| Abstract Detail
Economic Botany Section Murch, Susan [1], Ragone, Diane [2]. Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis): Development of a traditional underutilized crop for food security and modern food markets. Breadfruit has been a staple food and traditional crop in the Pacific for more than 3,000 years and is now being cultivated for food security in the Caribbean and other tropical regions. More than 80% of the world's hungry live in tropical and subtropical areas where small increases in the costs of imported food, fuel and fertilizer create periods of increased food insecurity. The Breadfruit Institute at the National Tropical Botanic Garden in Hawaii holds an accessioned,
curated collection of more than 300 mature breadfruit trees representing more than 120 distinct cultivars and all of the closely related species with plant material originating from 34 Pacific Island groups, the Seychelles, Indonesia, the Philippines and Honduras. Bringing breadfruit to modern cultivation and world markets required development of in vitro propagation methods for the traditionally-bred cultivars from the Pacific. Breadfruit propagation is challenging becasue of persistent tropical bacteria and fungi. Breadfruit is in the Moraceae and produces latex as well as phenolic compounds and oxidative stress in culture. Induction, establishment, regeneration, and weaning of breadfruit plantlets in commerciall horticulture facilities requires specialized conditions. Nutritional analysis, yeild, seasonality and environmental parameters have been used to identify eltie cultivars within the germplasm bank. A memorandum of understanding with the countries of origin returns benefit from the commercial production of the crop and more than 50,000 breadfruit trees have been planted in 31 countries to date. Breadfruit is a modern sustainable agroforestry crop that will provide new food products for the future.
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Related Links:
Breadfruit Institute
Global Breadfruit
1 - University Of British Columbia Okanagan, 3333 University Way, Kelowna, BC, V1V 1V7, Canada
2 - National Tropical Botanical Garden, 3530 Papalina Road, Kalaheo, HI, 96741, USA
Keywords:
breadfruit
food security
sustainable agroforestry.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 4
Location: Salon 2/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2015
Time: 10:45 AM
Number: 4011
Abstract ID:1093
Candidate for Awards:None |
