A University of Queensland study has disproved the assumption that laboratory-based propagation for avocado carries an intrinsic environmental cost.
The study led by researchers from the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation with industry partners provides the first integrated environmental comparison of plant tissue culture (PTC)-based clonal rootstock propagation versus conventional seedling propagation.
Dr Cresha Gracy Nadar said that at a system level, this newer PTC propagation technique did not place a greater burden on the environment.
Instead, environmental performance was mainly determined by orchard management.
“Fertiliser manufacture and application, as well as electricity for irrigation, accounted for most system-level impacts regardless of the propagation method. Additionally, PTC propagation had many benefits,” Dr Nadar said.
Dr Alice Hayward, who co-authored the study, said its capacity for year-round multiplication made it particularly valuable for perennial species, like avocados, that are slow or difficult to propagate by conventional means.
“It rapidly produces large numbers of selected plant genotypes from minimal starting material, reducing reliance on seasonal seeds, mother plants, and traditional cloning methods,” Dr Hayward said.
Associate Professor Sudhir Yadav said with questions about PTC’s environmental costs compared with conventional methods, the team assessed the full system from planting material production through to 30 years of orchard production.
“Results found propagation method was not the greatest environmental burden,” Professor Yadav said.
“Instead, the largest environmental opportunities lie in the orchard stage, through fertiliser optimisation, improved irrigation efficiency, and progressive grid decarbonisation.
“Transitioning PTC propagation facilities to renewable electricity would substantially reduce their small propagation-stage impact. However, the overall effect on the total system global warming potential would be limited because of the burden of the orchard stage.”
“Plus, if avocado rootstocks produced via PTC provide advantages in yield stability over genetically variable seedling rootstocks, its environmental case would be strengthened.
“However, verifying this requires long-term comparative field trials for avocado, which do not yet exist for multiple genotypes,” Professor Yadav said.
The research was published in Environmental Technology and Innovation.
Media contacts: UQ Associate Professor Sudhir Yadav, mobile +61 412 327 990 sudhir.yadav@uq.edu.au; QAAFI media Rebecca Thyer, mobile +61 401 161 907, r.thyer@uq.edu.au
Photos available from Dropbox.
Citation: Cresha Gracy Nadar, Chris O’Brien, Jayeni Hiti Bandaralage, Alice Hayward, Graham Anderson, Neena Mitter, Sudhir Yadav, Life cycle assessment of plant tissue culture technology: A case study of avocado propagation methods in Australia, Environmental Technology & Innovation, Volume 44, 2026, 105257, ISSN 2352-1864
The Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation is a research institute at The University of Queensland, established with and supported by the Queensland Department of Primary Industries.
