Promising mango varieties and selections open new doors for growers as they were introduced in a virtual presser held by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD).
Livestreamed via DOST-PCAARRD’s Facebook page, the virtual presser served as a platform to highlight the accomplishments of the recently completed 6.5-year program, “Enhancing the Competitiveness of Philippine ‘Carabao’ Mango through Varietal Improvement,” implemented by the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB).
In his welcome remarks, DOST-PCAARRD Executive Director Reynaldo V. Ebora emphasized that the Philippine ‘Carabao’ mango, internationally known as ‘Manila Super,’ is the only export variety of the Philippines. This limits the industry competitiveness due to limited varietal options for export.
This led to the first mango breeding program in the Philippines that aims to increase pest and disease resistance, increase volume of exportable quality production, and prolong the shelf life of mango.
Program leader Carolyn E. Alcasid of the Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB), UPLB served as the resource speaker for the virtual event and shared the new mango varieties and selections identified through the program.
Alcasid clarified that the term “variety” is a mango selection already registered to the National Seed Industry Council, while a “selection” is an identified line with distinct and promising traits.
Two new NSIC-registered varieties, ‘Mangoming’ and ‘Farrales,’ were among the highlights of her presentation, with their potential as processing and table-type mango, respectively.
Alcasid also revealed mango selections ‘Carotene,’ ‘Kyla Luz,’ ‘Tommy Atkins,’ and four ‘Carabao’ strains: ‘IPB Carabao 1,’ FOC Accession Nos. 12-053, 12-209, and 12-127 which were all deemed promising for their qualities such as resistance to pests like fruit fly and anthracnose, thick peel, and red-blushed skin color.
Industry stakeholders expressed their interests on the availability of the mango varieties and selections during the open forum.
Alcasid said that the planting materials of the featured mango selections will be available by the end of the year, once they are approved by the Germplasm and Technology Release and Registration Office of IPB-UPLB.
“We need more plant breeders in our country to catch up with other countries, especially with the fast-changing markets and environment. Fruit breeding is fun, especially if you aim to produce a new variety that will really benefit the people,” said Alcasid as she addressed the aspiring mango breeders.
Media representatives, mango growers, researchers, students, and interested individuals across the country attended the virtual presser. More than 400 individuals registered in the said event.
The virtual presser was conducted by the Crops Research Division (CRD), led by DOST-PCAARRD CRD Officer in Charge Dr. Allan B. Siano and ISP Manager for Mango Ms. Ma. Cecilia S. Alaban.