The Sweet Potato Research Institute (SPRI) – 甘薯研究所 was established in 2002 and is attached to the Xuzhou Agricultural Sciences Research Institute, founded in 1910. Both institutions are affiliated with the Jiangsu Agricultural Academy of Sciences and the Xuzhou municipal government. SPRI focuses on various aspects of sweet potato research, including germplasm innovation and utilization, new variety breeding, biotechnology-aided improvements, efficient cultivation, plant disease and pest prevention, and post-harvest processing.
The institute has collected and preserved over 1,200 sweet potato germplasms and its wild relatives. It has bred around 30 sweet potato cultivars, which now account for half of China’s sweet potato cultivation. SPRI has 11 research divisions, focusing on sweet potato breeding, cultivation, disease and pest control, processing, and utilization. Other divisions include research in wheat, rice, cotton, soybean, peanut, and vegetable breeding, as well as plant protection.
The institute hosts 19 research platforms, including the National Research and Development Center for Sweet Potato, National Sweet Potato Improvement Center, National Modern Sweet Potato Industry R&D Center, MARA Key Laboratory for Biology and Genetic Breeding of Sweet Potato, CAAS Key and Open Laboratory for Genetic Improvement of Sweet Potato, and the Jiangsu Province Sweet Potato Germplasm Gene Bank.
SPRI employs 153 staff, including 108 scientists and technicians, with 12 professors and 39 associate professors. It has established international collaborations with organizations such as the International Potato Center (CIP) and the World Vegetable Center (AVRDC), as well as research institutions in the USA, Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Korea, Cuba, and other countries.
More information: http://en.jaas.ac.cn/Portals/Institutes/Read/1093.
