b'Hybrid landscape GLOBAL OIL DEMAND BY COUNTRYGlobally, there are some hybrid trait trends to make note of. John Sandbakken, executive director of the NationalConsumption K metric Sunflower Association, explains that in some other countriesCountry Tons in 2019 5 year CAGR %in Europe and beyond, some traditional linoleic hybrids are stillIndia 2,800 10.5being cultivated, but in the U.S., NuSun and high-oleic hybridsRussia 2,423 4.2reign.China 2,065 15.7NuSun hybrids were introduced in 1998 through a collabora- Turkey 1,198 5.0tion between the sunflower industry and breeders at the U.S.Iran 700 14.2Department of Agriculture. They produce a mid-oleic oil with Argentina 642 (1.3)under 10% saturated fat, shelf-stability without partial hydrogen-ation, great taste and food manufacture performance.Ukraine 5652.7And while NuSun oil is still in demand, Sandbakken explainsIraq 510 2.0that because the market wants saturated fat levels at or belowEgypt 490 0.07%, along with good stability and tasteall of which high-oleicSouth Africa 470 2.2oil providesthe shift in the U.S. to growing more high-oleic hybrids will continue. To keep pace, companies like Iowa-based AgVenture are expanding their high-oleic offerings. For the 2021 season, AgVenture is adding a Clearfield hybrid called AF3691HC to its lineup, along with three other Clearfield hybrids (Imidazilone-tolerant) and four ExpressSun (Sulfonyl Urea-tolerant) hybrids.Sandbakken notes that while seed stocks have been tight due to high demand, growers in the U.S. have also been enjoying new lucrative Act of God contracts from crushing companies, contracts wherein they deliver whatever they can. He believes domestic demand will continue to be strong for sunflower oil because some North American companies are adding it to their food products. However, U.S. sunflower production, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), is greatly exceeded by that in Argentina, Ukraine and Russia. ProductionS&Ws SW440 HO/CL is a mid-season high-oleic variety with in these countries accounts for 52% of global production andClearfield herbicide tolerance.total global production is expected to be close to 60 million tons by 2050.HISTORIC AND CURRENT BREEDING AND MORE Nuseeds Europe General Manager Patrick Dieterich notes that investment in growing technologies and processing is result- Sunflowers originated in North and Central America and have been cultivated for ing in growers in Russia and Ukraine moving away from farmover 4,000 years. The entire plant is edible. There are 70 different species, with saved seed into certified and higher-yielding hybrids.yellow, red and white colouration and a range of petal shapes. The crop attracted As global demand grows, so will the demand for hybrids withattention as a decorative garden flower plant when, in the 1500s, Spanish higher yields, improved disease resistance, lower water usageexplorers brought seed to Europe.and regional production performance, Jackson adds. Sunflowers became an oil crop in Russia late in the late 1700s. The development Top Performance Issues of high-yielding, open-pollinated varieties with high oil content at the Pustovoit When asked to list the most serious concerns affecting currentRussian Research Institute of Oil Crops (VNIIMK) is considered the foundation of sunflower production, Gilbert points first to weed management.modern sunflower breeding. Broadleaf weeds have always been difficult to control, he says, but in recent years introduction of herbicide-tolerantIn 2020, researchers published an estimate of the distribution pattern of global hybrids has improved controls significantly.sunflower genetic diversity based on global sample collections. A moderate Clearfield hybrids gained large market share in early 2000s,amount of diversity was found.and ExpressSun hybrids followed. Neither product provides per- The seed of 53 species of sunflowers are stored in the Svalbard Seed Vault in fect standalone solutions, says Gilbert, and generally require pre- Norway.emergent and/or tank mix post-emergent applications. He adds that the Clearfield hybrids have also enabled reasonable controlSunflowers are being actively studied for soil remediation (removal of heavy of a parasitic weed called Orabanche only found in Europe thatmetals and more).affects sunflower crops there.The worlds tallest sunflower was grown in Germany in 2014, measuring 9.17 m and On the disease front, white mold/sclerotinia fungus causesneeding support to stay upright. significant yearly yield loss in sunflowers grown for both oil seed 94/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2020'