Open AccessCommercialisation of AR1 in Australia
Author(s) -
J.W. Evans
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
grassland research and practice series
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2463-4751
pISSN - 0110-8581
DOI - 10.33584/rps.13.2006.3062
Subject(s) - endophyte , perennial plant , grazing , neotyphodium , agronomy , business , biology , lolium perenne , botany
Perennial ryegrass containing a high level of standard (wild) endophyte is a significant component of the feed base for the grazing industries in the high rainfall and irrigated regions of Australia. The AR1 selected endophyte was first commercialised in Australia by Heritage Seeds in autumn 2002 into a market that had low awareness, and a limited understanding, of perennial ryegrass endophyte. The early uptake of AR1 was slow, mainly due to difficulties with delivering a very technical message with limited resources and justifying a significant price increase with no independent supporting data from Australia. Changing the marketing message to focus on the potential benefits from AR1, along with support from the developers of AR1 (AgResearch) and an overall increase in awareness of ryegrass endophyte, saw a dramatic increase in the uptake of AR1 varieties in 2005 and 2006. It is expected that this trend toward selected endophytes will continue into the future. Keywords: perennial ryegrass, endophyte, AR1, commercialisation