The IV Open Day at the research and experimentation center of the breeding company Nova Siri Genetics (NSG) in Policoro (Matera) was held yesterday morning, 10 April 2025. This is an annual appointment, which allows strawberry chain operators to visit the company's premises and get a closer look at the daily activities carried out, which focus on research, experimentation, and the multiplication of new strawberry and small fruit varieties.
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© Vincenzo Iannuzziello | HortiDaily.comAudience at the workshop
The doors of the research centre thus opened to host many experienced operators, including nursery owners, producers and distributors, who came to the centre not only from different Italian areas, but also from Poland, Hungary, Albania, Algeria Morocco, India, Spain and the Netherlands.
"We have been sharing our project with many players in the supply chain for two decades, as we know that research must accompany the supply chain and receive from it the stimuli to improve," explained Carmela Suriano, EMEA Director of NSG. "Over time, we have built up solid relationships on both a national and international level. Our varieties, which originate here, are present not only in Europe but also in South Africa, India, South America, and Australia. This result has been achieved thanks to the commitment and constant work of the entire NSG team, with the focus on a breeding programme that has been able to respond to the new demands of the strawberry and small fruit sector. In fact, our programme has been able to offer important varieties from an agronomic point of view as well as in terms of fruit characteristics. We need to continue to innovate and give strawberry growers new solutions."
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© Vincenzo Iannuzziello | HortiDaily.comLeft to right: Nicola Tufaro (NSG breeder), Annamaria Recchia (Phd senior consumer and Senior Adacta International), Carmela Suriano (NSG EMEA director), Bruno Merzetti (lecturer at the University of Marche) and Salvo Garipoli (SGMarketing director).
The NSG staff took guests on a guided tour of the fields, laboratories and the greenhouse for growing and preserving plant material developed by the company, enabling everyone to enjoy an experience that included the tasting of new advanced selections of berries and strawberries.
Three new selections (named A, B, and C for now) planted in the experimental fields were presented to guests for tasting. These are cultivars resistant to climate change and major plant diseases and also boast interesting characteristics on the sensory front, as shown by Annamaria Recchia, Phd senior consumer and Senior Scientist at Adacta International in her final speech at the workshop.
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© Vincenzo Iannuzziello | HortiDaily.comItalian visitors in the experimental fields.
Professor Bruno Mezzetti of the Marche Polytechnic University explained how change is not only climate-related, but referred to something broader, and illustrated the existing competition in the world of production, genetic improvement and the release of new varieties.
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© Vincenzo Iannuzziello | HortiDaily.comProf. Bruno Merzetti, Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, Polytechnic University of Marche.
The professor then showed the audience the activities part of a European project, which he himself coordinated. "Genetic diversity is the first element to take into consideration in our line of work. Genetic improvement has helped reduce genetic variability, as we have focused on varietal production programmes with specific characteristics, while losing sight of other important characteristics, such as fruit quality."
Forty-four new strawberry varieties were registered in Europe in 2019. One may wonder how many of these are currently and actually on the market. In four years, the average was 30 varieties registered per year. This demonstrates the strong competition in commercial dissemination and Europe's role in breeding, although several cultivars arrive from other continents. For small fruits, on the other hand, and blueberries in particular, the trend is reversed. Europe has a big impact in blueberry cultivation, but no cultivars that have been bred on the old continent."
© Vincenzo Iannuzziello | HortiDaily.comNicola Tufaro, breeder of Nova Siri Genetics, outlined the company's scientific approach to breeding, focusing on the concrete needs of nurseries and growers.
Nicola Tufaro, breeder of Nova Siri Genetics, explained that "when it comes to breeding, we are facing considerable challenges such as climate change, the continuous reduction of plant care products, the demand for more sustainability from growers, markets and consumers, the strong seasonal adjustment of strawberry demand and a necessary improvement of fruit quality. We are focusing on shelf life, aroma, colour, and a balance between sugars and acidity."
Nova Siri Genetics confirms that the fifth Open Day will take place in April 2026.
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For more information:
Nova Siri Genetics Srl
Via San Maurizio, 46
75025 Policoro (MT)
info@novasirigenetics.com
www.novasirigenetics.com