Role of genetic engineering in improving potato production

Potato is believed to be one of the most significant noncereal food crops to address the food security concerns in future for the increasing population worldwide. Potatoes are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that make them of paramount significance for impressive health benefits besides. Numerous improvements have been introduced in potatoes for yield and yield contributing traits; however, limitation still exist especially when it comes to abiotic and biotic stresses. Recently, developments in genetic engineering have revolutionized potato breeding remarkably by addressing bottlenecks encountered in conventional potato breeding successfully. The new breeding techniques have allowed the researchers to add, remove, alter, and manipulate gene(s) to encode tolerance/resistance against abiotic and biotic stresses. The improvements in cell biology to regenerate plants from single cells or organized tissues provide a prerequisite for the practical use of genetic engineering in crop improvement. In addition to that, the quality of the potato has also been improved significantly for industrial purposes. This chapter provides a comprehensive understanding of how genetic engineering has contributed to potato improvement in terms of quality, insect pests, and diseases. It also discusses how these modern techniques can shape potato breeding programs for the development of climate-resilient cultivars in future.