Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) established a national potato gene bank at its Fredericton, N.B. research facility in 1992.
As private sector breeding programs have ramped up in the years since, researchers at the national facility are increasingly partnering with private breeders to accelerate the development of new potato varieties suited to Canadian growing conditions.
One of three AAFC crop gene banks – the others being in Saskatoon, Sask., and Harrow, Ont. – the potato-specific Fredericton facility is also designed to collect and store germplasm from older varieties, as well as those found in other regions of the globe. Industry representatives say such actions will be critical to solving emerging production challenges.
A Hub for the Potato’s Global History
“It’s a collection of plant genetic material, germplasm, that has value for agricultural production and economic value to help Canadian agriculture to be more innovative, competitive, and sustainable,” explains Benoît Bizimungu, research scientist and plant genetics curator at the Potato Gene Resources Research and Development Centre. “We have lots of genes to chose from, including about 300 different unique lines. Basically, it’s raw materials for developing new varieties, some of which have unique value and can be used for education and training.”
“We maintain some old varieties with heritage value as well. We have some old ones that date to the 1800s, to the most recent variety developed a few years ago. Some are varieties grown during the Irish potato famine, or released during that period of time. They usually have a compelling story, but were not bred with traditional modern methods so we had to track the genes back.”
While commercial interests are a critical driver of variety development, Bizimungu says he and his colleagues also use the bank for “discovery research” – that is, working to discover new genetic indicators. Efforts to understand how different varieties react to specific environmental stressors, in pursuit of climate change adaptation capability, is a current example.
“More recently we’re introducing hybrids with wild potato relative species, trying to diversify our collection and bring new traits to breeding programming,” Bizimungu says. This includes incorporating germplasm from international partners such as the United States Department of Agriculture, and Peru’s International Potato Centre – the world largest repository of potato germplasm.
Cooperation with Private Sector Overdue
Information and germplasm from AAFC’s potato gene bank is open to all public and private researchers. Indeed, Bizimungu adds, private breeders have been donating germplasm to the national collection.
“It’s not all about more. We try to fill the gaps by acquiring traits we want and need. It’s kind of targeted growth because we focus mostly on what can benefit the Canadian economy, what’s beneficial now and can be in the future.”
Peter VanderZaag, president of Sunrise Potato in Alliston, Ont. and veteran of the global potato industry, is one such private sector contributor. With a memorandum of understanding to share germplasm and knowledge with the ministry, he considers the potato gene bank – or any crop gene bank – to be a vital part of maintaining a given country’s food security.
“If you don’t have that, you’re always vulnerable to others. You never know what will happen with borders closing, conflict… Maintaining a gene bank is a government responsibility. That’s point one,” says VanderZaag.
Point two, he says, is the AAFC gene bank remains a relatively small repository when compared to those in the U.S., Peru, and elsewhere. This means collaboration between the public and private sectors is also critical to furthering food security, while advancing variety development in the face of emerging production needs and challenges.
“The AAFC gene bank is small. Private breeders for a long time had no relationship with them, although we’ve made some breakthroughs in recent years. Now we’re sharing germplasm and knowledge. AAFC recognizes we can’t do without each other,” says VanderZaag, adding the bottleneck hampering cooperation has been a result of overarching federal policy, rather than public researchers themselves. Indeed, he says, Bizimungu and his AAFC colleagues have long been open to working with the industry.
“Government breeding programs have dominated historically. In the last decade or so, though, private breeders have dominated with some large privately owned breeding programs. AAFC is no longer the dominant player and their recent variety releases have limited adoption. It’s high time we got together. They have the genes and the means to build the populations which are needed for each sector of the potato industry, and let the private breeders do the rest.”
Emerging Production Challenges
The variety of problems facing Canada’s potato growers is diverse. For VanderZaag, this makes collaboration with the government program even more important. The right genetics are required to overcome late blight, for example – a disease that was particularly severe in Ontario in 2023, and which can rot potatoes both in the ground, and while in storage. New strains of Potato Virus Y are also a growing concern.
“There are over 4,500 native varieties kept in the gene bank of the International Potato Center in Peru, as well as by Andean farm communities with ‘insitu’ conservation. Here the communities grow them out in the fields, and they can tell you the social-cultural context for these varieties and why they are so important. The people there can tell you the whole story of those varieties and what makes them unique for health, nutrition and for marketability,” says VanderZaag.
For example, one Andean species of germplasm is being used in North America. It has genes from wild Peruvian potato species that carry traits for glandular trichomes on the lower side of the leaves. That release an exudate that traps and kills insects.”
I think breeders can do more with all the genetic discoveries that are occurring within the potato genome. That’s the challenge I give to the whole AAFC Fredericton. Our partnerships could be much more productive.”
For his part, Bizimungu adds the most urgent need is to increase awareness of the potato gene bank, as well as preserving the genetic resources among all potential users, including private industry players. Recent progress in DNA sequencing and the renewed focus on diploid potatoes offer promises in improving breeding efficiency, he says, while genome sequencing information will increase in the bank’s stock of diploid potato germplasm.
“The commercial potatoes we use in Canada are tetraploids, with four sets of chromosomes. Breeding progress has been hampered by their inherent genetic complexity. The genetic challenges can be reduced by working with diploid germplasm. Tetraploid germplasm can be converted to diploids by crossing with special lines called ‘haploid inducers’,” says Bizimungu.
“Potatoes are one of the most genetically diverse food crops in the world. Understanding that diversity would help us be more efficient in breeding new improved varieties. For example, genome sequencing of certain wild potato species can help us understand how they were adapted to different environments.”