PROC-9177507—Barley Net Blotch Initiative (BNBI) Program 2 – Host and pathogen genetics

Net blotches pose an escalating and urgent threat to Australian barley, costing the industry an estimated $122 million each year through disease-related yield losses, downgraded grain quality, and higher fungicide management costs. Widespread planting of susceptible varieties, the practice of growing barley on barley, and an over-reliance on fungicides with a singular mode of action are driving net blotch pathogens to evolve and spread faster than current surveillance, varietal resistance breeding, management and extension efforts can respond. This investment seeks to help Australian barley growers keep ahead of a threat that is moving faster than current tools can handle. It will be delivered through a five-year, nationally focused Barley Net Blotch Initiative (BNBI) comprising three interlinked programs supported by a dedicated coordinator: ? Program 1 - Pathogen surveillance, monitoring, and screening ? Program 2- Host and pathogen genetics ? Program 3 - Integrated disease management and extension ? Program C - Coordination and capacity development GRDC is seeking a capable partner to deliver BNBI Program 2 that will fast-track delivery of high levels of durable host resistance in well-adapted backgrounds supported by breeder-deployable validated markers, characterised resistance sources, insights and capability from foundational and expanded pathogenic genomics research, a new durability risk-assessment framework, and a feasibility assessment of genome-editing capability.