The European Technology Platform for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology

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The European Technology Platform for Plant
Genomics and Biotechnology

• Prof. Marc Zabeau
• Chairman, European Plant Science Organization -
  EPSO
• Second EPSO conference
• Ischia October 10 -14, 2004

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What are Technology Platforms?

• Novel instrument of the ERA policy in areas of
  high technological potential to
• Strengthen European research and innovation and
  ensure European competitiveness
• Articulate coherent long term research policies
  based on
• A long term (20 year) vision of the technology
  and its applications representing
• a consensus between all stakeholders
• Scientists, industry, policy makers and society
• Mobilise a critical mass of European and national
  resources
• comprising both public and private financing

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Technology Platforms

• In March 2003, the European Council
• strongly recommended the creation of Technology
  Platforms in key strategic areas explicitly
  naming plant genomics
• To date, a number of Technology Platforms have
  been and are being set up
• Aeronautics,
• Hydrogen fuels
• Transportation and
• Plant genomics Biotechnology

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Why a Technology Platform for Plant Genomics and
Biotechnology?

• Plant Genomics and Biotechnology holds tremendous
  potential for
• Agriculture and Agro-food industry
• Third largest economy in Europe
• Society and consumers
• Novel healthy foods
• Safeguard the environment
• However, plant biotechnology has become highly
  controversial and the public debate
• hampered constructive policymaking
• Negative impacted the development of the field

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Plant Biotechs Climate Change in Europe

• Perception was highly favorable in the 80s
• Perceived potential benefits clearly outweighed
  the perception of the risks
• In the 90s the climate changed rapidly,
• Fear for GM foods
• Negative impact of agriculture on the environment
• Dwindling political (and financial) support for
  plant biotechnology as a consequence
• Research funding and spending in Europe has
  stalled and even decreased in the past few years

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Reversing the Tide

• EPSO was created in 2000 to
• Improve the perception of plant science
• Restore confidence and regain political support
• Reverse the decrease in funding trend

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Reversing the Tide

• EPSO European initiatives
• 2010 vision paper for Plant Science
• Input to the Framework 6 Programme
• ERA-Net for Plant Genomics to coordinate national
  programmes
• Launched in beginning of 2004
• Long term vision for European plant science
• Technology Platform for Plant genomics and
  Biotechnology
• Launched in June 2004

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Creating a Technology Platform for Plant Genomics
and Biotechnology

• Step 1 develop a long term vision paper
• Joint initiative of EPSO and EuropaBio
• Active support of the EC
• Small group of representatives from the different
  stakeholders
• Academia
• Industry Agro and food
• Farmers organizations
• Consumer organizations
• Plants for the future
• Long term vision for Europes agriculture,
  Agro-food Industry and society

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Setting the Stage

• Global agriculture in the coming decades will
• be confronted with
• Considerable challenges
• Changing needs of society and consumers
• An increasingly critical public debate
• Can benefit from
• Unprecedented technological opportunities
• International changes in demand will transform
  agriculture from
• The production of food, feed and raw materials
  into a novel Bio-based economy producing added
  value products

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Global trends and emerging challenges

• Global food production
• The world population is projected to grow from 6
  to 9 billion by 2050
• 95 of the increase in the developing world
• Arable land surface will decline steadily
• Deterioration of the arable land and urbanization
• Use of land for the production of non-food
  products
• Consequence
• A doubling agricultural productivity needed by
  2050

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Global trends and emerging challenges

• Changing consumer needs driven by
• Aging populations and changing lifestyles in
  developed countries
• A growing awareness of health problems associated
  with eating habits and diets e.g. obesity
  epidemic
• Raising living standards in developing countries
• Consequence
• Increased demand for more nutritionally healthy
  and more diverse high quality foods

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Global trends and emerging challenges

• Changes in agricultural production driven by
• Need for more sustainable agricultural production
• Reduced inputs of pesticides, fertilizers and
  water
• Need for a more environmentally friendly
  production systems
• that preserve the biodiversity
• Need for renewable biomaterials and fuels
• To remedy the mounting waste problem and the
  depletion of the fossil fuel reserves
• Consequence
• Economically and environmentally sustainable
  agricultural production and a new bio-based
  economy

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Priorities for Plant biotechnology

• To address global challenges and changing needs,
  the vision paper identified 4 socio-economic
  priorities
• Secure a healthy and safe food supply
• Develop sustainable agriculture production
• Safeguard the environment and preserve the
  landscape
• Develop a new bio-based industry

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Healthy and Safe Food Supply

• To meet the challenges linked to changing
  lifestyles and ageing populations
• Food quality and safety will be a primary focus
  of research
• To provide consumers access to a healthy, diverse
  and affordable food supply
• Quality of plants has to be improved and their
  nutritional value boosted by developing
• plants containing more essential macro and
  micro-nutrients
• end products with less natural contamination from

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Sustainable Agriculture

• Increase productivity (yield) while
• Reducing or optimising the input of fuel,
  fertilisers, pesticides and water
• Reduce the massive losses
• Caused by disease
• Enhanced resistance to pests and microbial
  infections
• In the food/feed processing chain
• Improve harvestability, storability and
  processability
• Improve the utilization of all non-used plant
  material
• Address the strains of global climate changes
• changing the distribution of plant pathogens and
  pests
• Develop novel tools for crop monitoring

