units, fungicide applications and more to help grow a better wheat crop.
“It’s only the first year, but as we expand, all this data is going to help tell the story and help growers out,” says Pollock-Newsom. “We’ve never done something like this with data from the U.S. and Canada together, so we’re very excited. We have people signed up from Ohio, Indiana, New York and Michigan on the U.S. side, and Ontario has already filled their 50 slots for this year.”
To offset the cost of this years’ program, Star of the West, Mennel Milling, King Milling, and BASF will be sponsoring. Pollock-Newsom says this interest from millers is also a sign of the program’s success.
“I really do think it’s going to help everybody, and we want to make sure we keep that good, strong, high-quality wheat crop.”
The Great Lakes YEN will be a primary focus at this year’s Michigan Wheat Program’s Annual Winter meeting. For more information and how to register, click here.