Cornell teams up on broccoli hybrid built for cold weather climates
The hybrid greatly expands the regions where broccoli can be grown
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A new variety of broccoli called “NorthStar,” a co-hybrid between parents developed at Cornell University and the global seed company Bejo Zaden, can withstand warmer, more unpredictable conditions such as the ones in the Northeast growing region. The hybrid greatly expands the regions where broccoli can be grown, increasing food security, sustainability and access—while reducing the carbon and financial costs of shipping.
“With broccoli, you’re typically restricted to temperate areas with more moderate growing conditions and cooler nights,” said Phillip Griffiths, associate professor. “Improving broccoli varieties that are more resilient to heat and environmental stress can drastically expand the agroecological zones for production.”
Ninety percent of broccoli in the U.S. is grown in California, and with more frequent fires and extreme weather, that concentration puts sustainable production at risk. The new variety – bred to thrive in areas such as New York, New England and as far north as Quebec – would broaden the range in the U.S. and in other global regions with similar climates.
In the case of NorthStar, Cornell and Bejo, each contributed a parent, with Griffiths sending the Cornell breeding line to Bejo breeder Cees Sintenie in 2012. This was after 12 years of developing the line at Cornell AgriTech, in variable New York growing conditions, and selecting for genetics that allow for normal development despite warm nights – traits absent in commercial breeding programs. With the Cornell line in hand, Sintenie and others at Bejo then worked for another 12 years to identify the promising new combination and are now bringing it to market.
“It represents a fusion of longer term, public breeding efforts with the private sector efforts,” Griffiths said. “The Cornell parent was more focused on environmental resilience and theirs on commercial quality, but in the end, the combination of these efforts resulted in something that will benefit people in the Northeast, the East Coast and beyond.”
Bejo, based in the Netherlands, tested the NorthStar variety at the company’s research facility in Geneva, New York, where there’s close collaboration with researchers at Cornell AgriTech. Now a trial with growers from southern New Jersey through the northernmost counties of Maine is wrapping up, with the broccoli headed to market.
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