Information from the British Society of Plant Breeders Autumn 2015Plant Breeding MattersPlant Breeding Matters

Tom Heap opened by highlighting theenormous contribution plant breedershave made in advancing cropproductivity over the past 50 years, buthe suggested that the success of agri-science innovation since the GreenRevolution also meant that people hadbegun to take the contribution ofscientific progress in agriculture andfood production for granted.

According to Heap, complacencyabout the availability and affordabilityof food had allowed a creepingdemonisation of modern farming as arapacious destroyer of Nature. Since the1960s, this ‘Silent Spring’ narrative hadproved incredibly powerful and resilient,while man-made food scares such as BSEgave rise to new concerns that sciencewas being permitted to take a step toofar in the food we eat.

As a result, consumers had becomesuspicious of science as a foodingredient, preferring food to be asnatural and traditional as possible, notthe product of human ingenuity.

Tom Heap accepted that the mediahad played its part in this process, withfarming issues too often reportedthrough the prism of the environment,rather than from a business or consumer

perspective. But he suggested that a newrespect for science in society and themedia might be emerging, reflected in arecognised need to acknowledge thescientific consensus – rather than simplytwo sides of an argument – whenreporting on issues such as climatechange and GM crops.

Since the commodity price spikes andfood shortages of 2008, Heap noted thatrenewed concerns over global foodsecurity had provided a fresh focus forthe agri-science sector, responding to thechallenge of Sir John Beddington’s‘Perfect Storm’ of climate change,resource depletion, population growthand demographic change.

But he questioned whether thecurrent buzz over ‘sustainableintensification’ was really the ticket tosecuring greater appreciation for thecontribution of modern plantbreeding and farming practice.Global food security concernswere too remote toresonate with consumers,while coping with over-production anddepressed farm-gateprices was theimmediate

challenge for primary producers –prompting genuine debate over predictedtrends and blips in the balance betweenglobal food supply and demand.

Indeed Heap ventured that there wasgood evidence to suggest that – if effectiveaction could be taken to tackle over-consumption and cut back on food

Building consumer support for modern plantbreeding – a media perspectiveSpeaking recently at the BSPB annual dinner in London, TV presenter and journalist Tom Heap offered amedia perspective on the plant breeding industry – exploring in particular why a sector delivering suchclear benefits to society is also embroiled in controversial debates over issues such as GMOs, biodiversityand intellectual property. Plant Breeding Matters reports.

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With a focus on UK and EU plantbreeding in key food and forage cropsover the past ten years, ADAS conducted asystematic review of available scientificliterature, concluding that innovation inplant breeding provides a vital foundationto address multiple sustainability goals bydeveloping crop varieties with higheryields, improved resource use efficiencyand reduced environmental impact.

The report’s lead author RebeccaCarter explains: “Our review found thatthe main focus of commercial plant

breeding over the past decade has been onenhancing and protecting yield in themajor arable crops, so driving greaterproduction from the same amount of land– a key requirement of sustainableintensification.

“Alongside selection for physical yield,the development of varieties withenhanced standing ability, better end-usequality and improved pest and diseaseresistance supports this objective byreducing harvest losses and wastage in thesupply chain.

“An emphasis on yield alsocontributes to sustainability objectivesby improving the efficiency of land,input, nutrient and water use per tonneproduced, as well as deliveringimportant environmental benefits suchas reduced greenhouse gas emissions andprotection of soil health and waterquality.”

The ADAS report is available todownload via the BSPB website atwww.bspb.co.uk/news.php

ADAS study highlights sustainabilitybenefits of plant breedingPlant breeding is a major contributor to more sustainable agriculture and food production.That is the conclusion of an independent report by agricultural consultants ADAS.

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Grain yield (t/ha) winter wheat

2007200219971992198719826

7

8

9

national yield spline fitted to national yieldcontribution of variety effect to national yield

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More output per unit of resource and

environmental impact =SUSTAINABLE

INTENSIFICATION

Increasingproductivity

Physical yieldPest and disease resistance

End-use quality

Improving resource

Land useWater use

Fertiliser and chemical inputsEnergy consumption

Reducing negative environmental effects

Soil healthGHG emissions

Climate resilienceWater quality

How plant breeding contributes to sustainable agriculture The ADAS studydemonstrates how

plant breederscontribute to improved

sustainability in ourfarming systems –

through improved pestand disease resistance,more efficient land useand soil conservation,

better nutrient andinput use efficiency,

and improvedresilience to a

changing climate.

In March 2012, BSPB pledged £50,000 tosupport a two-year FARM-Africa projectto help break the cycle of crop failure andfood shortage in Kenya by improving localfarmers’ access to drought tolerant cropvarieties through community-based seedproduction and distribution systems.

The Society’s support for the projectwas made possible by surplus revenuefrom the record-breaking 2011International Seed Federation (ISF)Congress, which was hosted by BSPB inBelfast.

