Practices on the ground are always affected by research. Sometimes it takes a long time; sometimes it doesn't. Developing new varieties is obviously a long process, and it's not without risk. Not everyone will do that work.
Beyond that, though, we also saw that the researchers working at those centres had the ability to transfer their knowledge and share their findings with those who would be putting them into practice.
That's important in our sector. We want to be on top of the latest breakthroughs, technologies and best practices, so we can make them as accessible as possible to producers, so that they too can reap the benefits as quickly as possible.
There is no doubt that having less access to this new knowledge and losing the connection to researchers on the ground increases the risk we and Quebec's forage industry as a whole face, especially in the current operating environment. The impact of losing that connection will be quite dramatic for Quebec's industry.