1. Front Cover.cdr - CORE

Plenary session 1
A B S T R A C T B O O K – A B S T R A C T S O F T A L K S
BIOTECHNOLOGY AND INDUSTRY
Mike Bushell 1 , Jeremy Godwin 2
1 Syngenta International Research Centre, Jealott’s Hill, Bracknell, UK
2 Syngenta R&D, Stein, Switzerland
E-mail: mike.bushell@syngenta.com
There are many global challenges for which sustainable solutions are urgently required.
Taken together, tackling issues of poverty reduction, food security, water and energy
security, in the face of climate change and a world population rising beyond 10 billion
people before 2100, presents a daunting prospect - well described as “a perfect storm”.
All of these challenges relate to agriculture. We need to grow more food, yet availability
of new land for agriculture is limited. Crop and livestock production accounts directly for
about 14% of all Greenhouse Gas emissions. An additional 17% GHG emissions come from
land use changes such as deforestation, which also impacts negatively on biodiversity.
Agriculture consumes about 70% of all fresh water usage. Water is already a limiting
resource in many parts of the world, and is often being used unsustainably. Diffuse
pollution from farming activities can also affect water quality. Energy is used to create
farm inputs, such as synthetic fertilisers, and land is used to grow crops for biofuel, or
wood for burning. Raising the economic wellbeing of people in poor rural communities is
critical to addressing all the millennium development goals.
In short we need to “grow more from less”, meeting the demands for food using land
and natural resources much more efficiently. We need local solutions that strike the right
balance between environmental, economic and social issues. There is a growing body of
opinion that the Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture is a critical approach, taking an
holistic view of farming – a systems approach at field, farm and landscape levels.
Biotechnology is a vital tool for agriculture, and will increase in importance in the future.
Plant biotechnology is often seen as synonymous to Genetic modification of crop plants,
which is a controversial area for some people. Use of GM organisms in producing many
other products, such as enzymes or pharmaceuticals, does not raise the same level of
passionate debate. With the exception of Europe and most of Africa, GM crops are a
valuable and widely accepted technology, grown on around 10% of the global arable crop
area. 15 years experience and a huge body of scientific evidence show that GM crops are
as safe to grow and eat as non-GM crops. Yet Plant Biotechnology is not all about GM
crops; it is much more than that.
Unlocking the secrets of the plant genome has given us sophisticated tools to accelerate
the breeding of superior new plant varieties through the use of genetic markers that
correlate with desirable properties. “Marker assisted breeding” is a key technology for
crop improvement. Diagnostics are widely used in human health care, and similar tools
can help with plant disease prediction and resistance monitoring. Engineered microorganisms
are used for precision screens and mode of action diagnosis. A systems
approach to farm productivity will integrate agronomy knowledge with the best available
agricultural technologies, including Plant Biotechnology . This presentation will look at
integrated approaches to Sustainable Intensification using examples of approaches for
abiotic stress tolerance and water use efficiency, insect and fungal disease control on a
range of globally important crops.
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