Breeding potatoes is notoriously difficult. First, commercial potato cultivars don’t self-pollinate, which has historically prevented breeders from creating stable, genetically pure inbred lines needed for hybrid breeding.
Second, most commercial varieties are tetraploids, with four sets of chromosomes that make inheritance unpredictable. Third, they are highly heterozygous, with extensive genetic variation, such that desired traits can be lost or diluted in crosses.
Finally, … growers typically propagate potatoes clonally by planting tubers (small pieces of potato) because the seeds produce highly variable offspring with mixed traits.
Clonal propagation ensures genetic consistency but in turn preserves disease … , says Charles Miller, director of strategic alliances and development at Dutch biotech firm Solynta.
“Think of it like a photocopy,” he says. “Each time you make a copy, the quality gets less.”
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Put simply, observes Miller, all this makes potato breeding a crapshoot.
Solynta, however, has pioneered tech allowing potatoes to self-pollinate and produce non-GMO true seeds in a controlled way, turning a game of chance into something far more predictable, he says. It also means growers can kiss goodbye to saving, storing, and planting tubers for next season’s crop.
