High-tech for better crop varieties
At KeyGene in Wageningen, 140 researchers are working on developing better plant varieties for agriculture and horticulture. The company helps plant breeders all over the world by developing new breeding techniques, bioinformatics solutions and databases cataloguing the characteristics of different varieties. KeyGene CEO Arjen van Tunen has noticed that the plant breeding sector in the Netherlands is changing. “It used to be that we looked mainly at traits like higher yields and ease of harvest. Now we also focus on all sorts of other attributes that are important to retailers and consumers, such as flavour, appearance and shelf life.”
Molecular techniques
Faster breeding and breeding to improve an increasingly large range of traits have become possible thanks to new methods based on molecular knowledge, methods which Dutch research institutes and seed companies are investing heavily in. These methods make it possible to change a plant’s DNA in a much more accurate way than before. Take CRISPR-Cas9, for example, molecular ‘scissors’ which researchers can use to cut or replace several DNA bases in a targeted manner. Thanks to the ever-growing databases of DNA sequences and the associated plant variety characteristics, researchers are gaining an increasingly accurate understanding of where exactly to cut the DNA to get a certain trait. KeyGene is looking into the possibilities that CRISPR-Cas9 offers for developing virus-resistant fruit and vegetables. “You can get the same fruit and vegetables using conventional breeding techniques,” says Van Tunen. “But with CRISPRCas9, it can be done a lot faster.”
Phenolab
New imaging techniques are also helping to take plant breeding to the next level. In the so-called Phenolab, robotic cameras take sixteen pictures of all the plants every day, from the roots to the tips. Breeders who upload these pictures to their computers using special software can see straight away which plants are growing best. Van Tunen: “In a virtual reality computer environment, researchers can walk through a 3D test bed by themselves, no matter where in the world they are.”
Vertical farming
In order to feed the growing urban population, Philips, Wageningen UR and the Dutch seed companies are among those working on vertical farming – plants grown in stacked trays under LED lighting in climate-controlled warehouses. Van Tunen: “We are currently investing €2 million in a testing facility for vertical farming. We are hoping to develop varieties here that grow faster under LED lighting, and which also have other benefits, such as being tastier and healthier.”
Source: Ministry of Economic Affairs