LONDON, England (RFD News) — Gene editing and precision-bred crops are gaining momentum in Europe as regulatory changes create new opportunities for agricultural innovation.
Dr. Peter Beetham, co-founder and president of Cibus, attended the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London. He joined us on Thursday’s Market Day Report to recap the event, where discussions focused on gene editing, regulation, trade, and the next generation of crop traits.
“The big takeaway for us is that it’s the most exciting world agricultural technology conference I think I’ve been to in a long time,” Beetham said in his interview with RFD News.
The summit comes months after the European Union approved new legislation governing precision-bred crops. Beetham says the changes are already generating interest among farmers and seed companies.
“It has been a big year for us because on the regulatory front Europe has been working on this for a number of years,” Beetham said. “That has sparked a lot of innovation, a lot of interest.”
Beetham says European farmers are looking for traits that can improve productivity while helping reduce input costs. Cibus is developing traits focused on areas including disease resistance and nutrient-use efficiency.
“We’re very much focused on productivity traits, helping farmers, when they plant their seed, they can reduce their inputs and increase their profitability but also maintain their productivity,” Beetham said.
Nutrient-use efficiency could be particularly valuable as fertilizer costs remain a concern for farmers. Beetham says the technology could let farmers use less fertilizer while maintaining productivity, or use the same amount more efficiently.
“You can actually use less fertilizer and have the same productivity, or use the same amount of fertilizer and increase your productivity,” Beetham said.
Beetham says gene editing will be part of a broader approach to agricultural technology, working alongside automation, robotics, biologicals and biostimulants.
“Gene editing is part of the holistic approach to improving agriculture,” he said.
He expects clearer regulatory pathways to encourage additional investment and development across the agricultural technology sector.
“I do see a really big resurgence of new technologies that surround what we’re doing at Cibus with gene editing,” Beetham said.
