For much of the past half-century, farmers have relied on a combination of improved seed varieties and crop protection products to maximise productivity. Today, that balance is shifting.
Across Europe and the UK, tighter restrictions on some pesticides are reshaping pest and disease management, while climate change is creating new challenges, from shifting pest pressures to more frequent weather extremes.
As a result, breeders are placing greater emphasis on traits that help crops withstand insects, disease and environmental stresses before a sprayer ever enters the field.
“Their customers are going to be farmers and growers who need to produce their commodities at the highest possible yield,” says Walker. “Companies are investing a lot in innovation around traits to keep up with that demand.”
Building resistance into the seed
Among the biggest drivers of this trend is insect control.
Walker points to the loss of neonicotinoid seed treatments in the UK as one example of how regulatory changes have increased pressure on growers. As access to some crop protection chemistries becomes more constrained, seed companies are looking for ways to make crops inherently more resilient.
“A lot of seed companies are trying to put some of those improvements into the genetics,” he says. “That would offset some of the losses due to these chemistry restrictions.”
Disease management is following a similar path. While fungicides remain important, breeders are increasingly searching for traits that can reduce a crop’s susceptibility to disease and lessen reliance on chemical interventions.
Rather than replacing crop protection products altogether, the goal is to create crops that work alongside them as part of a broader integrated pest management strategy.
“Seed companies are looking for ways to get the genetics to complement the use of chemical control,” Walker says.
Tackling one of oilseed rape’s biggest disease threats
Walker also highlighted a project that illustrates how gene editing is increasingly being deployed to address specific agronomic challenges.
Cibus is participating in a Defra-backed initiative aimed at developing resistance to light leaf spot, one of the most damaging diseases affecting UK oilseed rape production. The project brings together Cibus with research organisations including the John Innes Centre and the University of Hertfordshire, alongside grower-focused stakeholders such as the British On-Farm Innovation Network (BOFIN).
According to Walker, Cibus is contributing its gene-editing technology to help identify and develop the genetic basis for resistance, with the ultimate goal of reducing losses caused by the disease and improving the long-term viability of oilseed rape as a break crop in UK rotations.
“So Cibus is actually bringing the technology to that, partnering with public institutions such as John Innes Centre and University of Hertfordshire to essentially use our gene-editing technology to engineer the basis for potential genetic resistance,” he says.
The project reflects a broader shift across the seed industry. Rather than relying solely on fungicides and other crop protection products, breeders are increasingly seeking to embed resistance directly within the crop itself. For growers facing rising disease pressure and tighter regulatory scrutiny of agricultural inputs, that could offer a more durable and cost-effective route to protecting yields.
If successful, the work could provide a template for tackling other crop diseases through gene editing, while demonstrating how the UK’s evolving regulatory framework can help accelerate the development of new agricultural traits.
Resilience joins yield on the priority list
The project also reflects wider changes in the types of traits seed companies are prioritising.
Historically, plant breeding focused heavily on increasing yield. While productivity remains critical, Walker says interest is growing in traits that improve resilience to both biotic stresses, such as insects and disease, and abiotic stresses, including heat, drought and other climate-related challenges.
That reflects a growing recognition across agriculture that the highest-yielding variety is not always the most profitable if it struggles under increasingly volatile conditions.
Consumer-focused traits also remain important. Walker highlights growing interest in characteristics such as improved nutritional quality and enhanced oil profiles in crops including oilseed rape and sunflower.
For seed companies, the direction of travel is becoming clear. As access to some crop protection products becomes more restricted and climate pressures grow, breeders are increasingly looking to genetics to deliver solutions once provided by external inputs. The result is an industry placing resilience alongside yield at the centre of its innovation agenda.
World Agri-Tech London Webinar: Event Intel Unwrapped
This interview was conducted at the recent World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London. The full on-camera interview with Christine Gould, alongside discussions with other industry experts, will be featured in AgNavigator’s World Agri-Tech Unwrapped webinar on 4 November. The webinar will also be available on demand. Register for free here
