Organic production is a system of farm management and food production that combines the best environmental and climate action practices, a high level of biodiversity, and the preservation of natural resources. Organic production requires the use of genotypes/cultivars adapted to this system, so identification or development of the best genotypes is essential for development. It is necessary to increase and accelerate the availability, accessibility, and adoption of strategies and approaches that improve the yields of crops grown under organic conditions, including organic-targeted plant breeding.

Organic farming has specific breeding needs, and it is essential to provide organic farmers with modern varieties suited to serve the present organic food sector. Organic plant breeding (OPB) is still a small sector and the varieties used in organic farming are mainly derived from conventional plant breeding. There are still considerable gaps in the assortment of suitable cultivars for organic and low-input farming. There is a need to better understand the relationship between yield, resilience, and product quality and how to combine these different traits in new cultivars for organic production.

The goal of this Research Topic is to bring forward the latest research in Organic Plant Breeding (OPB).
We welcome submissions on the following research themes but not limited to:
- Identification of best germplasm for organic farming needs.
- Increased knowledge of genetic control of relevant traits for OPB.
- Resistance/tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses for better adaptation to organic farming.
- Broad multi-location testing to better exploit G×ExM.
- Quantitative and association genetic research to understand both the extent of variation and genetic architecture of useful traits in Organic Farming.
- Development and adoption of predictions of germplasm performance with the aid of high throughput genotyping platforms and phenotypic information derived from multi-location testing.
- Appraise the use of cultivar mixtures to increase resilience.
- Pros and cons on the use of new breeding technology.

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Frontiers in Plant Science

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