EXPLOITING THE UNTAPPED POTENTIAL OF FRUIT TREE WILD DIVERSITY FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE (FRUITDIV PROJECT)

Abstract

The domestication of fruit trees has resulted in a significant genetic bottleneck, limiting the resilience of modern cultivars to abiotic and biotic stresses driven by climate change. Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) of major pome (apple, pear) and stone (cherry, plum, etc.) fruits represent a critical, yet underutilized, reservoir of genetic diversity for traits like disease resistance and drought tolerance. The FRUITDIV project, a 5-year Horizon Europe initiative (2024-2028), aims to systematically monitor, characterize, use, and conserve the diversity of fruit tree CWR to enhance the sustainability and climate resilience of European fruit production. A multidisciplinary consortium of 27 partners from 14 countries employs an integrated approach across six core research work packages. This includes: (1) creating a comprehensive CWR inventory; (2) advanced genotypic and ex-situ phenotypic characterization; (3) developing multi-omics resources for data analysis and sharing; and (4) using these data to strategically introduce CWR alleles into pre-breeding programs. FRUITDIV will generate and make publicly available a suite of resources, including a detailed CWR knowledge base, genomic datasets, phenotyping data on valuable agronomic traits, and novel pre-breeding plant materials. The project will also deliver frameworks for the sustainable conservation and economic valuation of CWR genetic resources. By bridging the gap between conservation and breeding, FRUITDIV will unlock the genetic potential of wild fruit species. The project's outputs are designed to provide breeders and farmers with the tools and genetic material needed to develop robust fruit varieties, ensuring the long-term productivity and sustainability of European agriculture.