2007 Specialty Carrot Cultivar Field
Day Held
Carrot Country
Winter 2007
Carrot breeders and others were on hand for the 2007 Specialty Carrot Cultivar
Field Day, held Aug. 21 at Klaustermeyer Farms, north of Basin City, Wash.
Dr. Tim Waters, WSU Extension, assembled and organized the trial with the generous
cooperation of Klaustermeyer Farms. Sponsored by Washington State University
Extension and the Pacifi c Northwest Vegetable Association, 54 varieties of
specialty carrots from commercial sources as well varieties from Dr. Phil Simon
were on display. A handful of seed companies were represented. Simon is a carrot
breeder and professor of horticulture with the U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Madison, Wis.
Most of the carrots appearing in the trial were hybrids. They came in a wide
range of colors. Included were purple, yellow, red, white and different mixtures
of each. Orange carrots of various shapes were also
represented. The majority were fresh market types, although a few were for processing.
More Colored Types
“Relative to the last two years, one encouraging aspect of this trial is
we are seeing more unusual color types from the different seed companies, colors
other than orange,” the carrot breeder observed during
an on-site interview as the evaluations took place. “Secondly, these unusual
color types, particularly the whites, yellows and unusual-shaped oranges, are
better looking, overall, than they have been in the past. Even the reds and
purples are much improved over previous years.”
There were color leaching problems with some of the purples and reds in the
trial, Simon acknowledged, attributing that to a disease, of some kind, in the
area. For one reason or another, both colors in the
trial proved susceptible. Premature bolting also remains a challenge for some.
The number of named varieties also was up slightly from 2006, Simon pointed
out, adding that there is a reason for the presence of industry-released varieties
in the trial in addition to those from the USDA breeding program.
“In a sense, these commercial varieties are what help keep me honest,”
the carrot breeder smiled. “If I am going to have a worthwhile breeding
program, I need to come up with varieties that are competitive,
to some degree, with what the industry already has. Otherwise, there would be
no relevance to the work I do.
“So, each year, we invite the seed industry to provide both named and
coded varieties not yet released. In the case of the coded varieties, that means
they are far enough along in production that there is a
signifi cant amount of seed but not enough trialing yet to put a name on them.
From the standpoint of our program, we are interested in seeing if we have material
that is both useful and relevant. For that to happen, we have to go head to
head with industry, not that we are competing in any way. We actually provide
the seed industry with these materials to move over into their own breeding
programs. We are not fi ghting for market share,” Simon explained.
Looking for Promising Varieties
Typically, commercial carrot breeders come to the fi eld day, evaluate what’s
there and make their requests, if there is interest in a particular variety.
Several purple, red, yellow, orange and white breeding
material releases are expected soon and will be available. In addition to providing
seed for commercial carrot breeders to work into their programs, USDA also provides
limited quantities of carrot seed to others interested in testing and trialing
it on their own, Simon said. The only requirement is that users keep the USDA
informed of what improvements they hope to see. This generally happens by phone
or e-mail.
“We can’t always do what is requested,” the carrot breeder admitted.
“From a plant breeder’s standpoint, however, the feedback helps him
put together some ideas. Does a particular variety need to be
longer? If so, it may be crossed with something else to accomplish that goal.
Through this process, eventually we are able to come up with a release that
is more acceptable to those interested.”
Under government regulations, the USDA is not permitted to grant exclusive rights
to any of its materials, Simon said. Its materials are available to any seed
company making a request. They can use them,
as they see fit, in developing their own exclusive varieties.
“Some of the materials we release are what we call ‘populations,’which
means they are not completely uniform,” he explained. “I have purple
populations, for example, where almost every carrot there is
going to be purple, but there may be a range of shapes and colors. The seed
companies, or even home gardeners, can then pick up on that, breed in additional
improvements and use the material in the breeding
of their own private releases.”
Health Benefits Improving
Are the nutraceutical benefi ts of today’s carrot varieties improving?
The answer is, yes, according to Simon. Definite improvements have been made
over the past 20 years. Since 1970, the concentration
of alpha and beta carotene, the orange pigment in orange-colored carrots, has
been increasing steadily. Today, the average orange carrot consumed in the U.S.
contains about 70 percent more alpha and beta carotene than 30 years ago. While
part of that improvement is due to improvements in production and management
procedures, most is due to a more dedicated effort in breeding to include higher
pigment
content. Better taste and texture have also been important parallel improvements
to help boost consumers appeal.
Looking at the unusual colors seen in breeding programs and on the marketplace
today, there is a whole new range of health benefits now available, Simon stressed.
Hopefully, growers can use these carrots to
come up with a new range of exciting products.
“We’re interested in getting these types of carrots to consumers,
but it is not a direct shot,” he said. “We begin by going through
progressive carrot growers, like the Klaustermeyers, and progressive seed companies
willing to try something a little bit different. While admitting that taste
is more difficult to measure than nutritional quality, progress also is being
made in that direction," Simon said.
“I have tasted samples of each variety appearing in this trial today, and
not everything tastes good,” he admitted. “We have a long ways to
go, but are making serious progress.”
Development of the baby or cut-and-peel carrot market, where significant effort
is made to ensure follow-up sales, has been a majorfactor influencing improvements
in carrot taste, Simon said. Consumers who like the taste of a particular carrot
are going to come back for more. On the other hand, if the carrots taste bad,
they will avoid the product in the future.
The challenge is breeding a carrot that offers a blend of good taste and health
benefits, the researcher said. In addition to sampling for taste, nutritional
evaluations are involved. Add to that evaluations for disease susceptibility,
and the process becomes even more complicated and involves a lot of extra work.
One definite correlation that carrot breeders have observed is the link between
a succulent texture and brittleness, Simon said. The more succulent the carrot,
the more subject it is to cracking. Some carrots are so brittle that they will
shatter the moment they are exposed to the air.
“Overall, breeding to over come this problem is difficult,” he acknowledged.
“The relationship between a really succulent texture and brittleness is
one trait that, so far, we’ve been unable to break. On the other hand,
we are seeing advances in texture, and there are fresh market varieties out
there that are much more succulent than the older ones. While not perfect in
taste, these can be harvested, handled and processed without any serious problems.”
© 2007 Columbia Publishing