U.S. Sorghum Group Invests in Technology Boost
By Carey Gillam
Published: KANSAS CITY, Mo., November 16, 2006 (Reuters)
U.S. sorghum growers and a California crop technology company have hooked up to develop a biotech sorghum that tolerates weed-killing treatments much like popular transgenic soybeans and corn but without the drawbacks, the grower group said on Thursday.
"It is a huge opportunity for us," said National Sorghum Producers Chief Executive Tim Lust, who estimated grassy weed problems cost producers about 20-30 percent of yield potential.
The sorghum growers signed a deal with San Diego-based Cibus to help finance research and development work totaling up to $5 million to improve sorghum, including development of the herbicide-tolerant trait.
Cibus has developed a process that replicates the attributes of certain transgenic crops by chemically induced gene mutation and molecular manipulation without the introduction of foreign genetic material, according to Cibus President Keith Walker.
For the sorghum industry, which has seen acreage decline as producers struggle to stay profitable, a specialized sorghum seed that would tolerate applications of herbicide could significantly boost yields, Lust said. Moreover, increasing demand for ethanol is seen boosting demand for sorghum along with corn.
Monsanto Co., DuPont Co., Dow Chemical Co. and others have been leading work on developing disease-resistance, herbicide-resistance, drought-tolerance, and other traits in key crops like soybeans, corn, canola and cotton.
But there has been less attention paid to sorghum, which was planted on only 6.28 million acres in 2006, down 3 percent from 2005 and the lowest since at least 1929. By comparison, corn acres in 2006 totaled about 80 million, and soybeans were planted on about 75 million acres, according to USDA.
Critics say that transgenic foods could hurt human health and the environment.
The sorghum growers' partnership also marks a fresh entry into the fast-moving world of biotech crop development. The backers hope that because the Cibus technology does not involve transferring genes from one species to another, it will remain free of the controversy that has dogged GMO foods.
Greg Jaffe, biotech project director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which has raised concerns about biotech foods, said he was "cautiously optimistic" about Cibus' technology.
"If you are going in and playing with the DNA you still want to be sure it is safe for humans and for the environment," said Jaffe, who has reviewed the technology with Cibus officials.
