28 GERMINATION.CA NOVEMBER 2017 cial production in Canada. “There still is a fair amount of variability in terms of where we can grow it successfully,” Draves says. “That’s our next big step.” Quinta Quinoa growers in south- western and northeastern Ontario have fared well in terms of yield and quality, Draves notes. He adds the company’s quinoa production efforts in Western Canada have so far been mixed, although there were some “incredible results” in southern Alberta last year, including a record 2,000 pound-per-acre yield. Draves’ company and its research partners are working toward achiev- ing a better understanding of both the development stages and the phenological elements of quinoa production, in order to speed up the process of naturally breeding varie- ties tailored to different areas. “That includes taking a look at using some of the newer CRISPR technologies to look at markers within the gene code that inhibit or hold back certain strengths of the crop. This will allow us from a non-GMO perspective to really better understand how we can select these natural plants, to encourage some of these more favourable traits in the different areas,” he says. “Understanding the genome allows us to pick that best one very quickly and early. That saves a lot of time in the process and produces a superior end result.” Amber Quinoa Percy Phillips of Portage la Prairie, Man., has a background in agricul- tural engineering and in product development in ag, mining and trans- portation equipment. These days, much of his time is spent developing both a producer base and a market for Amber Quinoa, Phillips’ own brand of Prairie-grown quinoa that’s sold at a dozen or so retail and food service locations in Manitoba. Phillips’ interest in quinoa was sparked by a Peruvian vacation some eight years ago. He started wondering if quinoa could be a successful crop back home, and Phillips’ curiosity turned into a quest for quinoa seed that could be grown commercially in Manitoba and, eventually, the estab- lishment of Prairie Quinoa. Prairie Quinoa’s mission — to produce a superior and distinct Canadian quinoa — is similar to that of Quinta Quinoa’s, but Phillips has chosen a different route in his effort to get there. “I’m an engineer, not a plant breeder, so rather than trying to develop my own variety of quinoa, I went on a search to find quinoa seed from other parts of the world that would grow here,” Phillips says. For the past three years, Phillips has been trying out different types of quinoa, not only in his own plots but also through ongoing variety evaluation trials at Manitoba Crop Diversification Centres in different areas of the province. “It has cost me a lot of time, effort and money to locate the seed,” says Phillips, who has sourced his quinoa seed from South America as well as the U.S. Amber Quinoa has been Phillips’ most successful variety and is the one that’s now being produced commer- cially. He’s looking for more Manitoba producers to try their hand at growing the crop for Prairie Quinoa this year. Phillips says the potential advan- tages Manitoba holds for quinoa production include long daylight hours, productive land and large field sizes, and proximity to U.S. markets. But he acknowledges that finding Jamie Draves got his Quinta Quinoa brand onto store shelves after appearing on CBC Television’s Dragon’s Den in 2015. quinoa seed from elsewhere that will consistently perform well in Manitoba — in other words, produce a reliable, high-yielding crop — has been chal- lenging. According to Phillips, the first year of trials in 2014 showed quite a bit of promise, but the results were much more mixed the following two years. He believes this was due in part to moisture deficiencies and weather anomalies in the testing areas. Craig Linde of Manitoba Agriculture has been overseeing the quinoa trials at the crop diversifica- tion centres. “From year to year the variability has been quite high, which I think is essentially the main takea- way with regard to quinoa right now,” he says. According to Phillips, quinoa has a vast genetic pool, with some 5,000 different varieties in Peru and Bolivia alone. Because of this diversity, Phillips believes discovering the right types of seed to fuel a successful com- mercial quinoa industry in Manitoba is likely only a matter of time. Prairie Quinoa is prepared to keep looking — new varieties will con- tinue to be assessed in Phillips’ fields and in more government evaluation trials this year. “Certainly there is room for quinoa to be grown as a crop in Canada,” Phillips says. “We just need to find the commercially viable varie- ties and a model to produce it.” Amber Quinoa has been Percy Phillips’ most successful variety and is the one that’s now being produced commercially. Craig Linde of Manitoba Agriculture has been overseeing quinoa trials over the past several years.