The Bavarian Center of Pomology and Fruit Breeding breeds premium apple, pear and plum varieties in Hallbergmoos, Germany. It maintains the biggest breeding programme for the European plum fruit species worldwide, which include our “Zwetschen”(prune plums), damsons, gages and mirabelles. The new varieties are available for fruit-growers after extensive testing. The most important breeding goals for stone fruit are high fruit quality paired with a reliable high yield and resistance to Plum Pox Virus. More information is available at www.bayoz.de.

CEP INNOVATION is a private company involved in breeding, the development and commercialisation of fruit varieties.

It was founded by nurserymen involved in certification processes and interested in cultivars and rootstocks innovations.

CEP INNOVATION involves expert committees, experimenters and licensors in the experimentation, with a deep-follow-up of the new material by expert commissions, experimenters, licensees and by participation into research and demonstration projects based on the improvement of their activities.

To promote and develop its selection of cultivars and rootstocks, CEP INNOVATION with a network of companies and partners in France and abroad.

COT INTERNATIONAL is a company which selects and promotes new fruit varieties of apricots, cherries and plums.

The most important selection criteria are:

• Extension of the variety chart
• Improvement of the agronomic characteristics: self-fertility, productivity and regularity of production
• Easy tree management
• Optimisation of the storage properties
• Resistance and tolerance to unfavourable weather conditions and diseases
• Intense flavour and well coloured fruits with good size and firmness

The multiplication of trees is carried out by selected nurseries certified by COT INTERNATIONAL. All varieties are registered in the official CTPS (Plant Selection Register) and for COV applications (plant variety protection certificate).

BEE stands for breeding programmes and variety testing of apricots, apples and plums in Europe.

The licence management and commercialisation of our varieties take place throughout Europe and the Mediterranean region.

An intensive variety testing is carried out numerous locations.

In this way we test the cultivation suitability in different climatic conditions.

The control of international variety and trademark protection is also part of BEE`s activities.

Pomology - sustainable and productive!

The Department of Pomology is engaged in the study of berries, pomes and stone fruit.  The primary objective is the transfer of fundamental scientific findings into a sustainable production.  Currently, the main areas of activity are breeding and breeding research in apples, pears and the berry fruits redcurrants and gooseberries.  Based on breeding a new cultivation system is being researched for columnar apple varieties.  Other key areas are the water balance and irrigation of pomological crops and their yield physiology and quality formation, including those cultivated under cover. In the area of climate-induced changes in cultivation questions of dormancy in strawberries and spatial modelling of phenological phases such as the start of flowering are the focus of research.

LFP (Licences for Fruits and Plants GmbH) was established in 2016 for the commercialisation of the late ripening sweet cherry varieties from the breeding programme of Hilmar Gräb.
As the sole legal owner of the varieties, LFP develops a globally oriented marketing concept. Strategies for the particular organisational and cultivation structures are developed together with partners.
In 2004 Hilmar Gräb decided to start an own breeding programme focused on high quality fruits with a late ripening time. All seedlings from the open pollination of the mother variety SWEETHEART™ Sumtare (S) have been fruit-bearing since 2008 and have been tested according to a strict scoring system.
In the meantime, breeding has been extended to selective pollination and early varieties. 
The most important selection criteria are: late ripening time, fruit size, firmness of the fruit flesh and texture, cracking stability mainly at the pistil point, regular and high yields without any tendency to overcropping, flavour in combination with high Brix values, tolerance to high temperatures during maturation, tree and leaf healthiness as well as storage and transport behaviour.
The most promising selections have meanwhile been applied for EU plant variety rights and registered as trademark.

PSB Producción Vegetal SL is a family business established in 1995 by the BUFFAT family in Murcia (South-East of Spain). Our company stands out for being specialised in new stone fruit varieties, mainly apricots, peaches and nectarines. We are also stone fruit growers.
Twenty years ago, we decided to develop a programme of variety improvement focused on early varieties, with agronomic properties that would allow them to adapt perfectly to the Mediterranean climate, especially in terms of chilling needs.

The success of our early low-chilling varieties has led us to develop a complete range. We have created three types of varieties depending on their harvest period: early, seasonal or late varieties. Our research focuses on the study of self-fertile apricot varieties and stone fruit tolerance to some diseases, such as sharka, monilia and leaf curl.

Our latest research results have led to the recent launch of our range of red skinned apricots called Red Premium™. In addition to developing a highly attractive colour, we took a new direction and worked on taste. We obtained very sweet, surprising flavours with a touch of both berry and exotic fruits.

We are currently working on an own range of late apricots: Red Buffalo™. For this project, we have made a rigorous selection of self-fertile varieties, which stand out for their juicy flesh and exceptional taste.

We are also developing other promising novelties: a range of red fleshed apricots with unique flavours and a range of yellow skinned nectarines and blood nectarines, both sweet and aromatic with a melting and juicy flesh.

The trustworthy relationship we share with many growers around the world is our greatest motivation which continues to drive us forward.

For more than 50 years STAR FRUITS ® has been searching the best fruit varieties all over the world, to provide them to fruit growers.

Over the time STAR FRUITS ® created an international network of breeders and has a close cooperation to private breeders, universities and experimental stations to commercialise their varieties. Today, the four involved members are: Cros Viguier, Toulemonde, Val d‘Or and Veauvy nurseries. By the 1980s, they created Star Export ® whose tree trading activity allowed STAR FRUITS ® to set up early export markets.

The company ViruTherm, which is located in south-west Germany (Rheinstetten near Karlsruhe), is specialised in the health maintenance of fruit plants. On the basis of long-standing experience heat therapy has been further developed as an efficient method to eliminate phytoplasmas, bacteria and viruses from infected fruit plants to receive pathogen free plants. ViruTherm´s main activities are:

• heat therapy
• marketing of phytoplasma resistant pear rootstocks
• breeding of phytoplasma resistant apple and pear rootstocks
• conservation of mother plants for certified pre-basic and basic material with national and EU certification standards and regulations
• commercialisation of new exclusive plum varieties

Summerland Varieties Corp (SVC) is a corporation based in British Columbia, Canada, which is engaged in the national and international management of plant variety rights. They license new varieties of fruit trees and soft fruits. SVC represents governmental as well as private breeders. On behalf of the holders of intellectual property SVC grants rights to growers and third parties for propagation, fruit production and marketing of new varieties.

Gräb Nursery is the general license holder for Summerland-varieties in Germany since 1994.
We test the most favoured clones in our testing sites for their cultivation suitability under local conditions.