Managed variety programs allow a variety owner to control any sports that are found, which apple breeder Dr. David Bedford of Minnesota believes is in the interest of the entire tree fruit industry. The University of Minnesota has assigned the U.S. rights for its new variety, MN 1914, to Pepin Heights Orchard in Lake City, Minnesota, which has formed a cooperative to manage the variety. Under the licensing agreement, the university will own any sports that are found, and the university will decide with the ­cooperative what to do with the sport. Bedford said that with open-release varieties, if a […]