BASF Plant Science takes Amflora case to EU Court

BASF filed action against the EU Commission for failure to act

Approval for Amflora still not granted despite positive safety assessments and a 12-year approval process

Amflora is a safe and environmentally friendly product that brings a yearly added value of more than €100 million to Europe’s farmers and potato starch industry

Limburgerhof, Germany – July 24, 2008 – BASF Plant Science today filed an action with the European Court of First Instance in Luxembourg against the EU Commission for failure to act. According to the company, the approval process of the cultivation of Amflora, its genetically improved potato, has been unjustifiably delayed by the EU Commission on several occasions. In particular, this includes the period between July 2007 and May 2008 during which Commissioner Stavros Dimas did not adopt the approval for the cultivation of Amflora
following the completion of all other procedural steps.

“EU Commissioners have postponed Amflora’s approval despite repeated positive safety assessments by EFSA, the European Food Safety Authority. Although we welcome some positive signs by the Commission and President Barroso, such as their commitment to base
decisions regarding genetically modified products purely on science, we are not prepared to accept any further delays,” said Dr. Stefan Marcinowski, Member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF

“We are filing this case in order to ensure that European farmers and starch producers get access to an innovative product that offers them a potential added value of more than €100 million annually. In addition, we estimate that failure to approve Amflora is depriving BASF Plant Science of peak license income of €20 to 30 million per lost cultivation season,” said Dr. Hans Kast, CEO and President of BASF Plant Science GmbH.

The process to date:
• The Amflora approval process was initiated 12 years ago with the request for authorization submitted in August 1996.

• During the moratorium on genetically modified products between 1998 and 2004, no approvals for genetically modified plants where granted in the EU.

• BASF Plant Science resubmitted a dossier for cultivation and a dossier for food and feed use in 2003 and 2005, respectively, due to modified EU regulations.

• In 2006, EFSA concluded for both dossiers that Amflora is as safe for humans, animals and the environment as any conventional potato.

• In November 2006, Commissioner Dimas forwarded his proposal for authorization of cultivation of Amflora to the EU Member States.

• After two inconclusive votes in the Regulatory Committee in December 2006 and the Council of Agricultural Ministers in July 2007, Commissioner Dimas failed to adhere to the defined approval procedure defined by the EU and to adopt the proposal for cultivation.

• BASF addressed the issue through an open letter to Commissioner Dimas on April 17, 2008.

• The dossier for food and feed use was voted upon in the Standing Committee in October 2007 and Council of Agricultural Ministers in February 2008. According to the defined EU approval procedure, the responsible Directorate-General Health and Consumers has been responsible for adopting the proposal since February 2008.

• In its “orientation debate” on genetically modified plants on May 7, 2008, the Commission decided to request EFSA to prepare a new consolidated scientific opinion on the use of antibiotic resistance marker genes in genetically modified plants by September 30, 2008. Such a marker gene is also used in Amflora.

• In a press release following the debate, Commission President Barroso stated that Amflora will be approved “if and when” EFSA confirms the safety of antibiotic resistance marker genes.
• EFSA responded recently that an opinion can be finalized not earlier than by December 15, 2008.

• On May 19, 2008, BASF Plant Science formally requested access to any documents in the possession of the EU Commission in connection with the authorization procedure for Amflora. These documents did not reveal any new scientific evidence regarding the safety of Amflora.
• Today, one year after the vote in the Agricultural Council, the last formal step prior to adoption of a decision, BASF Plant Science filed an action with the European Court of First Instance against the EU Commission for failure to act.

About Amflora
Amflora is a genetically optimized potato that produces pure amylopectin starch and
is ideal for technical applications. Conventional potatoes produce a mixture of
amylopectin and amylose starch. For many technical applications, such as in the
paper, textile and adhesives industries, only amylopectin is needed; separating the
two starch components is uneconomical. Amflora produces pure amylopectin starch
and thus helps to safe resources, energy and costs. Moreover, paper produced with
amylopectin starch has a higher gloss. Concrete and adhesives can be processed for

a longer period of time.

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BASF at forefront of agricultural innovation

Innovation is the basis for success at BASF today and in the future, according to the presenters at the BASF Media Summit held in Washington, D.C., May 12-14, 2008. From the introduction of breakthrough new products, such as Kixor™ herbicide, to the expansion of the BASF Plant Health portfolio and development of new formulation technologies, to new traits for yield and stress from BASF’s plant biotechnology company, all are pivotal not only to the company’s
profitable growth but also to the advancement of U.S. agriculture in the years ahead.

