POTATO PRODUCTION IS IN THE NORTH CENTRAL US IS VITAL TO THE REGIONAL ECONOMY AND PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE NATIONAL POTATO SUPPLY. THE FOUR STATES OF MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, NORTH DAKOTA, AND WISCONSIN ACCOUNTED FOR ALMOST A QUARTER OF THE US ACREAGE, WITH A FARM-GATE VALUE OF ABOUT $1 BILLION. ALL SECTORS OF THE POTATO MARKET ARE PRESENT IN THIS REGION, DOMINATED BY FRY AND CHIP PROCESSING MARKETS, WITH A SUCCESSFUL FRESH MARKET AND EXPANDING SPECIALTY MARKET NICHES. CHANGES IN CLIMATE, CONSUMER PREFERENCE, PRODUCTION ECONOMICS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS REQUIRE CONTINUAL INNOVATION IN THE POTATO INDUSTRY, AND PLANT BREEDING LEADING TO VARIETY COMMERCIALIZATION IS CRITICAL TO MEETING THESE EVOLVING DEMANDS. THIS PROPOSAL, WHICH IS A JOINT EFFORT OF THE POTATO BREEDING AND GENETICS PROGRAMS AT FOUR NORTH CENTRAL LAND-GRANT UNIVERSITIES (UW, MSU, NDSU, UM). THERE ARE FOUR SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES DETAILED: 1) IDENTIFY NEW VARIETIES WITH SUPERIOR AGRONOMICS AND END-USED QUALITY VIA SEXUAL HYBRIDIZATION AND SELECTION AT THE TETRAPLOID AND DIPLOID LEVEL, 2) SCREEN ELITE GERMPLASM FOR RESISTANCE TO KEY PESTS, 3) LEVERAGE GENOMIC TOOLS TO ENHANCE BREEDING EFFICIENCY, AND 4) COMMERCIALIZATION OF NEW VARIETY RELEASES FOR STAKEHOLDER ADOPTION. THE FOUR PROJECT DIRECTORS AND THEIR COLLABORATORS HAVE THE REQUISITE EXPERIENCE, FACILITIES, AND STAKEHOLDER RELATIONSHIPS TO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE THESE OBJECTIVES. THE EXPECTED OUTCOMES FROM THE TWO-YEAR GRANT INCLUDE THE RELEASE OF NEW VARIETIES, THE SELECTION OF NEW BREEDING LINES, NEW MARKERS FOR MARKER-ASSISTED SELECTION, AND PRELIMINARY DATA ON THE FEASIBILITY OF USING A RAPID CYCLING GENOME-WIDE MARKER ANALYSES FOR IMPROVING VARIETY DEVELOPMENT.