ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Green chile is New Mexico’s staple harvest that gets bigger each year and researchers want to make the crop more resilient.
Last year, New Mexico produced more than 54,000 tons of chile – up 5% from the year before. This year could be even bigger if all of the chile plants survive the growing season.
While chile doesn’t require as much water as other crops and can handle hot desert temperatures, farmers face challenges from a fungal disease commonly known as chile wilt. It has threatened chile crops for centuries, especially during heavy monsoon years.
“In some years, it can take out 5-10% of the entire crop. I’ve seen many fields completely wiped out,” said Stephanie Walker, an extension vegetable specialist at New Mexico State University.
While it’s a disease found around the world, Walker said New Mexico has some of the worst strains of it.
“I don’t mean to be dramatic but if there’s one disease that puts us out of business, it would be that,” said Ben Etcheverry, vice president of the New Mexico Chile Association.
Walker already helped revolutionize New Mexico’s chile industry. In early-2021, her team at NMSU developed the “Nu-Mex Odyssey” variety that can survive heavy-duty machinery.
Now, they’re joining forces with researchers at Cornell University who found a way to make pepper plants more resilient against chile wilt. They want to breed a green chile variety that is more disease-resistant and strong enough for mechanical harvesting.
“That’s a huge economic boost for growers if they can get in their field, even if there’s no labor available and know that they’re not going to experience losses to this really devastating disease,” Walker said.
The federal government chipped in $750,000 to fund the project over the next four years. Although, Walker estimates it could take nearly a decade before the variety is ready for mass production.
Rest assured, no flimsy chile will go out to the public.
“We never will develop a New Mexico-type green chile unless we know that it has that amazing flavor that our chile is known for,” Walker said.
While chile wilt is a concern, New Mexico Chile Association leaders say farmers have a lot of experience getting ahead of this disease. They say farmers planted nearly 10,000 acres of Chile this year. It’s up 17% from last year.
Best news of all: The crop is looking pretty good right now.
