Renowned US breeding centre has reached new international agreements with UK-based Global Plant Genetics and Mexican group Fresa Fortaleza
The University of California, Davis, has reached new agreements to license more than a dozen of its world-renowned strawberry varieties to growers in countries across the world.
According to those involved, the agreements ensure that nurseries and fruit growers in Mexico, South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East have access to all available varieties developed by the UC Davis Public Strawberry Breeding Program.
UC Davis remains a hugely influential player in the development and improvement of commercially traded fresh strawberries, with around 60 per cent of all strawberries consumed around the world reckoned to be varieties that were developed by the research institute.
One of the deals sees UK-based Global Plant Genetics (GPG) add 15 legacy varieties of UC Davis strawberry plants to its existing portfolio in China, South America, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
GPG, which has been a UC Davis master licensee since 2018, already manages a dozen of the group’s more recently developed varieties in those markets.
Meanwhile Fresa Fortaleza, also known as F2, is the new master licensee for UC Davis legacy varieties in Mexico. The San Diego-based company has been master licensee in Mexico for the more recently developed UC Davis varieties since 2020.
Moving forward
Earlier this year, UC Davis terminated all of its strawberry licensing agreements with Spanish group Eurosemillas, which had been a master licensee for older UC Davis strawberry varieties in countries outside of the US – a decision it said at the time did “not come lightly”.
Commenting on the new deals, the dean of UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Helene Dillard, said: “We are pleased to have expanded our agreements with GPG and Fresa Forteleza. We appreciate the shared commitment to maintaining outstanding relationships with our nurseries and growers and providing vigorous support for the UC Davis Public Strawberry Breeding Program.”
The new agreements cover: the EU, Switzerland and the UK; Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay; China; and Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Morocco and Turkey.
