b'IN 20 YEARS, WHAT WILLTHE CUCUMBER LOOK LIKE?COMPANIES ARE INNOVATING TO CREATE CUCUMBERS THAT WILL HAVE THE TRAITS NEEDED TO MEET THE FUTURE.BY: MARCEL BRUINSEDITORS NOTE:A s the breeding manuals say, the challengethat enable the gene banks to expand their collec-is not to introduce a new trait but to do ittions and to safeguard genetic resources for the If you havent readin a strong chassis, underlines Abad. Thefuture. In addition, Rijk Zwaan helps to describe, Part 1 or Part 2 ofchassis is still the most important point in acharacterise and multiply these genetic resources.our cucumber series,cucumber variety with the right combination ofAs with all species we breed, we have our please stop and goregularity, earliness, yield, fruit quality and plantown collection of gene-pool material of cucumbers back to pages 6 orperformance. Cucumber growers know exactly thebased on older regional varieties, which we try to 18 and bring yourselfyield and quality of all their harvestthey arecombine with the available gene sources from the up-to-speed. Thencarefully looking at this information. Cucumberpresent time, says Aust.come back here andis a producing machine and the machine has toGonzlez-Cabezuelo mentions that their ger-read on! work perfectly. mplasm comes from the generation of segregating For Kraan, the big challenge is to develop vari- populations from lines with traits of interest for eties that on one hand meet the quality demandstheir breeding programs. for consumers and on the other hand have a goodThe use of recombinant inbred lines, near package of resistances while still giving a high yield. isogenic lines and magic populations are com-For me, says Bal, the challenge is to notmonly used to achieve diversity. On the other hand, just to be a follower, but bringing varieties withwe have an excellent relationship with the most new traits, developing new types (snack cucum- important germplasm banks in Spain, as can be ber), create new segments and to make use of newfound in the COMAV of the Polytechnic University breeding tools. of Valencia, with whom we collaborate regularly.The challenge is undoubtedly the breeding ofSuelmanns company works in close collabora-a quality variety, that stands up to the competi- tion with gene banks. These are national institutes tion on a professional level, but also a variety, thatthat several countries over the world have, to pre-will be appreciated by small growers thanks to itsserve genetic variation. taste characteristics, says Aust. And not to forget,We help maintaining this genetic variation by the breeder must also think about the potentialincreasing the seed quantities. And we also have for propagating new varieties, including the seam- access (like all researchers) to the accessions to less production of parent lines. In this case, thedevelop new varieties. At BASF Vegetable Seeds greatest challenge is to find markers of individ- we have an extensive gene bank, containing mate-ual important properties for quality and operativerials from all over the world. It will be no surprise selection of suitable materials. that most added-value traits (like resistances) are I like to compare the process of obtaining afound in Asian materials.variety as if you were tuning an instrument, says Gonzlez-Cabezuelo. Sometimes it is difficult toACCESS TO GERMPLASMintroduce numerous resistance factors in a varietyAccording to Aust, in obtaining new materials, without affecting other parameters such as pro- a company must respect not only new rules, but ductivity or fruit quality, for example. The mainespecially the moral aspect of access to gene challenge is to ensure that a variety is completelyresources, so as not to jeopardize the rights of tuned, not out of harmony in any of its aspects. existing variety owners. Unfortunately, this is still a topical issue from FINDING GENETIC DIVERSITY our perspective on the abuse of our varieties in the In order to ensure we can continue to respond toseed trade.market needs and contribute to food security weThe access to certain collections is easier are always on the lookout for new genetic variationthan others, says Kraan. There is still quite some in our crops, says Bal.genetic variation not accessible, notably from the The basis can be our own genetics, competi- genetic origin of cucumber.tor varieties, gene banks and mutant populations.A regulation does not have to be negative in all We work with gene banks around the world to helpcases, mentions Gonzlez-Cabezuelo. I think that us in this quest.fair regulations can be beneficial to the industry His company also finances collection missionsas long as all parties involved will be satisfied. Its 32IEUROPEAN SEEDIEUROPEAN-SEED.COM'