The Potato Days of HZPC are dedicated to the spuds’ future, in which the cultivars provide an important contribution to the food security in the world and help to combat climate change. HZPC wants to join this challenge by using more sustainable potato varieties and hybrid potato breeding.

The results were shown and could be tasted during the Potato Days in the Research Centre of HZPC in Metslawier. A live event to break down barriers, the organizers say, to contribute to equal opportunities for everyone, anywhere in the world.

Over 1,000 participants from Asia, Africa, South America, North America, and Europe were connected during Potato Days 2021.

“Per hectare, potatoes can produce more food under the right conditions. In addition, potatoes provide more variety in the diet, which helps us combat malnutrition. […] By 2050, we will be living on a planet with twice as many citizens, half as much space to grow food, and the need for a varied nutritious diet,” Martin Kropff of CGIAR showed during his keynote. His organization is working on system transformations in food, land, and water use.

Hybrid Breaks Boundaries

Contributing to food security is harder in places that are logistically challenging to reach, such as parts of Africa and Asia. Moreover, the potato is a vulnerable crop and a journey from, for instance, the Netherlands to Africa is long and intensive.

The outcome, whether a potato variety yields well elsewhere, is not always certain. That is why HZPC invests in hybrid potato breeding.

“Hybrid potato breeding is a method that goes further than crossing two varieties. When crossing, the outcome is uncertain: which good characteristics have been adopted in the new variety and which not?,” Ad Vrolijk, project leader at HZPC, explained. He also spoke about hybrid potato breeding using dice. “With hybrid potato breeding you don’t have to guess, you go to the core, the DNA. And thanks to big data, we know everything about the DNA and which genetics to combine in new varieties.”

Being able to grow hybrid seed potatoes from seeds brings significant advantages. Especially in terms of logistics. Seeds can be transported a lot easier and in larger numbers, under better conditions. Besides logistics, customization is another advantage; it becomes easier to grow varieties that perform well in a specific (dry) climate.

Climate Change

The potato is one of the most sustainable crops. For example, the cultivation of potatoes consumes only 200 liters of water per kilogram. Little, compared to for example rice that uses 1,200 liters of water per kilogram.

HZPC proves that it can be even more sustainable with Even Greener. A selection of sustainable potato varieties with an (even) lower impact on the environment.

“Each variety from this selection scores above average on 5 characteristics: limited water consumption, less fertilizer required, high disease protection, long storage period, and a high yield,” Michiel ten Duis, Senior Head of Marketing at HZPC, mentioned.

Buyers decide which traits they consider most important using the Even Greener calculator. With this, they select the sustainable potatoes that meet their requirements.