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Glossary

Plant breeding

The aim of plant breeding is the genetic modification of plant populations to improve biological and economic properties. It is based on plant selection, seed treatment, modern breeding methods or crossing with the subsequent range of daughter plants for the next breeding cycle or subsequent propagation as the seed of a new plant variety.

Humans have been breeding plants since they became sedentary in order to obtain the best crops for cultivation. Achieving very different breeding goals at the same time requires a lot of know-how: In addition to appearance, taste and transportability, properties such as consistent starch content in grain or as little preparation waste as possible in vegetables play an important role for processors. Farmers want resistance to pests, drought tolerance for periods of drought or simultaneous ripening of vine tomatoes. End consumers want long freshness, good taste and shelf life with or without a refrigerator, as well as positive plant properties that help them stay healthy and vital.

Plant breeding is now expensive due to high development and regulation costs and takes about 10 years to complete. Innovations in plant breeding will make it possible to bring varieties onto the market faster that are even better adapted to the various stress factors at different locations. Improved precision (see also Crispr/Cas9) also facilitates a much more precise, faster and cheaper breeding process than with purely conventional breeding methods with crossings of a large number of genes.

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Terms from the glossary