The overall project goal was toimprove the food security and welfare ofsmallholders in the Matinyani district ofKitui County, Eastern Kenya, where 70%of the population rely on subsistence, rain-fed agriculture, and where the increasingincidence of drought and harvest failurehas become a major cause of foodshortage among rural households.

The project was based on previouswork carried out by FARM-Africa whichdemonstrated that the introduction ofconservation agriculture using droughttolerant varieties had the potential todouble yields of staple crops in theseregions, but that farmers did not have thenecessary knowledge or access to qualityseeds to take advantage.

FARM-Africa used the extensionfarmer model to reach as manyhouseholds as possible. Ten championfarmers, selected by their owncommunities, received intensive training ina range of topics, including conservationagriculture, micro-irrigation techniques,drought tolerant seed agronomy, farmbusiness and leadership skills. Eachchampion farmer was then able to traintwenty-four lead farmers who in turn eachtrained six adopter farmers creating apowerful ripple effect.

The project sourced 10 tonnes ofdrought tolerant seeds – millet, sorghum,cowpea and green grams – from the KenyaAgricultural Research Institute (KARI,now KALRO), and 206 farmers weretrained in seed production to ensure aconsistent and accessible supply of highquality seed throughout the four croppingseasons of the project.

By the end of the project, nearly 1,500

households were able to access improveddrought tolerant seeds from seedmultiplication farmers, and all farmersinvolved in the project were practisingconservation techniques. As a result, theacreage of farmers’ land under droughttolerant crops doubled from 390 to 770acres and harvests increased from 19,500kg to 39,000 kg, doubling incomes fromKES 1 million to KES 2 million.

The project also involved thepromotion and installation of dripirrigation systems to demonstrate thedifference these can make to production ofhigh value vegetable crops such as kale,spinach, onions and tomatoes. By the endof the project, nine groups were using dripirrigation on their land alongsideimproved agronomy practices and betterquality seeds. The increased yields resultedin both improved diets for participatinghouseholds and wider economic benefitsas project farmers had surplus vegetablesto sell at local markets.

Since most of the farmers involved inthe project would not have been in aposition to access loans for investment inseeds or to expand their businesses, theproject also developed links with EquityBank to provide training on financialmanagement and the principles of savings,loan management and repayment.

To ensure a continuing supportnetwork beyond the lifetime of theproject, FARM-Africa also providedtraining to twenty government extensionworkers and established ongoing linksbetween participating farmers and keypartners such as KARI, Equity Bank andlocal trading groups.

Welcoming the project results, BSPBchief executive Dr Penny Maplestone said:“As this project demonstrates, innovationin the plant breeding and seeds sector willbe a key factor in our ability to feed anincreasing global population in the face ofclimate change and growing pressure onfinite natural resources. BSPB is pleasedthat by supporting FARM-Africa in thisproject, the proceeds from hosting the2011 ISF Congress in Belfast have made adifference to Kenyan smallholders inaccessing the benefits of drought tolerantvarieties, better quality seed and improvedfarming practices.”

www.farmafrica.org

A BSPB-funded project to improve the quality and supply of droughttolerant seeds to smallholder farmers in Kenya has helped doublecrop yields and income across almost 1,500 households, while alsopromoting the wider adoption of farming practices to conserve soiland water. Kilindini group members

compare performance ofgreen grams and beans

1,500 Kenyan households benefitfrom BSPB-funded project

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Kitui integrated projectbeneficiary inspects her

Gadam Sorghum crop

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The FAIR PLAY campaign was launched jointly by BSPB and theUK farming unions in 2005 to address concerns that evasion offarm-saved seed payments was draining vital income away frominvestment in UK-based plant breeding, and to create a levelplaying field in which all farmers contribute fairly for the benefitsof using farm-saved seed (FSS).

New FAIR PLAYwebsite goes live

Over that period, farm-saved seedincome to breeders has more thandoubled – thanks to the steps taken toreduce FSS evasion through improvedcommunication, collection andenforcement.

Marking ten years of FAIR PLAYhas provided an opportunity tohighlight the success of the campaign,and to thank the many thousands offarmers who support and recognise thebenefits of continued investment inimproved varieties.

It has also provided a platform torefresh the campaign with a renewedfocus on the benefits of safeguardinginvestment in UK-based plant breeding.

This month sees the launch of a

new-look FAIR PLAY website providinginformation about the campaign,including key developments over thepast ten years and statements of supportfrom leading figures across farming,food chain, R&D and government.

The colourful new website alsohighlights some of the recent breedingadvances in combinable crops which theFAIR PLAY campaign has helpedsafeguard by tackling the gap in FSSpayments, from farm-levelimprovements in yield, disease resistanceand plant architecture through toadvances in end-use quality to meet theprocessing needs of the food industryand the healthy eating demands ofconsumers.

Q. Where can I find the farm-savedseed payment rates?

A. Details of eligible varieties andFSS payment rates are published onthe farm-saved seed section of theBSPB website (www.bspb.co.uk).

