b'the opposite of a one-trick pony. It must do everythingbecause the moment any part of that chain fails, blame rarely lands on the weather, the truck schedule, or the retail display. It lands on the variety.YIELD IS STILL KING, BUT QUALITY IS THE CROWNMegan Calvert, seedless watermelon breeder at Bayer, speaks in the language of practicality. If growers dont make money, nothing else matters. Yield remains a predominant target because higher yield improves competitiveness and keeps pro-duction viable. But she quickly expands the lens: fruit quality, she explains, centres on appearance and tasteexternal colour, flesh colour, brix, firmnesstailored to the needs of different markets. Diego Maestre is the global crop manager melonMegan Calvert is the seedless watermelon Then come the quiet traits, the ones& watermelon at BASF | Nunhems breeder at Bayer.consumers rarely name but immediately notice when theyre missing. Early matu-rity can help growers gain first-to-market advantages. The ability to maintain qual-ity in the field provides harvest flexibilitysomething that matters when labour is tight, weather windows are unpredictable, or supply contracts demand volume at a cer-tain time. Transport and handling tolerance is essential because a perfect fruit in the field can become a disappointment by the time it reaches retail. A variety must still look good when stacked under bright lights and handled by many hands. In the end, Calvert circles back to the consumer: the right size and shape, vivid flesh colour, and sweetness that actually tastes like a reward.Ashish Patel, head of germplasm developmentcucurbits at Syngenta Vegetable Seeds, offers a similar two-sided view: traits important for growers, andJovan Djordjevic is a watermelon breeder atAshish Patel is the head of germplasm traits important for distributors, retailersMurray River Seed Co., and director of the UCdevelopmentcucurbits at Syngenta Vegetable and consumers. Growers need total yield,Davis Plant Breeding Academy. Seeds.marketable percentage, shape, uniformity, stability across environments, and disease resistances. The value chain needs sugar content, flesh colour, firmness, taste andalso deliver reliable field performance: pre- think they know what theyre buying. A flavour, shelf life, and the ability to traveldictable productivity, uniformity, shelf life,bland slice doesnt just ruin a mealit can long distances without losing quality. Inease of transport, and consistency acrosspush a consumer away from the category.other words: genetics has to solve for bothdiverse climates and growing systems. The the field and the fridge. real challenge isnt maximising one trait,THE SEEDLESS SHIFT: Jovan Djordjevic, watermelon breederits making sure eating quality survives theCONSUMER PREFERENCE MEETS at Murray River Seed Co., and director ofentire journey from field to consumer. BREEDING REALITYthe UC Davis Plant Breeding Academy,Whats striking is that none of theseIf there is one market fact no breeder dis-sharpens the point by putting flavour rightbreeders treat quality as a single number,putes, it is that seedless dominates con-at the foundation. If sweetness is notlike brix. It is a bundle: flavour, sweetnesssumer preference. But the interviews also stable, texture is not crisp, and internalstability, texture, colour, and consistencyshow why seedless is not a simple toggle. colour is not consistent, nothing else mat- after shipping. The real aim is not merelyBreeding strategy changes because the biol-ters. But flavour alone does not carry a vari- to hit a target, but to avoid disappointment.ogy changesand the timeline changes ety to success. Modern watermelon mustWatermelon is a fruit of expectation. Peoplewith it.FEBRUARY 2026|SEEDWORLD.COM/EUROPEISEED WORLD EUROPE I 15'