Improving the yield and achieving optimal returns for our buyers is one of our most important goals when breeding and developing innovative starch varieties. 

Optimizing the yield for our buyers

Our variety breeding programs are carefully designed to increase the harvest and minimize loss of yield. As the starch market continues to grow – driven by a wide range of innovative uses – ongoing research and breeding are essential for both current and future success. Our collaboration with Agrico Research further strengthens our ability to breed and develop innovative potato starch varieties. 

Our varieties must therefore meet the specific wishes of growers and the processing industry. The focus lies on delivering potatoes that are highly useable, with minimal risks throughout cultivation, harvesting, storage and processing. 

Resistant potato varieties

Diseases and pests have a significant impact on potato harvest stability. Breeding resistant potato varieties is a key area of expertise at Semagri and Agrico Research.

We use marker-assisted breeding, where DNA characteristics of seedlings are used for selection. This enables us to take desired characteristics, such as resistances, into account when crossing parent plants.

The result is a range of robust, disease-resistant potato varieties that offer the best possible natural protection against potato diseases. 

Semagri and Agrico Research

Through its partnership with Agrico, Semagri not only leverages its own expertise, but also benefits from the extensive knowledge and facilities of Agrico Research in the development of new, innovative potato starch varieties. Based in Bant (Noordoostpolder, the Netherlands), Agrico Research operates a state-of-the-art 4,000-m2 greenhouse complex dedicated to the development of new potato varieties and intensive research. 

We work closely with affiliated breeders, providing genetic propagation material, advice, and access to centralized trials. Our laboratories focus on optimizing cultivation characteristics. We carry out in-depth studies on disease resistances and use DNA marker technology to identify desirable variety characteristics.

Every year, many new varieties are trialed at our 30 hectares of trial fields in the Netherlands and abroad.