Izmir, Turkey
June 2, 2025
As one of the key examples of the transboundary plant diseases, wheat rusts continue to threaten wheat production, developing resistant wheat varieties is becoming a key strategy for mitigating their impact. Stem rust, leaf rust, and yellow (stripe) rust diseases have the potential to cause severe crop damage and substantial yield losses, endangering food security across the regions.
Innovative breeding methods to combat rust diseases
In response to these challenges, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with various partners, recently facilitated a training of more than 30 wheat breeders and technical officers in advanced breeding techniques. The participants—representing Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—were equipped with tools to develop rust-resistant wheat varieties.
Modern breeding approaches such as speed breeding, molecular techniques, and germplasm screening were introduced during the training. When integrated with traditional breeding methods and effective disease management practices, these technologies can significantly enhance the resilience of wheat crops against evolving rust pathogens and climate-related challenges.
An important component of the training was also understanding the importance of surveillance and race identification of the wheat rust fungi in developing rust-resistant wheat. These processes help researchers and agricultural authorities detect rust outbreaks early, monitor pathogen evolution, and guide breeding and disease management strategies accordingly.
The training programme was delivered by CIMMYT – Turkiye office in the research campus of the Aegean Agricultural Research Institute in Izmir, in collaboration with the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), the Regional Cereal Rust Research Center (RCRRC) and the International Winter Wheat Programme (IWWIP) operated by the General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policy of Turkiye (GDARP / TAGEM), CIMMYT and ICARDA.
Reducing pesticide use and dependency
Suat Kaymak, Head of the Plant Health Research Department of the General Directorate of Agricultural Research (TAGEM), emphasized the importance of resistance breeding as a means to minimize the need for pesticide use.
Climate change is increasing the frequency and spread of rust outbreaks requiring the use of pesticides in control operations. Breeding rust-resistant varieties significantly lower the need for fungicides, which are commonly used to control outbreaks. Therefore, breeding rust-resistant varieties offers a long-term, eco-friendly solution to rust management, as opposed to chemical control, which often requires repeated applications and can lead to fungicide resistance in pathogen populations.
Strengthening regional collaboration
The training was conducted under the framework of the project “Strengthening Regional Collaboration and National Capacities for Management of Wheat Rust Diseases and Resistance Breeding in Central Asia and Caucasus (CAC-Rust)” funded by the FAO-Turkiye Partnership Programme. The project brings together seven participating countries and international organizations such as the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), and the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) fostering international collaboration.
Mesut Keser, Country Representative of ICARDA, emphasized the importance of regional collaboration in breeding wheat for rust resistance as well as for the management of wheat rust diseases.
Beyhan Akin, the senior breeder of the CIMMYT’s wheat breeding programme and coordinator of the training activity highlighted the critical importance of speed breeding approach and related facilities in the campus. She stressed that the approach enables production of 2-3 cycles of wheat in a season and cuts the breeding process significantly.
During the programme, a specific wheat rust research room that had been rehabilitated through the project was inaugurated. The trainees also had the opportunity to visit the rust research laboratories of the RCRRC. Kumarse Nazari of ICARDA, who coordinates the work of the laboratory, emphasized the importance the race analysis and explained how the lab serves the region for this purpose. It provides the highest level of containment to ensure that potentially harmful biological agents do not escape, thereby ensuring safe and effective research.
As highlighted by FAO Agricultural Officer Fazıl Düşünceli at the certificate delivery ceremony, the project has made significant progress in fostering international collaboration and strengthening national capacities for managing wheat rusts in Central Asia and Caucasus. Additionally, it has contributed to the development of contingency plans for the prevention and control of wheat rust at the national level.
Topics
Species