Dr. Stefan Marcinowski, member of the board of executive directors at BASF, said that global megatrends related to health and nutrition, housing and construction, energy and resources, mobility and communication, underpin the need for innovation and provide the impetus for BASF’s strategy. “Accordingly, our agricultural business received the largest allocation of global R&D expenditures of €1.45 billion, of all BASF businesses in 2008,” said Marcinowski.
On the subject of plant biotechnology, Dr. Hans Kast, President and Chief Executive Officer of BASF Plant Science, indicated that the research and development focus for BASF Plant Science is concentrated in three areas

– more efficient agriculture, renewable raw materials and healthier nutrition for humans and animals. “BASF Plant Science has a unique technology platform to support our gene discovery work in these areas,” said Kast. “It combines phenotypic screening with high throughput metabolic profiling to determine gene function, which has led to a broad and diversified early
stage pipeline of lead genes.”

“Today, growers seek to maximize productivity on limited land and to minimize their risk in light of rising input costs,” said Michael Heinz, President of BASF’s Crop Protection division. “For both, they need innovative solutions. As the division’s business results last year and in the first-quarter of 2008 have shown, our long-term strategy of investing in innovative solutions is
paying off,” he added. Heinz pointed out that innovation at BASF comes from all facets of the business – from research and development, to new business approaches and value-adding services.

Dr. Peter Eckes, Senior Vice President Global Research and Development for Crop Protection at BASF, stressed that new active ingredients are key to future success and points to Kixor herbicide as a good example. “Such breakthroughs are providing our customers with the tools they need to improve productivity.” According to Eckes, BASF Crop Protection research
and development is fueled by the company’s extensive corporate research platform. As an example, he highlights new product innovations based on BASF’s best-in-class polymer research. “With new polymer technology we can give existing active ingredients, such as Prowl H2O® herbicide, for example, better performance. The new encapsulated formulation provides
targeted release and better efficacy. We are also translating these advances in formulation technologies into new product concepts that will provide new benefits to our customers.”
BASF is also building on the leadership and success of its Plant Health platform with Headline® fungicide. “Headline has clearly established a solid track record in field crops over the last four years with its Plant Health benefits. So much so, that more than 10 million acres of corn and soybeans were treated with an application of Headline in 2007,” said Markus Heldt,

Group Vice President, North America, BASF Crop Protection. Now, Heldt said, BASF is leveraging the expertise developed with Headline in field crops for the benefit of other sectors such as turf and ornamentals and fruit. He pointed to the Plant Health work currently underway in the organization’s turf and ornamental business and the potential for Plant Health to play a
significant role in addressing issues, such as product shelf life and water restrictions for the ornamental plant production and golf course industries respectively.

Also presenting at the BASF Media Summit were Adam Burnhams, BASF Marketing Manager, U.S. Crop Protection, who highlighted innovations such Page 3 P 262/08e as BASF’s work with Rockford Map Publishers to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of aerial application of products such as Headline through the digitization of plat maps. Paul Rea, Director of Specialty Products at BASF, spoke of new products, including Clearcast™ herbicide and flexible product
packaging for the pest control, vegetation management and turf and ornamentals markets. Jonathan Bryant, Director of North American Business at BASF Plant Science, showcased NutriDense® nutritionally enhanced corn, which provides better rations and improved animal performance in dairy and swine operations.

Source: http://www.agro.basf.com

BASF AND MONSANTO ENTER INTO AGREEMENT FOR NEW

BASF SE (DAX: BAS) and Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) have signed an exclusive agreement for a new fungicide seed treatment solution for soybeans in the United States. The new product contains BASF’s top-selling fungicide F 500®, the same active ingredient found in Headline® fungicide with its disease control and plant health benefits. The treatment, which is expected to be commercialized in conjunction with the launch of Monsanto’s Roundup Ready 2
Yield™ soybean seed offering, will provide soybean farmers with early-season disease protection which results in improved stand and extra vitality.

“We’re pleased to be partnering with BASF to deliver new seed-based technology to soybean farmers,” said Carl Casale, executive vice president for Monsanto. “We feel the product will be the best seed treatment fungicide available to complement our new Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybean offering. In today’s demand-driven agriculture landscape, seed treatments are a natural fit in maximizing the realizable yield from seed and traits that are so important to
farmers.”

