New ‘Luna UCR’ Avocado Is One of Time Magazine’s Best Inventions of 2023
‘Luna UC’R avocados. The new avocado variety was recently named one of TIME Magazine’s “Best Inventions of 2023.”
Photo courtesy of University of California, Riverside
A new avocado variety that is the result of decades of painstaking tree breeding by UC Riverside agricultural scientists has been selected as one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2023. The ‘Luna UCR’ is one of TIME’s 200 “groundbreaking” inventions that debuted this year and “are changing how we live, work, play, and think about what’s possible,” TIME said in a statement.
To evaluate the ‘Luna UCR’, a TIME reporter requested in August that UCR ship some avocados to their offices in New York City for taste tests and interviewed UCR scientists. It was selected in TIME’s food and drink category of best inventions.
“‘Luna UCR’ receiving recognition as one of TIME’s 200 top inventions for 2023 is a tremendous achievement,” says Rodolfo Torres, UCR’s Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development. “It represents not only a remarkable innovation but also a glimpse into the future of agriculture and its immense potential.”
The variety is the result of a University of California avocado tree breeding program that started at UCLA just more than 80 years ago, was transferred to UCR in the 1950s, and continues today. It offers consumers a nutty flavor and a smooth texture that’s ideal for guacamole. The ‘Luna UCR’ also has a rind that turns a tell-tale black when ripe and is bred to maintain its quality well after it is harvested.
Growers, meanwhile, benefit from a smaller tree size, allowing denser plantings for more efficient and safer harvesting, and minimal pruning. It also has a type of blossom that makes it an efficient pollinizer for various avocado varieties, including the ‘Hass’, the world’s leading variety.
A U.S. plant patent for ‘Luna UCR’ under its official variety denomination, ‘BL516’ will be issued on Oct. 31, according to a notice from the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
For more, continue reading at news.ucr.edu.
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