ASTA Co-Hosts PBI Webinar

On June 27, ASTA and Euroseeds brought together a panel of stakeholders from across the seed value chain to discuss how plant breeding innovation (PBI) and new genomic techniques (NGTs) could revolutionize European agriculture and how to unlock this potential.

In an excellent opportunity for dialogue between breeders, farmers, and policymakers, the event explored how these technologies could lead to increased farmer competitiveness, cheaper production costs, and a more sustainable Europe.

The event also addressed the regulatory barriers in the EU, with a keynote speech by Jens Boyen, Plant Health Attache at the Belgian Permanent Representation to the EU, which holds the Presidency of the Council of the EU until the end of June. Jens provided a privileged insight into the future of the NGT file currently being considered, which has faced consistent challenges and on which the Council of the EU failed to reach a consensus the day before this event.

Expertly moderated by Jack Bobo, Director of the University of Nottingham’s Food Systems Institute, the panelists explored why strict regulation on gene-edited plants is unnecessary and impedes crucial innovation, hindering the competitiveness of European agriculture.

Plant breeding innovator Jim Radtke, Cibus, explained the science behind targeted gene editing that allows for even safer breeding practices than conventional breeding methods.

Cristina Cionga, Deputy Managing Director of The Forum of Professional Farmers and Processors from Romania (Forumul APPR), outlined the extreme climate challenges that Romanian farmers are facing and called upon European decision0makers to embrace NGTs, to allow European farmers to reduce production costs in the face of “high inflationary pressures.”

Patricija Gran, a young researcher in Seed Technology and part of the Genesprout scientific advocacy group, emphasized that overly harsh regulation ’limits job opportunities for young researchers”, ultimately harming European innovation.

The webinar ended with a consensus that open communication between scientists, farmers, policymakers, and the public is critical to building acceptance.

We hope to continue doing just that at future events. Stay tuned!

Check out the full recording to find out more.