“We’re happy that U.S. soybean growers will have access to this exciting new product from our SeedSolutions pipeline in the 2009 growing season,” said Markus Heldt, head of BASF’s Crop Protection business in North America. “This fungicide seed treatment is the first in this new generation of BASF seed treatment products that the company plans to launch globally over the next couple of years, and it is the perfect complement to Headline® fungicide to get seedlings off to a strong start,” he added.

Under the agreement, Monsanto will have exclusive rights to commercialize the new fungicide seed treatment in soybeans. Additional details of the agreement were not disclosed.
Since building up its seed treatment research facilities four years ago, BASF scientists have focused on bringing new active ingredients with proven disease control and other early-growth plant health benefits to seed partners and ultimately to the grower.

Earlier this year, Monsanto announced that it was establishing a global seed treatment platform focused on identifying new proprietary seed-based technologies that can be launched in parallel with its higher-yielding soybean, corn and cotton seed and traits offerings. In 2009, Monsanto plans a controlled commercial release of Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans that will be treated with a proprietary treatment containing F 500.

Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans are the second generation of Monsanto Roundup Ready soybean technology that will deliver top-end yield potential, helping farmers meet the growing global food and fuel demands.

NEW! RioLife Pure Dried Acai, Australia

"Açaí is one of my favourite things to eat in the world!" claims Kelly Slater, world champion surfer. From sports stars to specialists, many celebrities are now recognizing the positive effects of RioLife açaí. The açaí berry, pronounced AH-SIGH-EE has been heralded as "Natures Perfect Food" by the U.S Health Sciences Institute. Açaí is certainly a healthy option; the berries are grown in the Amazon rainforest and are packed with antioxidants. The people living in the Amazon region in Northern Brazil have consumed Açaí for thousands of years, and its healing and sustaining powers are legendary. In Belém, the colonial port at the mouth of the Amazon, about 200,000 litres are drunk every day — more than milk. All the juice bars that line the blocks near Ipanema and Copacabana do a roaring trade. In fact, açaí is more of a lifestyle option than a foodstuff. It is the magic potion that fuelled the hedonistic energy of Brazilian beach culture.

In Australia açaí has become readily available through RioLife (http://www.riolife.com.au), a Sydney based business founded by three young guys who have been friends since school days. The young entrepreneurs were travelling and working in Rio de Janeiro, California, and Singapore in 2005 when friends introduced them to what the young men call a Rio Bowl - liquefied açaí pulp and guarana syrup blended with banana and topped with granola and sliced bananas. They were instantly hooked and after seeing the amazing success of the product in both Rio and California, the trio decided to start their own company ‘RioLife’ and bring the açaí sensation to Australia.

RioLife Managing Director Jeremy Liddle said they first launched açaí at various juice bars and cafes on the Northern Beaches. “The main products were the famous Rio Bowl and Rio Juice, which were based on authentic Brazilian recipes. Now we’re very excited about this new pure dried açaí product,” said Jeremy Liddle. "This is the first 100% dried açaí product available in Australia, and we’re expecting it to appeal to a much broader market, and be available to more people as we can post out rather than worrying about frozen distribution" says Jeremy.

“RioLife has already launched our Pure Dried açaí in New Zealand, and nn 2008/2009 we are focusing on launching a whole range of açaí based products into health food stores across both NZ and Australia” stated Jeremy.

“It's RioLife’s goal to make açaí an essential lifestyle fruit for healthy living and sustainability, as every unit sold is contributing to the sustainability of the Brazilian rainforest. 1% of all retail sales of RioLife açaí products carrying the ‘Amazon Friendly’ logo will be sent back to the Amazon to pay for ‘Fruits of the Amazon’s’ social projects like the construction of a school. You will also see other products being released in both NZ and Australia carrying the ‘Amazon Friendly’ logo. The sustainably-managed açaí berry is now a perfect model of Triple Bottom Line success; economic, environmental, and social.” said Liddle.

RioLife’s Pure Dried açaí is now available online at http://www.riolife.com.au, through health food stores, and available for distribution.

For more information contact Jeremy Liddle on 0406 660 626 or email jeremy@riolife.com.au

http://www.riolife.com.au
Source: SanePR

Chilean Marine Megabacteria Could be the Solution to some type of Cancer. Says Victor A Gallardo

Even though they've been living millions of years on the Chilean coasts, no one had studied them well enough. Until now, where biologists at the University of Concepcion (Chile), allied with Craig Venter, are researching their potential, ranging from the production of ammonia and hydrogen to creating explosives and drugs.

