California’s S&W Seed Company and Calyxt Inc., a Minnesota-based company focusing on developing healthier food products, announce they have entered into a collaboration agreement to research, develop, produce and commercialize alfalfa seed products involving next-generation gene editing technology on S&W’s industry-leading alfalfa seed genetics. Calyxt’s technology allows for the custom gene editing of plant species to create novel traits and increase value.
In particular, Calyxt will be applying its patented nuclease technology to develop a series of alfalfa seed products based on editing of native genes to improve the agronomic and quality value of alfalfa for the food and agriculture industries. The approach is based on the same principle as classical cross-breeding of different plants, but the gene editing technology developed by Calyxt dramatically accelerates the development timeline, the company says.
“This agreement with Calyxt continues to position S&W at the forefront of alfalfa seed research and development. The Calyxt technology allows for the development of unique traits in alfalfa seeds,” says Mark Grewal, chief executive officer of S&W Seed Company.
