An Israeli company has genetically created a super-tomato. The new breed of tomatoes can withstand a virus that devastates tomato crops every year the world over.
Hazera Genetics, an Israeli seed breeder, launched the world's first tomato strain that is immune to the ‘Yellow Lead Curl Tomato Virus’, according to a report in The Marker.
The resistant tomato, called ‘Tracie’ by researchers involved in the project, is a breakthrough for tomato farmers, especially those cultivating the long-lived species that thrive over long periods rather than specific seasons.
In Israel, it means the resistant breed can be grown in open, ventilated hothouses throughout the summer, which reduces costs and improves the quality of the fruit, as well as the crop size compared to conventional breeds.
Dr. Alon Haverfeld, who manages Hazera’s tomato seeds division estimates the profits to be high. Dr. Haverfeld stated that price per kilogram of seed would range from $20,000 to $30,000, with the company aiming to reach sales of $1 million next year, and $5-7 million within three to four years.
Tomato Yellow Lead Curl Virus, or TYLCV, is devastating to Israeli tomato farmers. No resistant strains have been found since the plague first erupted in the 1930s. The regular insecticides used to decimate the bugs carrying the virus proved ineffective at preventing the spread of the virus. The result has been to severely truncate the cultivation of tomatoes in open fields in favor of hermetically sealed hothouses, protected against the predominant carrier – the Bemesia tabaci whitefly.
TYLCV affects tomato crops throughout the Mediterranean region, the Middle East and tropical areas of Africa and Central America. In Israel, cultivation of tomatoes in sealed hothouses has the downside of creating moisture and overheating problems.
Hazera Genetics, an Israeli seed breeder, launched the world's first tomato strain that is immune to the ‘Yellow Lead Curl Tomato Virus’, according to a report in The Marker.
The resistant tomato, called ‘Tracie’ by researchers involved in the project, is a breakthrough for tomato farmers, especially those cultivating the long-lived species that thrive over long periods rather than specific seasons.
In Israel, it means the resistant breed can be grown in open, ventilated hothouses throughout the summer, which reduces costs and improves the quality of the fruit, as well as the crop size compared to conventional breeds.
Dr. Alon Haverfeld, who manages Hazera’s tomato seeds division estimates the profits to be high. Dr. Haverfeld stated that price per kilogram of seed would range from $20,000 to $30,000, with the company aiming to reach sales of $1 million next year, and $5-7 million within three to four years.
Tomato Yellow Lead Curl Virus, or TYLCV, is devastating to Israeli tomato farmers. No resistant strains have been found since the plague first erupted in the 1930s. The regular insecticides used to decimate the bugs carrying the virus proved ineffective at preventing the spread of the virus. The result has been to severely truncate the cultivation of tomatoes in open fields in favor of hermetically sealed hothouses, protected against the predominant carrier – the Bemesia tabaci whitefly.
TYLCV affects tomato crops throughout the Mediterranean region, the Middle East and tropical areas of Africa and Central America. In Israel, cultivation of tomatoes in sealed hothouses has the downside of creating moisture and overheating problems.