GMA shared data on the field performance of its three upcoming Hass-type variety selections that will soon be launched on the market
Around 60 representatives from the avocado sector attended the 2nd Seminar organised by Green Motion Avocados (GMA), the avocado breeding platform backed by the University of California, Riverside (UCR) and Eurosemillas, which took place last month in Trujillo, Peru.
The two-day event featured presentations, discussions and visits to orchards, during which participants exchanged experiences on the cultivation of the Hass-like varieties and rootstock selections, which are currently only available to members of the platform.
Javier Cano, director of GMA, commented: “The tests carried out by the UCR are now complemented by experiences shared from regions across eight countries in the Northern Hemisphere and six in the Southern Hemisphere, under highly diverse harvesting schedules, climatic conditions, cultivation practices and soil types.
“Never before has a selection of varieties and rootstocks evaluated across such a broad range of growing conditions. The promising results demonstrated by the breeder in California are now a verifiable reality in many other locations.”
In addition to Luna, GMA’s first varietal launch, the platform is preparing launch three new commercial varieties over the next two years. These include two varieties that GMA claims can extend the Hass season by several months, with fruit of similar quality to Hass.
“One – UCR V01 – is a later-ripening variety; the other – UCR V02 – is an earlier-ripening variety; and work is also underway on a third variety – UCR V03 – which produces smaller, bite-sized fruits but with an exceptional flavour, making it of interest as a gourmet product,” the platform said.
During the seminar, the performance of the five rootstock selections developed by the UCR was also evaluated, together with different cultivation methods for the Luna variety.
