Underpinning National Capacity: Spotlight on the Commonwealth Potato Collection
The James Hutton Institute with the support of the Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture (ENRA) Underpinning National Capacity funding is the custodian of the Commonwealth Potato Collection (CPC). This is an internationally significant potato germplasm resource comprising over 1,500 potato accessions derived from approximately 80 wild and cultivated potato species. Genebanks such as the Common Potato Collection is a vital resource for the improvement and adaptation of the world’s fourth most important food crop, the potato.
For example, the H1 gene from Solanum andigena (clone CPC1673) has delivered durable potato cyst nematode (PCN) resistance in over half of UK potato varieties.
While, RenSeq enabled breeding have accelerated the development of resilient varieties, such as Carousel, with novel resistance to late blight. Genomic tools such as RenSeq have help shorten traditional breeding cycles from 10–12 years to approximately seven, supporting a faster and more sustainable innovation driven pipeline.
Beyond disease and pest resistance, the Commonwealth Potato Collection is now offering an additional source of traits for future potato improvement such as heat tolerance, enhanced protein and nutritional content, and improved cooking quality—key traits for boosting climate resilience and meeting future food demands.
Background
The Impact of Pest and Pathogen Collections on Policy, Environment and the Economy
Published on: 24 June, 2026