USDA-ARS
History and Development
The grapevine breeding program of the United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) stands as one of the oldest and most influential state-run breeding initiatives globally. Its history officially commenced in 1923 in Fresno, California, with the establishment of an experimental vineyard under the USDA Bureau of Plant Industry. In 1972, the initiative was integrated into the ARS structure as the department's chief in-house scientific research agency. In 2003, the California-based breeding operations were relocated to Parlier, California.
Concurrently, on the US East Coast, a second powerful arm evolved in Geneva, New York: the Grape Genetics Research Unit (GGRU), which operates in close cooperative synergy with Cornell University. Today, USDA-ARS coordinates the world's most extensive grapevine germplasm repositories (located in Davis, CA, and Geneva, NY). Preserving thousands of wild species and commercial cultivars from across the globe, the service acts as a premier global guarantor of biosecurity for the viticulture industry.
Core Scientific Activities
In contrast to regional university-backed programs, USDA-ARS addresses strategic challenges of federal and international scale. The agency's core focus includes:
- Seedless Breeding (Stenospermocarpy): Conducting fundamental research into the biological mechanisms of stenospermocarpy to develop large-berried table and raisin cultivars with elite market qualities.
- Genetic Mapping and the VitisGen Project: Coordinating the flagship multi-institutional project aimed at digitalizing the grapevine genome, implementing high-throughput DNA screening and molecular markers (rhAmpSeq) to accelerate global breeding pipelines.
- Natural Resistance to Powdery Mildew and Pathogens: Achieving the introgression of critical resistance genes (such as the Run1 locus) from wild species (such as Vitis rotundifolia) into commercial elite lines without compromising fruit flavor profiles.
- Mechanical Harvest Compatibility: Breeding specialized raisin varieties capable of drying directly on the vine (DOV — Dried-on-the-Vine), effectively eliminating intensive manual labor from raisin processing.
Contributions to Viticulture and Winemaking
Over a century of innovation, USDA-ARS scientists have developed and released more than 30 commercial grape cultivars. The agency effectively revolutionized the global table grape market: more than half of the top 15 most widely cultivated seedless varieties on earth were created within USDA-ARS laboratories.
Among the most famous grape varieties bred by USDA-ARS are:
Table and Seedless Varieties:
- Flame Seedless: A legendary red seedless cultivar released in 1973. It became one of the most widely grown and economically significant table grapes in global history due to its crisp texture and exceptional shipping potential.
- Autumn Royal: A late-season, large-berried black seedless variety released in 1993 (bred by D. Ramming and R. Tarailo). It stands out for its natural berry size achieved without gibberellic acid applications.
- Autumn King: An outstanding late-ripening green seedless grape released in 2006, successfully filling the market demand for fresh white table grapes deep into autumn.
- Scarlet Royal and Summer Royal: Highly popular commercial seedless cultivars with firm flesh that form the backbone of modern year-round international table grape exports.
Raisin Cultivars:
- Fiesta and Dovine: Specialized, high-yielding seedless varieties engineered for optimized mechanical harvesting and direct on-the-vine fruit desiccation.
With the opening of the new National Grape Improvement Center facility in Geneva, NY, USDA-ARS continues to spearhead vine biotechnology, successfully reducing both pesticide dependency and environmental footprints across global vineyards.