Barley Net Blotch Initiative (BNBI) Program 1 – Pathogen surveillance, monitoring, and screening

Overview The Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) is seeking a capable partner to deliver Program 1 of the Barley Net Blotch Initiative (BNBI), focused on pathogen surveillance, monitoring, and screening. The program will strengthen Australia's capacity to detect and respond to rapidly evolving net blotch pathogens affecting Australian barley. About 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. Net form net blotch (NFNB), caused by Pyrenophora teres f. teres (Ptt), and spot form net blotch (SFNB), caused by Pyrenophora teres f. maculata (Ptm), are the most economically damaging foliar diseases of barley in Australia, accounting for an estimated 80% of total yield losses from barley foliar pathogens. The estimated average annual cost to growers can be greater than $46/ha for SFNB and $42/ha for NFNB. Barley growers are facing increasing pressure as net blotch pathogens evolve rapidly, overcome varietal resistance, and drive fungicide resistance. New, aggressive strains can spread more than 400 km in a few years and overcome varietal resistance within about five years, outpacing current surveillance and breeding cycles. Even with SFNB host genetic resistance, which is generally considered more stable than NFNB, it is uncommon to see resistances that remain effective for extended periods. Resistance or reduced sensitivity has now been detected in strains against all three registered fungicide mode of action groups used for net blotch management. Over the past decade, GRDC has invested in net blotch research through a bilateral partnership with the Centre for Crop and Disease Management (CCDM), the Net Blotch Consortium (NBC), and a range of individual projects now nearing completion. These investments have built momentum and capability and generated valuable knowledge and data. This investment is 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 Two PhDs will be embedded in each program, six across the initiative, with the National Coordinator developing this cohort further through cross-program exposure and an annual PhD forum. Purpose GRDC is seeking to establish a nationally coordinated, five-year Barley Net Blotch Initiative to help Australian barley growers keep ahead of a threat that is moving faster than current tools can handle. There is opportunity to build on and capture value from outputs already in the pipeline by addressing identified gaps and barriers, strengthening coordination and co-design with relevant major GRDC disease investments (such as CCDM), focusing the next phase on breeder- and grower-ready outputs, and accelerating communication and extension of surveillance information and integrated disease management (IDM) strategies to industry. The initiative will consolidate, re-scope, and accelerate existing efforts to deliver net blotch control options to growers faster and at greater scale. Objectives BNBI Program 1 (Pathogen surveillance and monitoring) aims to: Strengthen national net blotch surveillance, monitoring, and pathotyping to detect threats earlier and guide in-season decisions Deploy faster, more reliable adult-plant screening methods nationally for NFNB and SFNB Scope This procurement is specifically for the pathogen surveillance, monitoring and screening component of BNBI (Program 1). The scope includes: Expanding pathogen surveillance and substantially increasing pathotyping capacity to achieve full national coverage Reviewing and revising current net blotch surveillance sampling systems Generating insights into pathogen evolution Identifying emerging and hypervirulent strains that threaten varietal resistance or increase fungicide resistance risk Identifying better targets for disease screening and host resistance development Providing breeders and advisers with timely intelligence on pathogen change Undertaking comprehensive consultation with industry stakeholders who provide samples at project commencement, to identify barriers to sample collection and co-design practical solutions, which could include non-financial incentives and support mechanisms such as reply-paid postage, sampling kits and provision of timely diagnostic results Reviewing seed production, testing, treatment and movement practices, including the national distribution of seed for variety trials, to determine if infected seed contributes to pathogen spread Identifying critical control points and evaluating practical mitigation measures, such as seed-health testing, treatment protocols, hygiene requirements, traceability and movement guidance Developing proportionate biosecurity recommendations for breeders, trial operators, seed suppliers and growers Improving the correlation between controlled environment (CER) adult-plant results and field performance for NFNB, through structured comparison studies and ring testing across agencies, to strengthen confidence in resistance ratings and the reliability of CER screening as a predictor of field performance Deploying screening methods nationally for NFNB and SFNB Contractor Requirements GRDC is seeking a suitably qualified and capable partner to deliver BNBI Program 1 Contract Terms and Conditions Offers will remain open for acceptance by GRDC for a period of 6 months after the Closing Time GRDC will accept tenders from consortia and is encouraging collaboration It is preferred that the project will be contracted via a Two-Party agreement with sub-contracting arrangements Instructions to Tenderers All requests for further information or clarification in relation to this procurement must be made in writing (email) prior to 21 January 2027. GRDC will publish all requests and responses to requests on the GRDC website under Questions and Answers at the bottom of the relevant webpage. Enquiries Attention: Justine Morgan Organisation: Grains Research and Development Corporation Email: tenders@grdc.com.au