Breeding for host resistance: the key to sustainable potato production.

Phytophthora infestans (Mont.) de Bary, the causal agent of late-blight disease of potato, continues to be a major limiting factor to potato production worldwide. Field trials in 2009, inoculated with two highly aggressive and commonly occurring blight strains, Blue 13 and Pink 6, demonstrated that Sárpo Mira and Axona possess high levels of resistance to these strains. Resistance in many previously resistant cultivars was severely eroded when challenged with these new genotypes. A comparison of results from eighteen trial sites across Europe over the past six years shows that Sárpo Mira has maintained high levels of resistance to all blight populations. Durable resistance such as this should enable world potato production to become more sustainable.

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