ISHS Acta Horticulturae 495: WCHR - World Conference on Horticultural Research
TRENDS AND PERSPECTIVES OF VEGETABLE BRASSICA BREEDING WORLD-WIDE |
| Authors: | A. Monteiro, T. Lunn |
| DOI: | 10.17660/ActaHortic.1999.495.12 |
| Abstract:
Vegetable brassicas are an important and highly diversified group of crops grown world-wide that belong mainly to the species Brassica oleracea and B. campestris. In the western hemisphere, including Europe, the predominance goes to B. oleracea, a species that includes important crops such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, etc. In Asia, B. campestris is the most cultivated species owing to the great importance of Chinese cabbage. Turnip and turnip and turnip greens, which also belong to B. campestris, are cultivated world-wide but have much less economic importance. B. juncea, that includes the vegetables mustards, has some economic relevance in far eastern countries but is a minor crop at the world level. B. napus is probably the brassica receiving the most attention from breeders at the world level, especially in Canada and France, but it is only used for rapeseed oil. Therefore, it will not be considered in this survey. The centre of origin of B. oleracea is the Mediterranean region. Vegetable brassicas are cultivated in Europe since very ancient time from where they have spread to other parts of the world (Nieuwhof, 1969). Brassicas include many different morphotypes, are well adapted to temperate climates, require quite simple cultivation techniques and produce abundant and nutritious food for man and domestic animals. In the cold-winter regions of Europe white cabbage is processed as sauerkraut, while in the mild-winter regions, brassicas are the most important vegetable during the cool season. In Korea, Chinese cabbage is used to prepare "kimchi", the very popular national preserve. The versatility of uses and the adaptability to growing systems and man's life-style explain the importance brassicas have had for centuries. However, the increasing consumption of salad vegetables, the availability of a highly-diversified all year round offer of imported and greenhouse grown vegetables make brassicas less attractive for consumers in developed countries. Where world trade tends to dominate the vegetable market, local availability is no longer a comparative advantage for brassicas. However, vegetable brassicas have new appeal in developed countries due to the potential for market diversification of some new crop types, and to the use of cauliflower and broccoli as salad crops. With an increasing number of consumers aware of the importance of diet on human health, the potential benefits of a diet with green vegetables have given brassica vegetables a better image during recent years. In less developed countries brassicas are still considered as an important source of cheap and abundant food. Breeding strategy and targets are dependent on market trends. Successful breeders anticipate changes in the market by developing new varieties that are ready to be released to the growers when their demand increases. It is therefore interesting to see how breeding is reacting to eventual changes in brassica consumption and to evaluate the potential influence that the brassica market and growing systems may have on the definition of breeding targets and priorities. The objective of this paper is to analyse the present situation and the perspectives of brassica breeding based on the authors personal knowledge of the sector and on information collected through an international survey of brassica breeders. The breeding of F1 hybrid winter-cauliflower in Brittany is presented as an example of successful co-operative breeding in tune with both the demands of growers and the markets alike. | |
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