Growing with Genomics: Accelerate Breeding, Screen for Pathogens, and QC Product

In order to stay competitive in an increasingly crowded marketplace, savvy cannabis and hemp cultivators will need to maximize their yield, protect their crops, and ensure their products will pass safety testing. In this presentation, Kevin McKernan of Medicinal Genomics will explain how cultivators can use sequencing and DNA-based testing tools to achieve those three goals. First, using genomic sequencing services, cultivators can identify important genetic markers for desirable traits (chemical profile, flowering time, etc) which can be used to choose which plants to cross and then screen the offspring. And once the desired cultivar is bred, qPCR tests can be used to make sure it and any cuttings that come from it are pathogen-free. Finally, cultivators can use qPCR tests to QC their finished product for microbial contamination, using the same technology that third-party testing labs use.