Development of Near Infared Reflectance Spectroscopy (NIRS) Calibrations for Salvia Hispanica (Chia) Seeds.

A sustainable, affordable source of omega 3 fatty acids has been long sought after. Salvia hispancia (chia) is an ancient crop that has experienced an agricultural resurgence in recent decades, though it could only be grown in central latitudes due to its need for short days to flower. Recently, using EMS and gamma radiation, we have developed a long day flowering mutant which can be grown in the heartland of the United States. To date, it is unknown if the new long day flowering mutants exhibit different phenotypes than their central latitude, short-day flowering cultivars. A comprehensive composition analysis was carried out, assessing oil, protein, fiber, other organics, and minerals of 120 long-day chia seed plots developed in field conditions. Compared to chia grown in other locations, most chia showed composition comparable with wild type chia grown at more central latitudes. Coeffience of variation analysis shows composition diversity in this population was sufficient to develop non-destructive NIRS and NMR calibrations to assess oil and protein levels on whole seeds. Currently models can predict to within +/- 1.5% composition for protein and oil. Variability in seed pigmentation may be affecting the accuracy of calibrations, and pure-colored lines will help improve these models as they become available. These calibrations are the first of their kind to be developed in this crop and can be further improved upon as chia phenotypic seed composition diversity increases. These calibrations will prove useful to breeders and growers who want to quickly assess compostion triats non-destructively, and without the need for expensive wet chemical analysis.