Biofortification on Winter Wheat

OMEX Trials

One of the latest trials at the OMEX UK Field Trials site is looking into biofortification of Winter Wheat. This trial will be assessing the results from using three different products. On the trial we'll be looking a selenium, zinc and iodine, all of which are important for human health and nutrition.

What is Biofortification

The World Health Organisation defines Biofortification as: "Biofortification is the process by which the nutritional quality of food crops is improved through agronomic practices, conventional plant breeding, or modern biotechnology. It differs from conventional fortification in that biofortification aims to increase nutrient levels in crops during plant growth rather than through manual means during processing of the crops. It may therefore present a way to reach populations where supplementation and conventional fortification activities may be difficult to implement and/or limited."

Running the trial

The trial will be run using foliar applications of selenium, zinc and iodene. The three have been trialed individually on separate plots, and also as a combined treatment of the three. Results will be taken from analysing the grain, post harvest, and identifying how well the products have been absorbed and how much they have improved the nutrients in the crop.