After many years of selection work, which was carried out at the Zamarte potato farm, a purple potato variety, Provita, was obtained. Portal Potatoes News.
We present you an extremely interesting conversation with Alexandra Bech, a potato breeding specialist in Zamarta. We invite you to read this short interview.
Does the Provita potato variety taste different from the usual and beloved by consumers?
- Purple-fleshed potatoes have a subtle flavor of anthocyanins, which give them their characteristic color. Most people will find it very similar to the taste of classic varieties with white or yellow flesh. Taste is a very subjective sensation. It's best to just try.
Is Provita suitable for making salads?
— Provita belongs to the culinary type B — general purpose. The pulp of varieties assigned to this type, after cooking, remains quite dense, but it is easy to crush it with a fork. Type B potatoes are also used in mashed potatoes.
In your article Selection and Benefits of Purple Potatoes, you show the positive effect of eating purple potatoes on suppressing cancer cell proliferation. Does this mean that eating purple potatoes can reduce the risk of cancer and even slow down the development of cancer cells and the aging process of the human body?
- I believe that the inclusion of Provita in the diet will enrich it with anthocyanins, which have anti-cancer properties. They give Provita a characteristic purple color, but not only to it, but also to other plants. Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables can significantly reduce your risk of cancer, but only if you eat a balanced diet.
Could you introduce readers to other health benefits of Provita?
— Anthocyanins contained in Provit have a positive effect on many systems of our body. First of all, they suppress free radicals and thus protect our DNA from damage. In addition, they have a beneficial effect on the lipid profile and increase the sensitivity of cells to insulin. They protect the circulatory system, reducing atherosclerotic changes in blood vessels and strengthening capillaries. They stimulate the production of rhodopsin, which is responsible for vision, it allows you to see better at dusk. It is worth adding that the negative effects of anthocyanins on the human body have not been proven by scientists.
Of course, eating Provita has a beneficial effect on human health. However, do you have such data or have relevant tests been carried out: what should be the daily consumption of purple tubers in order for our body to feel the positive effect of all the substances contained in the purple potatoes consumed? How many grams of a purple potato should a healthy adult eat per day to take full advantage of its benefits?
— There are many scientific publications about purple potatoes and their positive role in the diet. This year, the Provita variety entered the University of Life Sciences in Wroclaw, where it will be thoroughly tested. The level of polyphenolic compounds (including anthocyanins) and antioxidant potential will be tested. At the moment, it is known that the intense purple color of the pulp indicates a large amount of anthocyanins in the tubers. The amount of dyes in purple potatoes per 100 g fresh weight is similar to the amount of dyes in 100 g raw weight of strawberries, red onions or red cabbage. It is worth emphasizing that all potatoes, not just purple ones, have many valuable ingredients for our body.
Please tell the readers about the breeding process itself.
- Purple forms of pulp, obtained at the first stage of selection, make up only 1% of the entire population structure.
Hodowla Ziemniaka Zamarte Sp. z oo — The IHAR Group specializes primarily in the development of varieties with a reduced growing season. In addition, we also deal with varieties intended for the production of French fries, chips, starch.
Potato breeding begins with the selection of suitable parent pairs. In the case of purple potatoes, it is important that one of the parental forms has firm flesh with an intense and uniform color. Tubers that do not contain blue pigment are excluded from this combination at an early stage. In subsequent years, many characteristics are evaluated, including the length of the growing season, the depth of the eyes, taste, color after cooking, yield, resistance to pathogens.
What was the most difficult for breeders?
— The biggest challenge was to obtain a variety with good agrotechnical and functional characteristics with uniformly colored hard flesh. The choice of components responsible for the purple color of the pulp is significantly limited, since there are few varieties with this color. In addition, most of them have low qualitative and quantitative characteristics and are varieties with a long growing season. In the case of Provita, we were able to overcome several selection barriers, resulting in a variety with skin smooth enough to wash, shallow eyes, fairly high yields, and early and resistant to major diseases.
Please imagine Provita in numbers. Yield, starch content, tuber size.
- Provita:
- Early variety (ripening after about 80 days of vegetation);
- Round tubers with noticeable eyes (COBORU 6.6);
- Culinary type B;
- Starch content approx. 13.5%;
- Medium sized tubers;
- Yield 37 t/ha.
Is Provita resistant to late blight?
— Provita is moderately resistant to late blight. On a scale of 9 (1-susceptible, 9 completely resistant), her resistance is 4.
The variety is resistant to potato cancer. Synchytrium endobioticum - pathotype D1.
The variety is resistant to internal and external defects of tubers.
Is growing Provita different from other varieties?
— Growing Proviti is no different from growing other varieties.
What might attract consumers to purple potato tubers? How to encourage them to buy such an unusual product?
“These days, people are becoming more aware and paying more attention to the products they buy. The additional health benefits associated with the presence of anthocyanins may encourage consumers to replace traditional (white or yellow) potatoes with purple ones due to the greater health benefits.
Has there been any market research done on its future sales? Is the Polish market ready to accept purple potatoes?
— There is a great interest in Provita, both on the part of gastronomes and on the part of consumers. For some time, Provita was sold in one of the retail chains and enjoyed great interest among buyers. Our market research has shown that there is room in the market for this variety, especially because of its superior qualities compared to most varieties available on the market.