b'BringingBack MustardSaskatchewans MustardTHANKS TO THE EFFORTS of Saskatchewan-based Mustard 21 Canada and researchers in Manitoba, biofumigation of 21 and some Manitobapotatoes could soon come back in a big way.researchers are bringingWith the deregistration of some of the biofumigants that are on the market, growers are looking for an alternative. Years ago, the crop back as amustard was used for that purpose, until biofumigants took over and many growers moved away from it, explains Rick Mitzel, biofumigant.CEO of Mustard 21 based in Saskatoon, Sask.BY: MARC ZIENKIEWICZ AND ASHLEY ROBINSON Now theyre moving back to it, but they face challenges. Growers are coming to us saying theyd like to use mustard in their potato rotation, but they dont want to deal with the seeds that arise from planting mustard. Mustard 21 is a non-profit initiated by the Saskatchewan Mustard Development Commission and the Canadian Mustard Association, created to help develop higher yielding mustard varieties and identify new uses for the crop.Mustard 21 will soon be introducing a sterile hybrid mustard variety that doesnt go to seed, offering potato growers a new tool in the battle against disease.Because the mustard crop eventually gets to a certain level of maturity after planting, it starts to produce seed, and then the seed gets put back into the ground and then multiplies again. The sterile male hybrid currently moving through registration, known as MSH85 and originally developed by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Saskatoon breeder Bifang Cheng, doesnt produce any pods or seeds. 22SPUDSMART.COM Spring 2023'