Chile tests native Chiloé potatoes in vertical farming systems to protect quality and climate resilience

An interdisciplinary team at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso is studying the native Chiloé varieties Michuñe Negra and Clavela under controlled lighting and nutrition, aiming to preserve quality, boost antioxidants and reduce cold-induced sweetening during refrigerated storage.

An interdisciplinary team at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso (PUCV) is studying the production of native Chiloé potatoes in vertical systems, with the objective of evaluating their response to controlled conditions and generating alternatives in the face of climate change, Argenpapa reports.

The research, led by academic Romina Pedreschi, concentrates on the varieties Michuñe Negra and Clavela, recognised for their genetic diversity, nutritional composition and close relationship with the agricultural heritage of Chiloé — the island archipelago in southern Chile that is one of the historical centres of origin of the cultivated potato.

The researchers will analyse how different light spectra and intensities, combined with changes in the electrical conductivity of the nutrient solution, influence the physiological, morphological and productive development of the plants. The purpose is to determine whether precise management of these variables can improve yield, conserve the nutritional attributes of the tubers and favour the production of antioxidant compounds.

After harvest, the potatoes will be stored for 90 days at 5 °C. During that period, the team will study the metabolic and proteomic changes that could explain their behaviour during conservation.

One of the main problems under analysis is cold-induced sweetening. This phenomenon occurs when tubers stored at low temperatures accumulate reducing sugars, which can alter their flavour, colour and behaviour during frying — a defect that matters as much to snack manufacturers as to fresh-market packers. The working hypothesis holds that the conditions applied during cultivation could reduce that susceptibility and, at the same time, stimulate or maintain antioxidant concentration.

The native potatoes of Chiloé contain pigments such as anthocyanins, associated with high antioxidant capacity. The research seeks to establish whether these attributes can be preserved or enhanced through controlled cultivation. The results could benefit both the fresh potato market and industrial processing; among the possible applications are coloured snacks and the development of varieties with less tendency to sweeten during prolonged storage.

Vertical systems allow the regulation of temperature, lighting, nutrition and water availability. These characteristics could provide greater productive stability in the face of droughts, extreme climatic events and the shrinking availability of agricultural soils. The precise administration of nutrient solutions also reduces water and nutrient losses. However, the researchers will have to determine to what extent these advantages can be applied commercially to potato — a crop that requires more surface area and substrate volume than the vegetables habitually produced in vertical systems.

The project also highlights the value of Chiloé’s native potatoes as a genetic reservoir, a resource that can contribute useful traits for conservation, varietal improvement and the development of products with greater nutritional and agro-industrial value.

Specialists from the PUCV, the Universidad Austral de Chile, the Universidad de Talca, the Universidad de Almería, the Universidad de Granada and the Bioversity Alliance participate in the research. The initial objective is to generate scientific knowledge before considering larger-scale commercial application — using controlled-environment technology to understand, protect and open new productive opportunities for Chiloé’s heritage varieties.