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Safeguarding our environment

• Sustainable agricultural production needs to
• Preserve the environment
• Modern farming and urbanisation have raised
  environmental concerns
• Reduce the environmental impact of agriculture
• Develop crops needing less fertilizer and
  chemical inputs
• Efficient use of agricultural waste
• Agricultural practices in harmony with the
  environment
• Improve countryside biodiversity
• Our countryside is a key component of our
  cultural heritage

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New Bio-based Industry

• New renewable materials
• Increase the variety the of crop plants that can
  be grown as sources of renewable materials
• More efficient bioenergy and biofuels
• Novel crop plants which can be used efficiently
  as an energy source
• Improve the conversion process for the production
  of biofuels
• The production of novel biomaterials, bioenergy,
  and biofuels offers great opportunities for
• developing a sustainable bio-based economy
• Boasting rural development
• by enabling local communities to participate in
  the value creation chain

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High Priority Research Areas

• Develop a solid fundamental science base
• Rational science-based framework for improving
  crop traits
• Agricultural sustainability
• Targeted crop improvement
• Nutritional quality and health promotion
• Yield and yield potential
• Pest and stress resistance
• Novel crops for the production of
• Biomaterials and biopharmaceuticals
• Bioenergy and biofuels

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The way forward

• European technology platform on plant genomics
  and biotechnology
• Will become a key instrument to
• Ensure the development of plant biotechnology
  applications benefiting Europes agriculture,
  industry and society
• To accomplish this the platform will bring
  together all relevant stakeholders
• Researchers, industry, farmers, consumer and
  environmental groups, policy-makers and civil
  society
• These partners will co-operate in a pragmatic,
  non-dogmatic manner to
• identify common priorities
• draw up research agendas to implement them

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Establishing a Technology Platform for Plant
Genomics and Biotechnology

• Step 2 implementing the long term vision
• EPSO and EuropaBio are now structuring the
  Technology Platform
• EC Financial support 3-year Strategic Support
  Action (SSA) grant
• First objective develop a coherent long term
  research policy reflecting a broad consensus of
  all stakeholders
• Strategic Research Agenda 2025
• Action Plan 2010

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Technology Platform Research Priorities

• Strategic Research Agenda 2025
• Short and long term research priorities
• needed to achieve the objectives of the Vision
  2025
• Three main areas
• Basic research
• Sustainable agriculture
• Bio-products
• Action Plan 2010
• Short term (5-year) actions required to implement
  the long term strategic research agenda

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Strategic Research Agenda 2025

• Procedure
• 4 ad hoc working groups prepare draft agendas
• Basic research
• Sustainability
• Products
• Horizontal issues

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Strategic Research Agenda 2025
Method to develop SRA
To discuss
Strategic Research Agenda

Basic research
Sustainability
Securing a healthy and safe food supply
Competitiveness and consumer choice
Sustainable agriculture
Green and pleasant land

Products
Horizontal issues
Vision Plants for the Future
Challenges taken from Plants for the Future
4 Views to address the challenges.
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Technology Platform Research Priorities

• Procedure
• 4 ad hoc working groups prepare draft agendas
• Each working group will comprise representatives
  of all stakeholders
• Companies, research institutions, financial
  community, regulatory authorities
• consumer and environmental organizations
• experts in education and communication
• Final agendas will be drawn up after extensive
  consultation
• At the member state level
• European level (Parliament, EC)

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Technology Platform Research Priorities

• Timelines
• Draft agendas February 2005
• Final agendas mid 2006
• These agendas will serve to provide the input for
  
• The new EC Framework Programme FP7
• Future national research programmes
• Novel public/private research partnerships

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Establishing a Technology Platform for Plant
Genomics and Biotechnology

• Step 2 implementing the long term vision
• EPSO and EuropaBio are now structuring the
  Technology Platform
• EC Financial support 5-year Strategic Support
  Action (SSA) grant
• First objective develop a coherent long term
  research policy
• Second objective create permanent organizational
  structures for the Technology Platform

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Technology Platform Organizational Structures

• Advisory Council
• Advise the TP from a broader perspective
• Political support for activities
  recommendations of the TP
• Steering Committee
• Ensure that all TP activities contribute to the
  long-term goals
• Support the activities recommendations of the
  TP among stakeholders
• Mirror groups
• Connect the TP to the 3 political institutions at
  European level (Council, Parliament, Commission)
• Ensure support for the implementation of TP
  recommendations at the European, national
  regional levels
• Secretariat

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Additional remarks

• Transparency
• The stated goal of the Technology Platform is to
• Provide transparent communication to the
  community
• ERA-NET and the Technology Platform
• Complementary activities aimed at structuring
  research at the European level
• ERA-Net will focus on the coordination of
  publicly funded national plant genomics
  programmes
• The Technology Platform has a much broader aim,
  structuring public and private plant genomics and
  biotechnology research
• The two initiatives will closely work together

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Conclusion

• The creation of the Technology Platform Plants
  for the future
• Constitutes an important milestone for the plant
  science research community
• Allowing scientists to actively participate in
  policy making
• Contribute to a more positive long term outlook
  for plant science in Europe
• Recreate a positive research environment for
  young scientists
• Ultimately lead to a substantial increase the
  research funding
• Allow Europe to regain competitiveness