DECEMBER 2017 SEEDWORLD.COM / 145 African countries shows that with modest support GM technologies can reach some of the most impoverish farm- ers in the world where a 25 percent yield increase may be the difference between hunger and sufficient food for their families. STATUS AUSTRALIA Work on the buildings and roadwork for a $90 million redevelopment of the Cotton Seed Distributors’ (CSD’s) cotton seed processing plant and laboratory – near Wee Waa, Australia, 350 miles northwest of Sydney – is nearly complete. The focus between now and the end of harvest in May will be on installing the plant and equipment in the new world- class processing plant, labora- tory and office complex, which has been designed to meet the cotton industry’s needs for the next 30 years. Although the existing facility to totally operational and ade- quate for current volume, the company is planning to even- tually supply large volumes of planting seed on short notice. Cotton Seed Distributors is Australia’s only supplier of cotton seed. After cotton harvest, lint is removed from the cotton seed using hydrochloric acid, the seed is polished and treated with fungicides and insecti- cides. DNA testing ensures the transgenic properties of each strain. Australia’s cotton seed is almost 100 percent geneti- cally modified. The demand for cotton seed fluctuates from season to season depending on rainfall, water supply and commodity prices. The company’s investment into innovation will ensure a robust and profitable cotton industry in Australia, today and well into the future. STATUS INDIA Stung by India’s GM regula- tion, Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company – one of India’s largest seed compa- nies – is planning to take its new technology including GM seeds to other South Asian and African countries. Stringent regulations and uncertainty in India regarding trial and commercialization of GM crops have derailed the company’s plans. “The environment for science is very negative at the regula- tory level because all the steps that the government has taken do not encourage innovation and agriculture is getting brunt of it,” says Usha Barwale Zehr, chief technol- ogy officer at Mahyco group. The Mahyco research team has been working on insect and drought resistance cotton, rice and other crops. Mahyco is looking to move to countries like Vietnam, Tanzania and Zimbabwe to introduce its new seeds. Mahyco says the Indian gov- ernment at the highest level is positive on technology, science and innovation but when it comes to implemen- tation, nothing is happening. In India, the issue of GM technology has turned into a political and emotive issue with nationalist groups block- ing the introduction of any new GM crops in the country. The last GM seed that was introduced in India was of Bollgard Cotton II in 2006, after that the proposal to introduce Bt brinjal (eggplant) was rejected. Mahyco’s Bt brinjal has been licensed to neighbor- ing Bangladesh, which has allowed the use of the seed. STATUS IRAN Rising temperatures and depletion of water resources have Iran’s high level govern- ment officials worried. Abbas Keshavarz, Iran’s deputy minister for crop pro- duction, says, “We have to save water to save our country. We need to do this with crops that can survive with less water. We have passed the point of replenishing what we use and groundwater is in crisis. ” At the invitation of the Iranian Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization, a delegation from the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) traveled to Iran to assess opportunities for collaboration. Iran currently produces sug- arcane, wheat and maize, but these crops require exten- sive irrigation, as opposed to crops like sorghum and millets that can grow on less water and fewer inputs. However, there is little to no consumer awareness on the nutritional benefits of these crops. Even dairy produc- ers, who could benefit from sorghum and millet for fodder are reluctant, since their exist- ing practice of using maize fodder gives good results. After extensive interactions, experts noted that a change in Iran’s agriculture toward more sustainable dryland crops would only be success- ful if the entire value chain was considered. Priority areas for collabora- tion emphasize sorghum and millet as alternatives to maize and alfalfa in marginal areas. Another priority discussed was to make chickpea a part of the government’s program to enhance food security, with a strong crop improve- ment component. It was decided that immedi- ate actions will include shar- ing of improved germplasm and genetic material from the ICRISAT genebank. SW