The Chilean seafloor continues to exhibit its great potential. Marine Biologist PhD. Victor Ariel Gallardo study the genome of macrobacteria (Beggiatoa spp.) and megabacteria (Thioploca spp.) that live from the northern coasts of Chile down to Arauco in southern Chile, between 20 and 200 meters (60 to 600ft.) deep in the clay sediments, with lots of organic matter but little or no oxygen.

Microorganisms discovered measure between 10 and 90 micrometers in diameter in the case of megabacteria (a bacterium normally does not reach 10 micrometers) and up to 7 centimeters long! The macrobacteria reach a few micrometers in diameter and are up to 3 centimeters long! These organisms, analyzed at a US laboratory, could be used in the mining, pharmaceutical or medical industries.

The megabacteria were discovered in 1962 during the Expedition Mar Chile II, they are visible to the naked eye and are abundant, in the oxygen depleted waters of the continental shelf. The macrobacteria in the same geographical location, were seen in 2004. "All live in environments previously considered to be devoid of life. Apart from the classical microbial life (or tiny organisms) that is everywhere, these large bacteria had gone unnoticed," says Victor Gallardo. The macrobacteria "probably are descendants of the first bacteria that settled in sediments on the planet, some three or four billion years ago," says the biologist, "and were very well known by micropaleontologists since the middle of the last century that found them as fossils in ancient rocks. Megabacteria would have appeared between 850 and 1,200 million years ago, when there already was more oxygen in the seas", explains Victor Gallardo.

The bacteria reach large sizes since they use the water's nitrate content instead of oxygen to survive and obtain their energy from hydrogen sulphide, a toxic gas that is found in marine sediments, with which they feed. According to the biologist, these micro-organisms invented some "nitrate diving bottles." "Each cell has a bag in its interior, which is almost 90% of its volume, within which it accumulates nitrate, just like divers have their tanks filled with oxygen. They stick out into the water and fill their nitrate tanks and they use them to breathe, they then return back into the sediment and absorb hydrogen sulphide, their food. In their tanks nitrate is concentrated 20 thousand times, they can survive with it almost two years without having to go out for more", says Victor Gallardo.

Potential
At this point in time, the scientist is studying the genome of these bacteria to exploit their potential. Previous research on similar organisms have shown promise for future use, especially in energy production.

"If we find in Chile bacteria that can produce hydrogen, for example, they could be used as the gasoline we use now and it would be a very important contribution, when you consider hydrogen combustion with oxygen forms water, not carbon dioxide, so it doesn't contribute to global warming either", says Victor Gallardo.

As these bacteria feed on a toxic gas - hydrogen sulphide - that though found in the seabed, it is also produced by some industries such as the fisheries. "It would be interesting to make a detergent that would prevent poisoning, for example, with the gasses rotten fish produces," says Gallardo. Similar bacteria studied in international laboratories are capable of producing ammonia as waste, which is then used as plant fertilizer and even in sewage treatment plants. Others may be used in the explosives industry and in the pharmaceutical industry, for example a compound of Salinispora (one of these bacteria) was discovered that can kill cancer cells in the blood.

For the time being, the potential of the bacteria found in Chile is unknown, and are currently being tested in the United States. Gallardo has worked with Craig Venter (known worldwide for the Human Genome Project), and thanks to his own contacts, supported by the University of Concepcion and Fondecyt (Chilean National Science and Technology Fund), he has made progress in this research. "There are many laboratories currently working on them in the rest of the world and we are trying to stimulate and deepen the local studies. We believe it is important to have access to these living marine resources, which are not fish nor shellfish, which as you know, obtain more attention. I think this is going to change or may be actually changing as these new resources could contain genes, proteins and enzymes that could biotechnologically help solve several problems that beset mankind and our country specifically", emphasizes the biologist.

The relationship with Craig Venter
Victor A. Gallardo met J. Craig Venter five years ago, when the American visited Chile for a series of conferences, but began working together in 2004 when Venter invited him to participate in the Sorcerer II Expedition, an expedition that circumnavigated the oceans seeking information about the marine microscopic life. Gallardo joined the team that explored the American seas following the route Darwin took to the Galapagos Islands, but placing emphasis on micro-organisms that were not included in that prior expedition. The Chilean biologist even participated in a series of documentaries broadcast on the Discovery Channel regarding this voyage. During this expedition, Gallardo had the idea to deepen the knowledge of the giant bacteria that exist in the Chilean seas, which were then sampled and are currently analysed in the laboratories of a U.S. foundation to which Venter helped them enter through a grant. At the year's end they expect to have the first data that'll let them analyse each part of the bacterial genome. "If we seize this opportunity, we will be well footed to meet the challenge of learning more about our biodiversity. The study of these giant bacteria is a field that is starting to be rediscovered, we are creating a new discipline to study them", says Victor Gallardo.