Q. I grow hybrid rye for grainproduction in crisp breads. Can I savesome seed to grow as bio-mass for mylocal anaerobic digester plant?

A. No. Hybrid varieties are explicitlyexcluded from the farm-saved seedexemption of the EU law on plantvariety rights.

Q. I am using some farm-saved oatseed as part of a green manure covercrop this autumn. Do I need to declarethis to BSPB?

A. Yes. Although cover crops arenot taken to harvest, a farm-savedseed payment is still due once thecrop has been planted. If in anydoubt please contact the FSS teamon 01353 653209 for advice.

Q. Since neonicotinoid seedtreatments were banned, I have beensowing FSS OSR straight from theheap at a higher seed rate to helpmitigate flea beetle damage. Whyshould I declare this extra seed toBSPB when I am taking all the risk?

A. Farm-saved seed paymentsbecome due at the point of sowingand all FSS use must be declaredpromptly, regardless of the outcomeor use of the crop.

Farm-SavedSeed FAQsMembers of the BSPB farm-saved seed team at Ely are onhand to help with any querieson seed use and the FSSdeclaration process. The new-look FAIR PLAY website atwww.fairplay.org.uk alsoincludes a section answeringsome of the questions mostfrequently asked by farmersand their advisers. Some morerecent queries received fromfarmers are answered below.

Visit the new FAIR PLAY website at:

www.fairplay.org.uk

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British Society of Plant Breeders LtdBSPB House, 114 Lancaster Way Business Park, ELY CB6 3NXTel +44(0)1353 653200 Fax +44(0)1353 661156Email enquiries@bspb.co.uk Website www.bspb.co.uk

waste – enough food was already beingproduced to feed a projected globalpopulation of 9 billion.

Taken together, Heap suggested thatthese issues raised fundamental questionsabout the value of focusing onproductivity when highlighting theachievements of the plant breedingindustry. While increasing crop yields onexisting farmland could certainly helpprotect uncultivated land for wildlife andhabitats, this link needed to be made

more explicit to gain traction with theconsuming public.

Instead, he suggested that the key tosecuring greater public acceptance forplant breeding in general, and forcontroversial technologies such as GM inparticular, lay in delivering tangiblebenefits for consumers.

According to former Sainsbury’s CEOJustin King, GM technology was only anallergy-free peanut away – or a 10-15%price advantage – from securing a break-through in consumer acceptance. However,current applications of the technology

appeared to deliver only benefits forproducers rather than consumers.

In conclusion, Heap suggested thatfocusing on improvements in food qualityand nutrition, rather than just thequantity produced, would bring the plantbreeding industry closer to consumers.The pace of change was accelerating, andrapid advances in plant science offeredexciting opportunities to make our livesbetter. Connecting with the consumingpublic would depend on making geneticinnovation more relevant to people’severyday needs and concerns.

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With increasing emphasis in the marketplace on pest and disease resistance,variety resilience and nutritional value,where will the next breakthroughs in plantbreeding come from? Breeders increasinglyseek the answers in the ancestors and wildrelatives of crop plants. The Pch1 gene foreyespot resistance in wheat is a well-known example, coming originally from aspecies of goatgrass (Aegilops ventricosa).The potential to explore the geneticdiversity of these wild plants is huge; in2013 PWC put a value of $120billion onthe contribution of crop wild relatives tothe future production of 29 priority crops.

New EU legislation implementing theNagoya Protocol of the Convention onBiological Diversity in Europe meansbreeders making use of genetic resourceslike the wild goatgrass must be able toshow compliance with international rulesintended to facilitate access to geneticresources and the sharing of any resultingbenefits. The wheat breeder who wants tolook for useful genes in goatgrassescollected on his travels through Moroccohas two new acronyms in his life ‘PIC’meaning Prior Informed Consent and‘MAT’ or Mutually Agreed Terms. Hemust have Morocco’s permission to take

and use the material and he must negotiatea contract with Morocco under which heagrees to share any benefits that derivefrom his use of the country’s germplasm.The breeder must be duly diligent in all ofhis operations, making sure that allmaterial in his programme has beenproperly and legally obtained and that anyobligations to share benefits are passed onto subsequent users.

The Nagoya Protocol is meant toencourage provider countries to work withusers to facilitate access to everybody’sbenefit. But the EU legislation iscomplicated and unclear. There is a riskthat over-burdensome procedures and highcosts of proving compliance will have theopposite effect and breeders will entrenchto using only easily available material. Thiswill benefit no-one. That is why BSPB andits members are working closely with theNational Measurement and RegulationOffice, the UK enforcement agency for theNagoya Protocol, to develop pragmaticways to make it easier for plant breeders tocomply so that they can access the geneticdiversity of wild plants and continue torespond to grower, processor and consumerdemands for plant breeding innovation.

The Nagoya Protocol – friendor foe of plant breeding innovation?Comment from BSPB Chief Executive Penny Maplestone.

Wild barley growing inthe Lebanon – a sourceof useful genes?

RBG Kew