STR Pace

STR Pace is the first Sprinter Wheat to be launched and has been recommended by the AHDB as a high yielding group 1 spring wheat variety with exceptional specific weight and early maturity.

As well as AHDB and VL trials, STR Pace has been further drilled October to spring in private trials over the last five years.
STR Pace has performed comparably to group 1 winter wheat competitors throughout the autumn drilling window with a much-improved specific weight.
STR Pace has solid agronomics balancing yield, grain quality and maintaining a respectable disease resistance.
STR Pace is the earliest maturing group 1 milling spring wheat on the 2026 AHDB Recommended list and one of the earliest overall. Earliness of maturity is a key consideration for a milling variety to safeguard Hagberg and potentially reduce sprouting risk and drying costs on farm.
An earlier harvest offers greater flexibility for subsequent crop options or to establish a following cover crop in good time.
With the highest specific weight of all recommended spring wheat varieties these are further illustrations of the variety’s ability to build yield quickly and reliably.

What are Sprinter Wheats?

A unique cross of wheat types specifically designed to follow late-lifted break crops such as sugar beet, maize and potatoes. Sprinter Wheats are quick to emerge, establish and develop rapidly with good winter hardiness and no vernalization requirement. Sprinter Wheats have been bred from a milling quality-focused breeding program and as a result benefit from enhanced protein content, grain quality and robust specific weight.

The Sprinter Wheat drilling window runs from mid-October throughout the spring giving growers security that whatever the weather seed can be confidently drilled when conditions allow

As well as AHDB and VL trials, STR Pace has been further drilled October to spring in private trials over the last five years.

STR Pace has performed comparably to group 1 winter wheat competitors throughout the autumn drilling window with a much-improved specific weight.

STR Pace has solid agronomics balancing yield, grain quality and maintaining a respectable disease resistance.

STR Pace is the earliest maturing group 1 milling spring wheat on the 2026 AHDB Recommended list and one of the earliest overall. Earliness of maturity is a key consideration for a milling variety to safeguard Hagberg and potentially reduce sprouting risk and drying costs on farm.

An earlier harvest offers greater flexibility for subsequent crop options or to establish a following cover crop in good time.

With the highest specific weight of all recommended spring wheat varieties these are further illustrations of the variety’s ability to build yield quickly and reliably.

STR Pace - Group 1

STR Pace is one of a new breed of wheats called Sprinter Wheats and achieved UK AHDB recommendation in 2025
Group 1 milling, high hagberg with the best specific weight and early to harvest - all the attributes to secure high value crops before pre-harvest rain damages quality
STR Pace exhibits the distinct characteristics of this new wheat type - a wide sowing window October to end March, quick establishment with wide leaves and speed of growth out-pacing and smothering grass weeds

Region	Yield
UK	100

Yield assessments to date based on sowing month rather than soil type. Yields and specific weight in October drilled AUK trials sit between KWS Extase and Skyfall November-drilled through to January see yields and quality improve, while winter wheats tail off. Spring-drilled STR Pace is the 2nd highest yielding, earliest maturing group 1 on the UK RL 2026.

Bracket values give guidance on comparative agronomic values based on commercial observations and Agrovista trial performance.

AHDB 2026 recommended list

Spring wheat (Group 1)

	STR Pace	KWS Harsum	KWS Ladum
End-use group	UKFM Group 1
Scope of recommendation	UK	UK	UK
Variety status	NEW		C
UK yield as % control (spring sowing)
Fungicide-treated (7.5 t/ha)	100	101	98
Disease resistance
Mildew (1‒9)	[8]	[7]	[7]
Yellow rust (1‒9)	5	7	6
Brown rust (1‒9)	7	5	5
Septoria tritici (1‒9)	[6]	6	6
Orange wheat blossom midge	-	R	-
Agronomic features (spring sowing)
Lodging with PGR (%)	-	[1]	[0]
Straw length without PGR (cm)	80	79	73
Ripening (days +/- Mulika)	-1	1	0
Grain quality (spring sowing)
Endosperm texture	Hard	Hard	Hard
Protein content (%)	13	12.8	13.3
Hagberg Falling Number	303	326	330
Specific weight (kg/hl)	80.6	78.7	78.1

October sown establishment

Private trials, Northants, images taken 13th November 2024, October-drilled

5 years mean November sown yield (t/ha) STR Pace comparison

AgX Haddenham - Cambridgeshire | Previous crop - Sugar Beet

	Variety	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	Trial mean
Yield t/ha	Skyfall	9.54	12.93	11.01	10.37	11.28	11.03
Yield t/ha	STR PACE	10.25	12.11	10.49	10.30	11.87	11.00
Spec weight kg/hl	Skyfall	63.04	81.57	72.56	81.56	73.97	74.56
Spec weight kg/hl	STR PACE	71.67	82.55	75.47	82.02	79.97	78.2