Agriculture Biotechnology: a Road Map to Commercialization.
In the more developed countries, genetically engineered crops already contribute greatly to agricultural productivity and sustainability. Over the last few years, the largest growth in the adoption of genetically engineered crops has been in developing countries and this trend is expected to continue. The multi-national life sciences companies have been leading the way, but they are focusing primarily on a few crop/trait combinations that have high commercial value and occupy large international markets. Because of the costs and complexity of the issues related to crop biotechnology, many crops and traits of importance to subsistence and resource-poor farmers around the world have been overlooked.
The Agricultural Biotechnology Support Project (ABSPII), a Cornell University-led and USAID-funded consortium of public and private sector institutions, provides support for scientists, regulators, extension workers, farmers and the general public in developing countries to make informed decisions about agricultural biotechnology. Where demand exists, ABSPII works with local institutions to establish safe and cost effective programs for the development and commercialization of genetically engineered crops that otherwise would not be developed. When possible, ABSPII creates public-private partnerships to help leverage public funds to help absorb development costs and provide broader distribution channels. To illustrate how this strategy is being translated into action, I will present examples of several of our projects and discuss the strategy we have adopted to develop and deliver genetically engineered crops for developing countries.