Financing
The economic resources available to the researcher are currently miniscule, as he says, so he trusts there'll be tangible benefits from California-Chile Agreement, signed last month by President Michelle Bachelet and Arnold Schwarzenegger. "We need equipment and personnel that we do not have. The agreement will give us the opportunity to collaborate with advanced centers, making sure that there is an equitable sharing of the benefits of discoveries that are made," he says.

Chilean scientists are currently studying an agreement with the institutes led by Dr. Venter, they seek to speed the research in marine sediment bacteria and in time, cover the full range of the biological tree. "We will aim at creating a genomic exploration institute. The contacts in Europe and the U.S. exist, what we miss is more funding. The task s to start now so we can obtain results soon. All supports are welcome", says Gallardo.

PhD Victor A Gallardo G.
Master of Marine Affairs, University of Rhode Island, Kingston
Ph. D. Biology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
Phone: (56) (51) 223-4730
CellPhone: (56)(9) 962-08-245

Related Information:
Copas
http://copas.udec.cl/eng/copas/personnel/cv_resear...

Scientia Marina
http://www.icm.csic.es/scimar/index.php/secId/9/au...

Oceans (European Network of Excellence for Ocean Ecosystem Analysis
http://www.eur-oceans.eu/contact_members/index.php...

Census of Marine Life
http://www.coreocean.org/dev2go.web?id=259312

ISME International Society for Microbial Ecology
http://www.isme-microbes.org/about/ambassadors

BASF and Transinsight agree to collaborate in exploring alternatives to animal testing

For over 20 years, BASF has been committed to establishing alternative and supplementary methods. Since 2004, the company has been developing and validating alternatives to animal testing in its own alternatives laboratory with a research budget of 2 million euros per year. Even now alternative methods are employed in 25 percent of all the company’s tests. “We are striving to increase this proportion. Transinsight’s semantic search supports us in this endeavour. With the help of this highly promising technology, we – just like any other potential user – can browse the internet, internal sources, patents and specialized databases much more efficiently than before when searching for information on meaningful approaches to new alternative methods”, explains Dr Robert Landsiedel, Head of the Short Term Toxicology Department at BASF.

Transinsight’s semantic search engine also finds related terms and web pages that are relevant for the respective search term and thus provides considerably more accurate and comprehensive search results than conventional full text search engines. “Go3R will make a tremendous contribution to improving the process of searching for information on alternative methods”, states Dr Michael R. Alvers, CEO of Transinsight. “To achieve this, we are transferring the Wikipedia concept – the largest internet encyclopaedia compiled by the community – to semantic networks of terms. Currently, this is the most efficient way to achieve a large knowledge base within a short period of time and thus to significantly reduce the amount of animal testing in the long term”, Alvers continues. The www.Go3R.org platform is already available online. The service is free of charge.

About Transinsight

Transinsight develops knowledge-based semantic solutions in the Life Sciences. Their flagship products www.Go3R.org and www.GoPubMed.com, renowned biomedical search engines, are the first knowledge-based search systems of the next generation for the Life Sciences on the internet. In acknowledgement of the technologies developed by the company, Transinsight has repeatedly been honoured with international awards. The firm works in close collaboration with the Dresden University of Technology. Selected customers are: Unilever, BASF, BfR, StatoilHydro, Wintershall, AbCam and EMBL. For further information on Transinsight on the internet, see www.transinsight.com

Growing Hydroponics Strawberries

The hydroponics system is a soil-less farming system. This system is
presently used to produce enormous amounts of produce, for commercial and individual consumption. This article will look at the production of strawberries with a hydroponics system.

For a long time farmers applied methyl bromide in order to kill the soil diseases that is inherent with soil agriculture. But with hydroponics production the need for methyl bromide may soon become a thing of the past.However, in order to set up this system, initial financial commitment is necessary, but that initial investment is usually recovered and more. Strawberries are quite popular with consumers. More so,when the product is better and tastier. Strawberries are recognized as a high value produce.

