Potato growers of the Penza State Agrarian University revive the glory of the “Penza potato”
In the old days, the phrase “Penza potato” made long queues instantly gather in the markets of the capital of Russia and other cities. Rich fertile soils, a favorable climate provide Penza potato growers with a considerable “handicap” and guarantee excellent taste and quality to tubers loved by the people.
Today it’s time to return the Penza potatoes to their former glory. To strengthen and support the potato growing sector of the region, which has been fairly battered by the winds of economic turmoil in recent decades, the Research and Educational Center for Potato Breeding and Seed Production has been established at the Penza State Agrarian University.
The tasks of this unit are practical and specific – the deployment and sustainable development of the production of seed material of potatoes of higher reproductions on the basis of the training and experimental farm of the Penza State Agrarian University “Ramsay”, the continuation of breeding work with the culture, the long-term experience of which is based on cooperation with the specialists of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution “Federal Research Center for Potato named after A.I. A.G. Lorkha” was accumulated by Penza scientists at the Penza Research Institute of Agriculture, active assistance in the training and retraining of specialists for the potato sector of the entire Volga region, popularization and promotion of scientific achievements and best practices in potato growing.
“There is a lot of work to be done – the revival of the material and technical base, the formation of a qualified team of employees, debugging of algorithms and work technologies. But already now there is reason for optimism – seed potatoes are growing on a small area so far to support small-scale potato farms, there is a scientific reserve and promising breeding samples for creating new varieties of “second bread” in the coming years, – said the head of the Scientific and Educational center of selection and seed production of potatoes Alexander Kabunin. “We have begun to develop an innovative investment project for the development of a potato seed-growing unit at the educational farm, and the repair of a small potato storage facility that has been preserved has begun.”
Potato specialists of the Penza State Agrarian University are open to cooperation and invite all interested specialists, enterprises and organizations to joint mutually beneficial participation in the implementation and further development of the project.
