CropTailor
Enhancing Oat Traits Using Genome Technology

The world is largely inclining toward a healthy lifestyle. People’s interest in healthy eating has strengthened in recent years, prompting changes in dietary patterns. Owing to their dietary and health benefits, whole-grain foods such as oats have gained considerable attention.

Against this backdrop, CropTailor, a Swedish plant biotechnology company, is augmenting the beneficial traits of oats using advanced genomic technologies. By enhancing the β-glucan content, the company has created new varieties of oats with improved health and agronomic properties.

“Our goal is to unlock the full potential of oats for the benefit of people and the planet. Using genomics, we sequence, assemble, and annotate the entire oat genome to identify and control the trait-deciding genes,” states Alf Ceplitis, CEO of CropTailor.

The company leverages mutagenesis, advanced biochemistry, and genomic tools to enhance the traits of the grain. Employing its unique mutagenised oat library and proprietary targeted allele mining pipeline, CropTailor identifies specific mutations in gene-of-interest and isolates their phenotypic impact. Based on the results, CropTailor delivers novel varieties to customers as a gene source for breeding healthier oats with high nutritional and agricultural value.

CropTailor uses its genomic expertise to identify mutations and genes that influence plant growth and stress tolerance across the plant life cycle.

The company strives to enhance nematode resistance and reduce cadmium uptake, which can have a negative impact on the human brain. CropTailor conducts field trials at multiple locations to gather real-world performance data on key agricultural variables such as yield, height, uniformity, early maturity and nematodes, mycotoxin, and disease resistance. In addition to analysing drone and environmental data collected by on-site sensors, CropTailor also collects quantitative and qualitative data through direct observation.

The results of an extensive evaluation of CropTailor’s pure-bred oat library in the field show that its oat varieties are more resistant to pests and fungi. This helps growers in reducing the excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers that pose severe threats to ecology, soil health, and groundwater. A notable development by the company in this regard is Armstrong, a new variety of oat that delivers not only clear health benefits but also improves agriculture.

CropTailor is collaborating with its parent company, Lantmännen, and an academic research consortium, ScanOats, to gain a deeper understanding of the genetic profile of oats. This partnership aims to take oat research forward and unlock new business opportunities. CropTailor is also focusing on processing raw oat materials for consumer products and clinical studies, like oat varieties containing increased antioxidants to alleviate gastrointestinal problems and facilitate anti-cancerous effects.

Today, CropTailor has achieved an illustrious position in genomic research. The company is on a mission to propel oat breeding to a new stage by unlocking more traits with the end user in mind. The company is set to partner with seed growers to enable the production of healthy, abundant crops in an era of changing climate. Through its research initiatives, CropTailor is creating opportunities that plant breeding companies can leverage to develop new oat varieties that benefit both consumers and growers.