Industry Leading Testing Program Offers Insights to Managing Challenging Growing Conditions

January 8, 2003 – Winnipeg, MB – Proven Seed®’s Local Performance Check® remains the industry’s leading hybrid and variety testing program and in 2002 demonstrated the value it brings to growers, particularly in stressful seasons. More than 70 sites were seeded across Western Canada in the 2002 program, with 44 sites taken to harvest. Drought stress was the primary reason for the number of sites that were lost, and impacted many of those that remained in the program.

Tim Ferguson, Proven Seed’s Manager of Crop Development, points out that in a season such as this there is much to be learned from stressed sites. “We learn as much from stressed sites as we do from those that experience more normal growing conditions,” says Ferguson. “We’re able to gather information on how leading canola hybrids and varieties perform under stress, whether it be drought, excess moisture or even disease or insect pressure. This is useful knowledge growers can use when making their seed selection.”

Specifically, Ferguson points to the ability of hybrids to perform well in spite of the drought as the key learning from this past season.

Ten years of local testing

The 2002 Results Book captures all of the data and learning from the Local Performance Check program and is now available for distribution. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the program—a milestone that is symbolic of what the program has come to represent in the industry.

Ferguson is impressed with the depth and quality of the program. “The care that is taken in finding good sites with uniform land, and the effort to work with good co-operators, is in my opinion what makes this program stand apart from the others.”

Performance of new hybrids a highlight in
2002

In 2002, Proven Seed introduced two new canola hybrids, which were tested in the Local Performance Check program. Both Pioneer® brand 45H21 and Pioneer® brand 46H02 were top performers in their respective categories.

45H21, a hybrid with the Roundup Ready trait, outyielded leading open-pollinated varieties in the same segment by 9 per cent and showed it could withstand stress, including frost, drought and insect pressure. 2002 Local Performance Check data confirms that this new hybrid will be a good fit for growers wanting new levels of yield potential, solid weed control and outstanding field performance. 46H02, a conventional hybrid, showed similar yield results in the 2002 program.

Another leading variety from Proven Seed, Pioneer® brand 45A55 also performed very well in the Local Performance Check program, demonstrating why it was the most popular variety with the Roundup Ready trait grown in 2002.

Grower participation enhances this program

Part of what makes the Local Performance Check so valuable is the participation of growers who manage the trials in their own fields—ensuring real growing conditions and crop management practices are part of the equation.

Darryl Halyk, a farmer co-operator from Melville, SK, is a regular contributor to the program because of the value he gets from it. “I have worked with Proven Seed for a number of years and the data we collect from the site definitely influences my decision.” Russell Herold of Montmarte, SK, adds, “Knowing which variety will give me the best returns for my farm is the reason I continue to participate in the Local Performance Check program.”

Looking to the future

A number of experimental hybrids were included in the 2002 Local Performance Check program. The pipeline is full of new hybrids that will continue to change the way growers are thinking about canola. Data about the performance of these experimental hybrids is included in The Results Book.

For complete results from the 2002 Local Performance Check program, see your Proven Seed retailer for a free copy of The Results Book, call Proven Seed toll-free at 1-800-565-7333 or visit our website at www.provenseed.com.

Proven Seed is a business unit of Agricore United, formed by the merger of Agricore and United Grain Growers in November 2001.

Proven Seed's primary areas of focus are canola, forages and wheat. Contracting opportunities with Proven Seed LinolaTM and malting barley varieties are also available through Agricore United. Proven Seed conducts Western Canada's most extensive seed testing and evaluation through its
Local Performance Check program. For more information, visit www.provenseed.com.

- 30 -

Proven® Seed, Local Performance Check® and LinolaTM are trademarks of United Grain Growers Limited.

Pioneer® is a registered trademark of Pioneer Hi-Bred Internatiional, Inc.

For more information, contact:
Tim Ferguson
Manager, Crop Development
Proven Seed
403-216-0111

Trevor Rempel
Customer Contact Marketing Coordinator
Proven Seed
204-944-5668