November/December 2020 - 21

LEAFY GREENS
INNOVATION
respect between the two systems with several growers
having both an organic and conventional operation.
PP: What sort of seed varieties are in the Rijk Zwaan
catalog?
EC: Rijk Zwaan works in the fruit and vegetable market.
We do not breed or produce any agronomic crops like
corn, soybean, wheat, etc. Historically, we have excelled
in greenhouse crops like cucumber, pepper, eggplant
and tomato. However, our open field crops like lettuce,
spinach, melons, cauliflower and pickling cucumbers
are also incredibly important crops for Rijk Zwaan right
now with a couple making it in the top five of our most
important crops at RZ. Our most popular crops in the U.S.
are lettuce and spinach.
PP: Tell me about Rijk Zwaan's presence in the U.S.
EC: In the U.S., Rijk Zwaan's " home base " is in Salinas,
where we have a warehouse and research farm for
conducting seed trials and breeding selections. In addition
to Salinas, we have a research farm in Florida where we
conduct early material screening and seed production
research farms in Oregon and Washington.
With our distributors and seed treatment partners, we
try to fulfill all customers' needs when it comes to anything
related to seed. Whether it is new seed treatments/coatings
or technical advice related to a variety or disease, we like
to think we can help any grower out.
I worked on a few small projects with Rijk Zwaan
while I was a graduate student at Washington State
University working for (professor) Lindsey du Toit. After
graduating with a master's in plant pathology, the Rijk
Zwaan representative I worked with in graduate school
referred me to the technical sales position and I guess
I fit the bill.
PP: The USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
several months ago made a big splash about releasing
what they said was the first true red spinach variety.
As someone who works with new spinach varieties,
do you think red spinach will become a new category
for seed providers?
EC: The USDA ARS provides many crucial services to the
industry and have done so for several decades. Concerning
the red spinach, I have seen the press release but I have not
seen the variety perform in the field so I cannot comment
on any potential it may have. Rijk Zwaan has provided
red-vein spinach varieties for over a decade now with our
varieties Red Deer, Red Cardinal, Red Kitten and now,
Red Tabby. The segment remains highly specialized. It is
possible that another niche segment is possible with red
leaf types but in the end, the market will need to decide
if it is more special than red leaf Swiss chard or lettuce.
PP: You have mentioned your love of the challenges
of red radishes, including the interaction of the
genetics with environments. Can you explain how
this works?
EC: To clarify, I mentioned my love of both spinach
and radish. I don't want to make my spinach colleagues
jealous! As a new crop to me, radish is very interesting
since it has a quick turnaround and very specific genetic
by environmental interactions. It is difficult to find
a variety with an incredible amount of what we call
" adaptability " where the variety performs at an elite level
in several different locations, with different environmental
conditions. From a breeding standpoint, it is possible to find
a variety that performs at an elite level in one area. For
profitability, seed production and portfolio management
reasons, we must have a variety that performs well in
many locations.
A variety that has perfect round shape, deep white
internal color and appropriate tops in one location in the
U.S. could have elongated, uneven, and red " bleeding "
roots with a too-short top in another location. The list
of challenges mixed with the fast pace makes the crop
fun to work with.
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November/December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November/December 2020
