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Drought tolerance on the way
Posted: Monday, June 15, 2009 3:06 pm
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Drought tolerant maize has long been on the horizon for researchers around the world. Funds for public research are tight, and the costs of regulatory compliance are astronomical. The result: Monsanto and BASF have discovered a naturally-occurring gene that can help maize plants combat drought conditions and confer yield stability during periods of inadequate water supplies. And the farmers who need this technology most -- mainly in drought-stricken regions of Africa -- won't get to use it.

First, the discovery.

The drought-tolerant maize contains the cspB gene, from Bacillus subtilis. CspB codes for an RNA chaperone, which are commonly occurring protein molecules that bind to RNAs and facilitate their function. The gene was first identified in bacteria subjected to cold stress conditions and further research has demonstrated that cspB helps plants cope with drought stress. According to a joint Monsanto/BASF press release, Monsanto scientists earlier published these findings in a peer-reviewed paper in the journal, Plant Physiology. However, the press release offers no citation.

The companies claim that in maize, "cspB works by helping the plant maintain growth and development during times of inadequate water supply. A corn plant is particularly vulnerable to drought during reproductive growth stages. By mitigating the impact of drought on the plant, cspB helps provide yield stability. Improved yield stability is of significant value to farmers faced with unpredictable rainfall."

Sounds like it works. Since Monsanto products have a solid track record of producing things that work as advertised, farmers have a lot to look forward to.

But which farmers, where? Certainly not the farmers who need this tech the most. Read the following with a jaundiced eye:

Monsanto and BASF noted that the drought-tolerant corn product is targeted for as early as 2012 pending appropriate regulatory approvals. Both companies also recently announced that they have completed regulatory submissions for cultivation in the United States and Canada, and for import to Mexico, the European Union and Colombia. Submissions in other import markets will follow in the months to come.

In any given year, 10 million to 13 million acres of farmland planted to corn in the United States may be affected by at least moderate drought. In field trials conducted last year in the Western Great Plains, drought-tolerant corn met or exceeded the 6 percent to 10 percent target yield enhancement - about 7 to 10 bushels per acre in some of the key drought-prone areas in the United States where average yields range from 70 to 130 bushels per acre.

Drought-tolerant corn technology is part of the R&D and commercialization collaboration in plant biotechnology between BASF and Monsanto, announced in March 2007. The two companies are jointly contributing $1.5 billion over the life of the collaboration, which is aimed at developing higher-yielding crops and crops more tolerant to adverse environmental conditions such as drought.
The two companies are contributing $1.5 billion to their collaboration. Money like that for public research isn't out there, anywhere.

The companies tout the value of growing this maize in the US Midwest. There's no mention of its potential value in, say, Malawi.  They have sought permission to grow the maize in the US and Canada. That's it.

They've sought permission to export the resulting crop to Mexico and Colombia. That's nice.

They also want import approval in the European Union, which is a pointless gesture -- unless you consider that the EU would work hand-in-glove with EU-paid activists to shut down exports from any African nation that decided to grow GM drought-tolerant maize.

The activists like to ask: "Genetic engineering -- who needs it?" The short answer is, "The farmers who can't get it."
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