After more than twelve years out of the market, Bayer has resumed the commercialisation of spinach varieties with a genetic proposal designed to address one of the main challenges facing spinach cultivation in Spain: the lack of effective phytosanitary tools against downy mildew. In practice, spinach is grown almost as an organic crop due to the limited availability of active substances on the market, explains José Ramón Martí, Market Development for Spinach. In this context, having a broad resistance package has become an essential requirement for growers.
This scenario has led the company to prioritise genetic resistance as the cornerstone of its strategy. Current varieties show resistance to all official downy mildew races Pe 1–20 (Ir 18). “As far as race 18 is concerned, full resistance is acquired once the plant has developed its first two true leaves, but under real farming conditions resistance is complete.
This has been confirmed over three commercial growing seasons in Spain and during the last season in Nordic production areas, where race Pe 18 showed strong incidence and Bayer’s materials did not register field problems, remaining free from downy mildew,” he explains. This proven behaviour confirms the strong performance of Bayer’s varieties against the race currently exerting the greatest pressure.
Uniformity in spinach
Bayer has developed a semi-savoy spinach line consisting of PukaPuka (the latest), Sumbawa and Taliabu (the fastest), all featuring a highly uniform profile and differentiated by sowing dates. “The idea is to allow growers to offer the same type of leaf throughout the entire season. They have a bright dark green colour, thick leaves, a rounded shape and high visual uniformity.”
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These varieties cover spring and autumn production in Murcia, as well as summer sowings in higher-altitude areas. In addition, Bayer plans to expand the range next season with six new spinach varieties with Pe 1–20 resistance for winter production, incorporating different genetic crosses to further reinforce resistance durability.
Brassicas: mechanisation and stability
In brassicas, Bayer continues to strengthen its High Rise broccoli line with elevated heads for mechanical harvesting, a practice already established in industrial production areas such as the Ebro Valley. Andersia—the industry leader in the Ebro Valley and Extremadura—and Titanium, its bestseller for both fresh market and industry, form the backbone of this strategy, explains José Guirado, Market Development Brassicas Iberia.
In addition, Bayer is introducing Popocatepetl, a broccoli variety already commercialised in Mexico, now launched in Spain and Portugal. With an approximate 90-day cycle, fine bead size, elevated and compact head, strong field holding capacity and good post-harvest performance, it complements Andersia in early transplants for industry and positions itself as a fresh-market alternative to fill the gap left by Shard in recent seasons.
In cauliflower, Bayer maintains its leadership position in Iberia with a broad portfolio covering cycles from 65 to more than 200 days, offering solutions tailored to the specific needs of each production area. Well-established materials such as SV5864AC, “the best-selling variety in Spain,” are benchmarks for their stability, rusticity and planting flexibility, with a window of up to five months. In addition, the Curdivex line—Lucex, Marmorex and Suertex—meets retail requirements for early cycles, delivering a whiter curd than other materials currently on the market during this period.
