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Moderated conference on GMOs in the pipeline, hosted by the FAO Biotechnology Forum in 2012

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Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:52:30 +0100
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I am Dr. Mike May, Vice President of Public Affairs at FuturaGene (www.futuragene.com), a company with laboratories and field operations in Brazil, China and Israel that undertakes plant genetic research and development for the global forestry, biopower and biofuel markets. Our research and development is focused on three main technology platforms: yield enhancement, biomass processability enhancement and yield protection. FuturaGene's key crops are eucalyptus in subtropical regions and poplar in more temperate zones and its most advanced technologies are for yield improvement in sustainable industrial forestry.

Our focus is on the modification of the plant cell wall to stimulate natural growth processes and our results in field trials in Brazil show significant gains in yield in eucalyptus engineered to over-express an Arabidopsis endoglucanase. In parallel, yield protection strategies through modification of plant responses to biotic and abiotic challenges are needed to provide future resilience to environmental shocks and stresses caused by changing climate and diminishing resources and to enable marginal land usage. GM approaches are widely acknowledged to be the most robust approach to providing resistance to the growing number of pests and diseases that are being recorded in plantations around the world. We also recently announced the launch of a partnership with EMBRAPA (Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation) to evaluate the potential of an aluminium tolerance gene in eucalyptus in Brazil and to develop new innovations for sustainable agro-forestry to meet the growing agro-ecological challenges related to productivity.

Our most advanced yield enhanced eucalyptus is currently undergoing environmental safety assessment in advanced regulatory trials at a variety of agro-ecologically distinct locations around Brazil and in which we are observing significant increases in yield above the baseline yield of 45 m2/ha/year.  Detailed biosafety assessments are being carried out under the appropriate normative of the Brazilian biosafety legislation and we will submit a dossier for approval of commercial launch within 5 years.

Improving the technology base of agro-forestry is a key weapon in fighting climate change and driving socio-economic development. Yield enhancement through genetic modification is an important factor in sustainable intensification of agro-forestry.

Since July 2010, FuturaGene has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Suzano Pulp and Paper, a leading integrated forestry, pulp, paper and renewable energy company in Brazil. We welcome the opportunity to participate in this conference.

Mike May, 
Vice President of Public Affairs
FuturaGene.
2, Pekeris Street,
Park Tamar,
PO Box 199,
Rehovot, 76702, 
Israel
e-mail: Mike (at) futuragene.com  
Tel:  34 637 45 77 08
www.futuragene.com 

[To contribute to this conference, send your message to [log in to unmask] For further information on this FAO Biotechnology Forum, see http://www.fao.org/biotech/biotech-forum/]

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