Carrot Improvement For Organic Agriculture With Added Grower And Consumer Value

Summary

"Carrot Improvement for Organic Agriculture (CIOA) is a long-term breeding project started in 2011 to address the critical needs of organic carrot farmers by developing orange and novel colored carrots with improved disease and nematode resistance, improved weed competitiveness, and improved nutritional value and flavor. Organic growers require vegetable varieties that are adapted to organic growing conditions and hold market qualities demanded by the organic consumer including superior nutrition and exceptional flavor. In carrots, work has been done to identify and breed for nutritionally superior varieties across multiple color classes including orange, red, purple and yellow. These varieties are in high demand and in a high value crop, however much of this germplasm has not been improved for organic systems in general. The project also evaluated the performance of varieties in organic versus conventional systems during the first five years to assess the potential for breeding for organic soil conditions. Organic producers need varieties that germinate rapidly with good seedling vigor, compete with weeds, resist pests, are efficient at nutrient uptake and are broadly adapted to organic growing conditions. The CIOA project is ongoing, building off of research to date, with the goal of delivering improved carrot varieties; improved understanding of the farming systems influence (organic vs. conventional) on variety performance; and developing a breeding model adaptable to other crops for organic systems (Simon et. al, 2016). While significant progress has been made in carrot breeding to improve nutritional value, flavor, and disease resistance for conventional production systems, the majority of the conventional U.S. crop is threatened due to loss of chemical fumigants and sprays to control nematodes and Alternaria leaf blight, and organic production has no obvious means for economical carrot production when either of these pests threaten the crop."