Noodle wheat breeding leader InterGrain is excited to launch Splendid , a new high-yielding, quick-mid maturing noodle wheat variety.
Launched by InterGrain udon noodle wheat breeder Dr Jayfred Godoy at a Mingenew Irwin Group Sandplain Field Day on Wednesday 11 September, this broadly adapted quick-mid maturing Australian Noodle Wheat (ANW) is set to elevate the noodle wheat landscape.
Named to reflect its exceptional qualities, Splendid is poised to fly into WA noodle paddocks with its high yield, robust disease resistance, and superior ANW end-use quality attributes, meeting the needs of both growers and noodle processors.
Dr Jayfred Godoy stated that Splendid builds upon the success of Ninja , providing growers with impressive yield potential, stability and good quality, similar to Ninja .
“Trialed as IGW8220, Splendid consistently excelled in the noodle wheat breeding program with outstanding yields, averaging 5% higher than Ninja and 3% higher than the benchmark hard wheat Scepter,” Jayfred said.
“Being a quick-mid maturing variety, Splendid can be sown from mid-May, aligning with later planting opportunities similar to Ninja,” he added.
“With last year’s release of the mid-slow maturing Firefly, and now Splendid in the quick-mid maturity class, noodle wheat growers now have new high yielding noodle wheats suitable for late April to end of May sowing.”
Splendid offers an effective disease resistance profile, including strong stripe rust (MRMSp), powdery mildew (MRMSp), leaf rust (MSp), and yellow leaf spot (MRMSp) resistance, while a similar grain quality profile as Ninja .
Western Australia has been producing high-quality noodle wheat for udon markets for over four decades, earning global recognition for its ability to grow grain that perfectly matches the preferences of udon noodle consumers in Japan and South Korea.
In 2023 InterGrain representatives traveled to Japan and Korea to share information about InterGrain’s new generation of noodle varieties with Japanese stakeholders.
“We were pleased that during our trip, Splendid received the tick of approval from the Japanese market, along with new mid-slow maturing noodle wheat Firefly,” CEO Tress Walmsley said.
“InterGrain has strong relationships with Japanese and Korean udon processors and scientists to ensure its unique noodle wheat breeding program is tailored to continually improve noodle color and texture for the premium export market.”
At the launch of Splendid , local growers participated in a noodle sensory workshop led by Larisa Cato from the Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre, where they were invited to test their noodle slurping abilities.
1. Northern WA InterGrain Territory Manager Richard Marsland (L) and InterGrain Noodle Wheat Breeder Dr Jayfred Godoy launching Splendid wheat at Mingenew Irwin Group demonstration site on September 11 2024
InterGrain Noodle Wheat Breeder Dr Jayfred Godoy and Dr Larisa Cato, Wheat Quality and Technical Markets Manager at Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre (AEGIC) slurping some udon noodles made from new wheat variety Splendid.
