New Cultivar Created to Save Strawberry Industry|台灣研發耐熱草莓"戀香" 糖度直逼日本品種

Thirty years ago, Taiwan modified temperate zone strawberries to make them suitable for cultivation. However, winter is becoming warmer and warmer and as a result, there is a shortage of seedlings. Farmers are suffering huge losses. Now, the Miaoli District Agricultural Research and Extension Station has developed a new, more heat-resistant cultivar named "Lian Xiang." The fruit is shaped like an egg and is as sweet as Japanese strawberries and is therefore regarded as a dream cultivar.


Lian Xiang strawberries grow just one to a stem. They retain their shape no matter how large they grow and have a strong fragrance. It took researchers six years to develop the cultivar, which are less susceptible to heat damage than traditional strawberry cultivars.

They are better able to withstand higher temperatures during the seedling phase. Feng Xiang strawberries, for example, become weaker at higher temperatures. It's the same with humans. When we are physically weaker, we are more likely to get sick.

Three decades ago, farmers successfully began cultivating temperate Feng Xiang strawberries in Taiwan's subtropical climate. Due to damage caused by warmer winters, losses exceeded NT$ 250 million in 2016. The new cultivar is not only better able to withstand heat, but also has a Brix sweetness value of 16.5. This means they are as sweet as peaches and as high in quality as Japanese strawberries.

Japanese people love strawberries. Everyone knows that. The sweeter, the better. Our strawberries are on par with theirs, which rank first in sweetness. So, we believe ours are competitive. This is a dream cultivar and the current savior of Taiwan's strawberry industry.

Imports account for 30 percent of Taiwan's strawberry consumption. The council hopes the new cultivar will make a splash on both the domestic and overseas markets. The cultivar's plant variety right has already been approved and the strawberries could be available by Chinese New Year next year.



新品種草莓「戀香」，一支梗只長一顆果實，就算果實變大，也不變形維持卵形，氣味濃郁卻清香瀰漫，除了賣相比傳統品種好，花六年時間研發出的「戀香」，最突出之處在於更耐熱。

農委會苗栗農改場助理研究員 吳岱融表示：「它在高溫之下育苗的時候，它也比較不容易弱化，因為像「豐香」如果過度高溫的話，它本身就會比較弱，就好像我們身體弱的時候就比較容易生病。」

三十年前國內成功培育「豐香」，讓亞熱帶台灣也能種出溫帶草莓，只是冬天越來越熱，2016年豐香發生嚴重病害，導致種苗死亡，損失超過2億5千萬元，農民期待有更耐熱的品種。而戀香不只耐熱，糖度達16.5度，相當水蜜桃，直逼日本草莓品質。

農委會苗栗農改場長 呂秀英表示：「日本人很喜歡吃草莓，大家也知道，然後追求糖度要高，我們不輸他們這個排行第一名的糖度，所以我們覺得它有競爭力，這個是一個夢幻的品種，也是目前台灣草莓產業的救援品種。」

國內使用的草莓超過三成是進口，農委會希望產量高、果實大、甜度高的新品種「戀香」，搶攻國內市場更能擴展外銷，它的品種權已通過審議，準備開放授權，最快明年春節能上市。