Prominent plant breeder and former GRDC managing director Dr Steve Jefferies reflects on the value of the NVT to breeding companies and growers

When crop breeding was privatised, the rate of genetic gain and the rate at which new, improved crop varieties were released increased dramatically, says former Australian Grain Technologies (AGT) chief executive officer Dr Steve Jefferies.

Before the NVT, state agricultural departments compared varieties using different standards and protocols, and with declining funding, he notes.

Being able to provide nationally coordinated and independent information to growers to make informed decisions about new varieties was why the NVT started.

“When I was at AGT, we submitted entries to the NVT because we saw a significant value proposition from participating,” Dr Jefferies says.

NVT value

Dr Jefferies says this was because the NVT provided an independent and comprehensive assessment of varieties.

“If AGT varieties performed well, we felt the NVT would demonstrate this and, in turn, speed the uptake of our varieties,” Dr Jefferies says. “We only needed to focus on making sure we produced better-performing varieties.”

Even though AGT’s variety information had a high level of integrity, he says company representatives felt that growers might not trust breeding company data. When Dr Jefferies was appointed GRDC’s managing director in 2016, he says growers told him they valued the NVT, but still had concerns:

• trials were not sown at the optimum time;
• trials were poorly managed; and
• trials were not sown in relevant parts of the rotation or on relevant soil types.

Back then, GRDC outsourced the NVT’s management to a third party.

Dr Jefferies says the NVT was GRDC’s second-largest investment then, and growers valued it. However, he knew it could be improved, so he brought it in-house.

“In 2017, we recruited a bunch of skilled staff, including NVT senior manager Sean Coffey, and the team has worked diligently to enhance the program ever since.”

Former GRDC managing director Dr Steve Jefferies in 2016. Photo: Geoff Comfort

Quality improved

Since then, Dr Jefferies says the quality of the trials, the scope of traits assessed and the scale of the data gathered have improved substantially.

The NVT gives growers ready access to independent information to make informed decisions about varieties, which has a huge impact on their businesses.

“For example, if a new wheat variety has a five per cent yield advantage, at two tonnes per hectare and a price of $350/t, this delivers growers a $35/ha immediate profit improvement, minus the initial cost of the seed,” he says.

Dr Jefferies says the NVT is audited, standards are high, and the conditions imposed on contractors to run the trials are critical for high-quality results.

“Sean and his team are dedicated to ongoing improvement,” Dr Jefferies says.

“The NVT, with improvements in farming systems and summer weed control, has also played a critical role in helping to drive water use efficiency improvements through enhancing the adoption of higher-performing and more resilient varieties.”

Beyond variety adoption

Dr Jefferies says GRDC survey results show that growers value the NVT highly, and this recognition has flow-on benefits.

“GRDC and researchers can use the NVT to attract growers to paddock walks and field days, extend their messages, and discuss technology adoption other than just varieties.”

Dr Jefferies says the NVT today comprises one of the world’s most extensive variety and crop performance datasets.

This data is powerful, especially with the evolution of artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics.

He says the grains industry is at the tip of the iceberg regarding opportunities to ‘mine’ NVT data to increase grower profitability in the future.

More information: National Variety Trials