Syngenta Innovates for Resilient Vegetable Varieties in Northwest Europe
Syngenta is strategically advancing its vegetable breeding programs for Northwest Europe, focusing on developing resilient, high-quality varieties that address modern agricultural challenges.
In a Q&A session that took place during the UK Vegetable Seeds Open Days, Syngenta representatives Stephan Winter - Trialling and Product Placement Regional Lead for Western Europe, Yoann Barrier - Brassica Product Manager for France, UK, and Nordic countries, and Thomas Dumont – Leafy Product Manager for Northwest Europe, outlined their innovative approaches, emphasising disease resistance, mechanisation, and data-driven development.
Here’s a look at the key insights from the discussion:
Q: How does Syngenta establish its trial networks for breeding new varieties?
A: Syngenta groups markets with similar profiles and climatic conditions to test varieties across multiple locations within a single year. This approach simulates various environmental effects, allowing them to assess a variety's stability more quickly than traditional multi-year trials in one location, thereby accelerating product development.
Q: How does Syngenta leverage data and analytics in product development?
A: Syngenta collects both qualitative and quantitative data through field visits, discussions with farmers, and advanced technologies like drones combined with image and video analysis. This "hard data" is cleaned and analysed using AI and statistical models, then combined with environmental information for precise variety positioning. The goal is to move beyond subjective scoring to objective, machine-measured traits to ensure data quality and reduce bias.
Q: What are Syngenta's top priorities for brassica varieties?
A: The main priorities for Brassicas include ensuring reliable varieties that perform well across different conditions and seasons. This involves introducing innovations such as resistance to pests and diseases (e.g., myco, alternaria, club roots, thrips tolerance) and developing varieties with excellent curd quality and plant architecture.
Q: What are the primary focus areas for leafy crops?
A: For leafy crops, Syngenta is concentrating on developing new resistances against diseases like Bremia Lactucae, Nasonovia, Peronospora, introducing Fusarium resistance, improving shelf life and post-harvest behaviour, and creating varieties suitable for mechanical harvesting.
Q: What are the key challenges and future directions for leafy crops?
A: Key challenges include the evolution of disease races, labour shortages for harvesting, and the increasing need for varieties compatible with mechanical harvesting. Future efforts will focus on resistance breeding, enhancing shelf life, and proactively monitoring new diseases to develop appropriate resistant varieties.
Q: Why is mechanisation becoming increasingly important for crop production?
A: Mechanisation is crucial due to persistent labour shortages, rising labour costs, and the need to maintain competitiveness and food quality. It enables growers to harvest efficiently and reduces reliance on manual labour, which is a significant factor in food production costs.
Q: How does climate change influence variety development?
A: Climate change leads to less reliable weather conditions, necessitating the development of varieties that are resilient and stable across diverse environments and seasons. This ensures consistent production despite unpredictable weather patterns.
Q: What roles do farmers and clients play in disease monitoring?
A: Syngenta encourages farmers and clients to promptly report any unusual or new diseases. This early detection is vital for Syngenta's breeding teams to develop resistant varieties in time to counter emerging threats, as breeding new resistances can be a lengthy process. (
Syngenta's commitment to innovation, data-driven insights, and collaboration with growers underscores its dedication to providing robust and adaptable vegetable varieties for the evolving agricultural landscape of Northwest Europe.
