Here’s a startling fact: a tiny pest no bigger than a pinhead is wreaking havoc on sorghum crops across northern Australia, costing farmers millions in lost yields and chemical treatments. Meet the sorghum midge, a destructive insect that has farmers and researchers on high alert. But here’s where it gets even more critical: the fight against this pest just got a major boost. The Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) has officially integrated the sorghum midge resistance testing program into the National Variety Trials (NVT), ensuring its long-term survival and reliability. This move cements the program as the only independent source of sorghum midge resistance ratings, a lifeline for growers making critical planting decisions.
Led by the Queensland Department of Primary Industries (QDPI), this initiative has been a cornerstone of sorghum research since the 1990s. Through collaboration with industry partners like GRDC, QDPI developed a rigorous protocol to assess midge resistance in sorghum hybrids and assign official ratings to commercial lines. Now, as part of the NVT—the world’s largest independent grain crop variety evaluation initiative—the program’s future is secure, free from funding uncertainties.
But here’s where it gets controversial: while resistance to sorghum midge is now present in all commercial hybrids, the levels of resistance vary widely. This raises the question: are growers truly getting the protection they need, or are some hybrids falling short? Laurie Fitzgerald, GRDC’s NVT manager, emphasizes the importance of this data: “The NVT testing regime provides independently assessed, precise, and consistent ratings—a trusted resource for growers and agronomists.” He adds, “Growers should always ask for NVT midge-resistance results to make informed decisions.”
Tracey Shatte, QDPI’s principal experimentalist, highlights how the program complements NVT’s multi-site hybrid testing and centralized data reporting. “This integration ensures that growers have access to reliable, up-to-date information to guide their planting strategies,” she explains. For instance, knowing a hybrid’s resistance level can help farmers decide whether insecticide applications are economically justified, potentially reducing chemical use and input costs.
And this is the part most people miss: the sorghum midge, scientifically known as Stenodiplosis sorghicola, lays its eggs in crop heads during flowering. In hybrids lacking resistance, infestations can be catastrophic, leading to severe crop losses. QDPI began breeding for midge resistance in the 1970s, releasing the first resistant commercial hybrid in the mid-1980s. Today, while resistance is widespread, its variability underscores the ongoing need for rigorous testing and research.
Seed companies play a key role in this process, submitting pre-commercial hybrids to the midge-testing scheme for evaluation. The resulting ratings not only help companies decide which hybrids to commercialize but also provide growers with critical insights into expected field performance. As Shatte puts it, “Midge resistance ratings give growers greater confidence in their sowing plans and spray decisions.”
With the program now fully integrated into the NVT, sorghum midge resistance testing will continue under a nationally recognized framework, delivering reliable results to support hybrid selection. Established by GRDC in 2005, the NVT has grown into the largest coordinated variety trial network globally, conducting over 640 trials across 300+ locations annually and encompassing 10 different crop species. Its database includes more than 1.5 million plot points, making it an invaluable resource for the agricultural community.
Here’s a thought-provoking question for you: As resistance levels vary among hybrids, should growers prioritize higher resistance even if it comes at a premium, or is it more practical to rely on insecticides when needed? Let us know your thoughts in the comments—this is a debate that’s far from settled. One thing is clear, though: with the sorghum midge testing program now part of the NVT, growers have a powerful tool to protect their crops and their livelihoods.
