An Approach to Organic Plant Breeding of Cabbage and Cauliflower

Summary in the original language of the document

Plant breeding activity has to be considered in the context of the agricultural system. The organic agriculture (OA) is more than a way of production: it is consistent with an ethics of the place and role of the man in the nature. Working for OA means to prefer a holistic approach with a ecological vision of the plant and animal in their environment to an analytic approach with a biochemical vision of the living beings.
The variety plays at least two roles in the organic way of production: (i) an ecological adaptation of the crop and the keeping of the environment equilibrium in the planting, (ii) a valorisation of products from a soil and a savoir-faire. Moreover, the breeders have to take in account the respect of the natural crossing barriers and the fertility of the species to enhance the vitality of the planting and to optimise the seed production.
The adaptability to OA of the current varieties has to be examined for each species. For cabbages and cauliflowers, the F1 hybrids have replaced the population varieties for the last two decades and moreover, the cytoplasmic male sterility is largely widespread in these hybrids. This male sterility, created by protoplast fusion, will not be allowed for organic farming.
For two years, an INRA project with the collaboration of IBB (Inter bio Bretagne) has initiated the first step of a breeding programme: the evaluation of the Brassica genetic resources and the definition of the selection criteria of cabbage and cauliflower with the farmers. A second project is building up to go further and to begin the selection and the organisation of a seed production. At the long term, in order to join the environment and the production qualities of the variety, we propose a composite structure with useful fixed characters (agronomical and economical traits) which will maintain the heterozygoty of the genetic backgrounds. Others alternatives have to be examined for the next years. The close participatory of the farmers will be necessary to a better targeting of the means and the needs.