This text is part of the Research special section
What if bacteria could save our tomato plants? An INRS microbiology researcher is working on a Consortium for Research and Innovation in Industrial Bioprocesses Quebec (CRIBIQ) project with fertilizer company Agro-100 to find permanent solutions to pathogens that sometimes cause disease in fruits and vegetables. The goal: to find bacteria able to treat tomato plants while fertilizing them and produce an ecological product that farmers can use.
“For several years, the Quebec government has favored greenhouse crops, and even more so since the pandemic episode, which made us realize how dependent we are on other countries,” explains INRS microbiology professor Éric Déziel. Growing in greenhouses also means problems with pathogens and problems with fertilization, adds the expert. “We have to add fertilizers to boost the productivity of fruits and vegetables,” he recalls. Its mission is to develop biofertilizers that would also have an effect in the fight against some infections regularly affecting organic farming. ” Clavibacter michiganensisis, for example, a bacterium that causes damage in almost all greenhouse productions, and we would like to find a biological treatment to get rid of it,” suggests the researcher.
“Agriculture is facing challenges, the consumer perception of traditional production techniques is not necessarily positive,” says Pierre Migner, director of research and development at Agro-100. Of course, he notes the growing interest in organic products, “but that means a lot of restrictions that make it difficult to increase productivity as much as we would like,” he notes. We must therefore opt for innovative products. This is why more and more biostimulants of bacterial origin are appearing on the market, explains Mr. Migner.
Native bacteria to the rescue
Some bacteria are known to produce antimicrobial activities similar to antibiotics, explains Mr Déziel. “We know that certain bacteria can colonize the tomato plant and protect it from pathogen infection,” he explains. The identified bacterial strains will therefore have multiple roles: bioprotection and biostimulation. “They are really products that will have a very wide spectrum of effectiveness, both in terms of protection and in terms of reducing plant stress, such as cold or good absorption of nutrients,” explains Pierre Migner.
Since the project began a year and a half ago, several bacteria naturally present in Quebec soil have been isolated. “We look at the bacteria in our soil because the environment is important, the acidity of our soil, the temperatures… All of that will affect the ability of the bacteria to settle in our environment and compete with the bacteria that’s already there,” he says. Mr. Mignere. Once the bacteria were isolated, “we checked whether they had antagonistic activity against tomato plants as well as their ability to fertilize in vitro,” describes Mr. Déziel. According to the researcher, the collection of collected bacteria is already very promising.
Long steps before validation
Tomato plants will soon be treated with them to see which ones have effective fertilizing properties. The team will also add pathogens to see if the bacteria can help heal the plants. However, the steps are long. In particular, it will be necessary to carry out tests in small greenhouses and then in large ones to assess whether the successful scenario on tomato plants can be reproduced on a larger scale.
“The idea is to carry out tests on research plots this year and see how these bacteria will be able to establish and provide added value,” emphasizes Mr. Migner. Everything will count: disease resistance, field tests and long-term effectiveness.
“There are also many regulatory agencies (that have to step in) before products are validated and marketed. I am referring in particular to the certification phase, once the tests are conclusive,” explains Mr. Déziel. In less than two years, he hopes to identify suitable bacteria that farmers can use in a spray or broadcast product. “The idea is always to replace possible antibiotics or chemicals with products that respect the ecosystem of the plant,” concludes the professor, who has in mind the health of tomatoes and consumers, but also the growing demand for local food.
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