Bred specficially for hot and warming climates, Stellar apple trees won a silver award at the Sival Varietal Innovation Competition for 2026
Stellar (‘HOT81A1’), a next-generation apple variety bred specially for hot and warming climates, has won silver in the Sival Varietal Innovation Competition for 2026, held in Angers, France.
The prize marks a significant international milestone for the resilient variety, according to Morgan Rogers, general manager at VentureFruit part of the T&G Global group.
“Stellar demonstrates what’s possible when rigorous breeding, evaluation and evidence-based development are combined with a clear focus on grower challenges,” he said. “As climate pressures increase, we’re proud to be the exclusive commercialisation partner within the Hot Climate Partnership. This programme is unlocking the full potential of new and innovative varieties that balance production reliability with exceptional eating quality – and this is just the beginning of what we’re developing in response to future climate and production pressures.”
High summer temperatures can compromise colour development, cause heat stress and lead to crop losses, but, according to VentureFruit, Stellar delivers “attractive, uniform and stable colour without skin burn or internal damage, providing growers with a more reliable early-season crop in challenging climates”.
Harvesting of Stellar takes place 7-10 days ahead of Gala, and the variety combines early maturity with excellent eating quality, no known susceptibility to key diseases or pests, and consistent on-orchard performance.
“These characteristics make it a valuable option for warm production regions, enabling growers to bring forward harvest and marketing windows while protecting quality, yield and profitability under increasing climate pressure,” the company said.
Following a rigorous global evaluation and selection process, IFO was appointed head licensee for Stellar, with its nursery subsidiary Dalival supporting tree production and international deployment.
“At VentureFruit, we prioritise collaboration and practical solutions for growers,” said Morgan. “Partnering with IFO as the global head licensee allows us to provide a far-reaching commercial model that is both flexible and responsive to growers’ needs globally, ensuring Stellar reaches the right orchards at the right time.”
Florian Guidat, IFO Dalival’s development project manager, commented: “We are honoured that Stellar has received this award from Sival Innovation, especially as it is granted by a jury of recognised industry experts. This recognition highlights the importance of innovation in addressing climate change and supporting growers in increasingly challenging production environments. It also reflects the collective effort behind Stellar, from research to market, to deliver practical, climate-resilient solutions for the future of apple production.”
Stellar is the result of more than 20 years of natural breeding and scientific development within the Hot Climate Partnership, a collaboration between IRTA (Catalonia), The Bioeconomy Science Institute (New Zealand), Fruit Futur (Catalonia) and VentureFruit, which is responsible for global commercialisation and licensing.
The variety is being rolled out through a “tree release model”, with initial availability focused on Europe and selected international markets where plant material is available.
