Breeding Potato for Quality Improvement

Abstract

Potato is the most important non-cereal food crop in the world, that in general represent a non-fattening, nutritious and wholesome food, which supply important nutrients to the human diet. The potato tubers contain considerable amounts of carbohydrates, vitamin C, essential amino acids and minerals. The potato quality includes biological traits (e.g. proteins, carbohydrates and minerals); sensorial traits (e.g. flavor, texture); and industrial traits (e.g. tuber shape, cold sweetening and starch quality). These traits are deemed very important for fresh consumption, where they are most likely to influence consumer’s choice worldwide. Since most quality traits are genetically controlled, breeding work can successfully meet the quality of potato tubers and fulfills the needs of a changing and demanding world. Breeding potato for quality traits requires a continuous flow of new genes and allelic diversity into the Solanum tuberosum gene pool. However, recent advances in conventional and non-conventional breeding methods have significantly improved the possibilities of producing novel genetic variability for selection of new genotypes, especially when biotechnologists and plant breeders pool the existing resources. The genetics, biochemical and physiology of several quality traits is to be given equal importance that ultimately makes breeding efforts less empirical and more predictable.