That essentially means that the product does well in financial conversion. With year round production, this produce is certain to make reasonable amount, and the farmer could recover financially since he could price his product a little higher than usual without losing his customer base. Strawberries have been shown to do well under the hydroponics system. The farmer will also do well because with that initial set up, he can reuse the nutrient solution, thereby reduce the entire cost of production. Very little is wasted, the water in hydroponics could be reused and the labor is not as intensive as it is with soil farming. The farmer would also need to monitor the temperature for the plant.

Strawberries have been found to do much better when the day time temperature is around 68 degrees, and the night time temperature is around 57, or 58. Again it is well known that strawberries respond well to NFT, or nutrient film technique.

As long as the farmer is able to apply such technique he can be sure he will come out ahead financially. So coupled with minimal labor, the potential for higher income from selling a superior product, there is very little doubt that the farmer will do well financially. . Also it is a big advantage when the farmer could minimize the cost of doing business, because he can reuse the nutrient base solution. At 57 or 68 degrees, lighting is not as intense as could be in other hydroponics farming produce. The system is not labor intensive, so with little attention to the growing plants a farmer could make much more than he could in soil farming.

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About the author
Brian Sandifer is CEO, artist, self-made internet author. Why not save all that money on maintenance? Using a fuzzlight Please visit fuzzlight for more information!!!.

What makes food organic and why it is expensive

Many consumers hear about organic farming, but they aren't sure what that means and sometimes question what makes food organic and why it is more expensive than other options. They may be amazed of the typically higher cost of organic foods and may conclude that their perceived benefits are not worth the extra expense. When you truly consider the benefits of organic food, you will look past the rice cakes and organic vegetables, and realize that it is an actual change in your way of thinking (about health and the environment) and lifestyle.

Essentially, organic food can be determined as any food product that is grown in organically-certified land without any chemical treatments, either in the form of fertilizers or pesticides. All substances put on the ground or the plants must come from a natural source and there can be no chemical additives, even accidental ones. Even though the yield of a field may be reduced due to a lack of chemical fertilizer use, or that the crop has a higher price due to a low supply, it is important that we are assured that what is grown is truly organic food.

For many years, growers have used chemically enhanced fertilizers and pesticides because they were cheap and greatly improved their crop growth. Pesticides were used to keep many insect intruders at bay without regard for what is organic food and how these chemicals leached into the ground and surrounding water supplies.

Keep Mother Nature on The Side of Good Health

Before the chemical products were developed the farmers used natural resources to provide the world with food supplies, and they had no notion of what is organic food and why is it good for them. It is only after using chemically treated fertilizers for many years that people are realizing they should be utilizing less and less of these, because natural is not only good for them but for the planet as well.

Think of how leaves fall to the forest floor and, as they deteriorate, they create a natural fertilizer for the for the new saplings. Without undue interference, natural predators control destructive insect pests on these fresh plants as they continue their growth. For showing what is organic food, how to get healthier food, and achieving a healthier planet, this picture is perfect.
Did you find this article useful? For more useful tips & hints, Points to ponder and keep in mind, techniques & insights pertaining to Dishes, Do please browse for more information at our website :-

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Source: SanePR

Smart Agriculture to tackle food crises

There is no doubt at the moment that the world is facing an enormous problem in terms of food supply and pricing of basic food stuffs.

Agriculture as a whole seems to have been left behind while commercial food operations / factories have become slicker and able to churn out greater and greater volumes of product.

Yet great advances have been made in terms of genetically modified foods and "smart agriculture" type operations such as hydroponics farms yet we don't seem to spend much time trying to promote these initiatives.

South Africa for instance has an entire AIDS community that has been sustained by a small hydroponics operation. Limited skills are required to maintain the farm now that it has been setup and the farm can grow assist in growing basic foodstuffs to assist this community.

Genetically modified food products are always going to be a touchy subject. But let's be honest - great strides have been made in the biotechnology sector to improve the quality of the finished product. Imagine being able to grow basic foods like potatoes, tomatoes or mealies in any climate (Be it jungle or desert).

What about being able to boost the nutritional value of these products to uplift communities, simply by developing improved strains of the product?

These are simple examples of the types of "smart agriculture" that are being developed
and are becoming readily available to communities around the globe. The intention with this blog is to try and emphasise and promote smart agriculture.

At the end of the day 'Smart Agriculture' will play a vital role in tackling food shortages and high food prices....