Hightech meets handcraft

Artificial intelligence, robotics and genome analysis are important tools in modern sugar beet breeding. But the experience and craftsmanship of the breeders remain essential.

Since its foundation in 1856, KWS has pursued the goal of offering farmers increasingly better seeds and higher-performing varieties. The methods and tools have continuously developed: In addition to traditional crossing and selection, today robots, drones, artificial intelligence as well as marker technology and genome analysis are used.

But plant breeding is and always will be handcrafted: A labor-intensive, time-consuming process that breeders like Jens Lein carefully plan and accompany over many years.

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Jens Christoph Lein, Head of Breeding Sugar Beet and Nils Stolte, Breeder Sugar Beet at KWS
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During castration, the closed flowers of the beet plant have to be opened carefully with tweezers in order to remove pollen. Open flowers that have already been pollinated must be cut off beforehand.
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In the isolation sacks made of a special textile, the beet plants get enough light and can continue to grow. After ripening after about 3 months, they are harvested together with the bag, dried and then further processed.
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In trial fields like this, around 1,800 castrations are carried out and around 15,000 to 18,000 beet plants are packed in isolation bags within 4 weeks.
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Only 10 percent of the genotypes that go into performance testing are produced in the foil houses the following year. After 8 to 12 years of development, 1 out of 100,000 varieties are eventually approved.