Potato bruising costs the U.S. potato industry nearly $300 million a year* and NEU Seed estimates that 60 percent of this is attributable to blackspot bruise.In addition to yielding significant economic advantages for farmers and consumers through reduced waste, NEU Seed and Cibus have focused on newly developed traits that are expected to reduce usage of pesticides and improve the sustainability of potato production. Eventually the partners intend to collaborate on the development of other important traits to create healthier potato plants with improved quality attributes that will benefit the consumer and potato industry.
RTDSis an environmentally safe, trait development procedure that will use the potato’s natural process of gene repair to effect a precise change in the genetic sequence. By mimicking natural methods in a highly targeted way,RTDStechnology avoids the introduction of foreign genetic material into plants.RTDShas been recognized by the USDA as a mutagenesis technique, and is therefore not subject to the regulations applied to transgenic (or GM) crops. Mutagenesis-derived crops and traits are produced around the globe in a number of food categories, including grains (rice, oats, durum wheat), vegetable oil crops (sunflower, canola, flax), beer ingredients (barley, hops, yeast) and seedless fruits (grapes, citrus fruits).
Cibus President Dr. Keith Walker said, “RTDStechnology is revolutionary in that it enables the development in plants of valuable traits that enhance overall efficiency and product quality through a natural process. Globally, potato is a very important food crop, and Cibus is proud to work with NEU Seed and the potato industry to enhance production and quality for the benefit of farmers, processers and consumers.”
“Cibus offers the potato industry a naturally accelerated breeding process that will lead to new and innovative technology solutions for the farmer,” said Dirk Parkinson, potato grower and President of NEU Seed, from Saint Anthony, Idaho. “TheRTDStechnology offers North American farmers the ability to develop valuable traits through a carefully targeted process that mimics what occurs in nature. This directed and efficient approach allows for lower production costs and significantly enhances the overall quality of our product for our customers.”
