To complement its scientific crop improvement research, the Generation Challenge Programme (GCP) of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) commissioned a series of socio-economic studies, including one entitled Ex-ante impact analysis of marker-assisted selection technologies by G. Norton and colleagues. The study was conducted in Africa and Asia to evaluate the quantitative impact and investments of two GCP projects which utilised marker-assisted breeding to develop improved varieties of rice and cassava. See the studies at http://www.generationcp.org/sp5_impact/sp5main or contact c.devicente@cgiar.org for more information.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recently published Biotechnologies in agriculture and related natural resources to 2015, by A. Arundel and D. Sawaya. The 105-page article provides an overview of the current state of technological development and presents estimates and projections for the types of biotechnologies expected to reach the market for use in agriculture and related natural resources to 2015. It is one of two articles published in a special issue (volume 2009/3) of the periodical OECD Journal: General Papers, written for the Bioeconomy to 2030 project. See http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/19/36/44534300.pdf (2.1 MB) or contact david.sawaya@oecd.org for more information.

The final issue for 2009 of the Scientific and Technical Review, published by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), is now available in open access on the web. The issue contains 28 articles, describing different animal disease surveillance strategies and the control and elimination of important animal diseases. The organisation of Veterinary Services is also discussed, as well as diagnosis and vaccines. See http://www.oie.int/eng/publicat/en_numerosrt.htm (in English, French and Spanish) or contact publications.dept@oie.int for more information about the Review.

At ABDC-10, FAO organized a series of five sector-specific parallel sessions dedicated to case studies of successful applications of biotechnologies in crops, forestry, livestock, fisheries and agro-industry in developing countries, followed by a facilitated discussion. The summary reports of these sessions (as well as all presentations) are available at http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/parallel/en/ (Sessions A.1 to A.5). Contact ABDC@fao.org for more information.

As part of the build up to ABDC-10, FAO prepared an extensive set of sector-specific background documents (numbered ABDC-10/3.1 to ABDC-10/7.1), covering the current status and options for biotechnologies in developing countries in crops, livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture and, finally, in food processing and food safety. Each one was organized in two parts, the first part focusing on learning from the past and the second on preparing for the future. At ABDC-10, a series of five parallel sessions were held where, for each one, the sector-specific document was presented, 2-3 people then provided their reflections on the document before the floor was opened for an open discussion. The summary reports of these sessions (as well as all presentations) are available at http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/parallel/en/ (Sessions B.1 to B.5). Contact ABDC@fao.org for more information.

At ABDC-10, twelve parallel sessions were dedicated to cross-sectoral issues, namely development of genomic resources (Session C.1, organized by the CGIAR); molecular breeding (C.2, CGIAR); conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources (C.3, CGIAR); enhancing human capacities (C.4, a double session organized by the ICGEB); ensuring equitable access to technology (C.5, a double session organized by Oxfam International); empowering public participation in decision-making (C.6, a double session organized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN); prioritizing the role of the farmer (C.7, FAO with support from the International Federation of Agricultural Producers, IFAP); public-private partnerships (C.8, FAO with support from IFAP); policy coherence at the national/regional level (C.9, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, UNCTAD); biosafety in the context of biosecurity (C.10, FAO Nutrition and Consumer Protection Division); intellectual property rights (C.11, World Intellectual Property Organization, WIPO); and non-food uses of plants (C.12, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, UNIDO). The summary reports of these sessions (as well as all presentations) are available at http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/parallel/en/. Contact ABDC@fao.org for more information.

At ABDC-10, a series of regional parallel sessions were held whose scope was to address the potential role of biotechnologies for agricultural development in the different regions, namely Latin America and the Caribbean (Session D.1, organized by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the Technical Cooperation Network on Plant Biotechnology in Latin America and the Caribbean (REDBIO) and the International REDBIO Foundation); West Asia and North Africa (D.2, Association of Agricultural Research Institutions in the Near East and North Africa, AARINENA); Sub-Saharan Africa (D.3, Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa, FARA); Asia and the Pacific (D.4, Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions, APAARI); and Europe and Central Asia (D.5, FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia). The summary reports of these sessions (as well as al presentations) are available at http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/parallel/en/ or contact ABDC@fao.org for more information.

An information document about ABDC-10 has been prepared for the 22nd session of FAO`s Committee on Agriculture (COAG), which takes place on 16-19 June 2010 in Rome, Italy. COAG is a technical committee, whose current membership comprises 130 FAO Members, which meets once every two years and advises the FAO Council on FAOs work relating to agriculture and livestock, food and nutrition. See document COAG 2010/Inf/10 (in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) at http://www.fao.org/UNFAO/Bodies/coag/coag22/index_en.htm or contact biotech-website@fao.org for more information.

The report is now available of the FAO international technical conference on Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10) that took place in Guadalajara, Mexico on 1-4 March 2010. A major objective of the Conference was to take stock of the application of biotechnologies across the different food and agricultural sectors in developing countries, in order to learn from the past and to identify options for the future to face the challenges of food insecurity, climate change and natural resource degradation. ABDC-10 was hosted by the Government of Mexico and co-sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and the World Bank were major partners in this initiative. The Conference was dedicated to agricultural biotechnologies, a term covering a broad range of biotechnologies used in food and agriculture for a variety of different purposes such as the improvement of plant varieties and animal populations to increase their yields or efficiency; characterization and conservation of genetic resources; plant or animal disease diagnosis; vaccine development; and improvement of feeds and the safety of foods. The Conference was cross-sectoral, covering crops, livestock, forestry, agro-industry and fisheries and aquaculture.The ABDC-10 report is available, as document ABDC-10/REPORT, from http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/backdocs/en/ (in English, soon also in Arabic, Chinese, French and Spanish). Contact ABDC@fao.org for more information.

FAO has prepared an extensive series of documents for the FAO international technical conference on Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10) that takes place in Guadalajara, Mexico on 1-4 March 2010. Five of them are sector-specific, covering the current status and options for biotechnologies in developing countries in crops, livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture and, finally, in food processing and food safety. A sixth document deals with policy options for agricultural biotechnologies in developing countries and is organised in three broad sections: targeting agricultural biotechnologies to the poor; enabling policies for agricultural biotechnologies; and ensuring access to the benefits of agricultural biotechnologies. These documents are long and available in English. For each one, an easy-to-read synthesis has also been prepared, and is provided in Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish. A seventh document, building on the previous six documents, has also been published which synthesizes the lessons learned and options available to developing countries for making informed decisions regarding adoption of agricultural biotechnologies within their national food security and rural development plans and policies. It also presents a set of Priorities for Action for the international community regarding agricultural biotechnologies for food security in developing countries, focusing on policy- and capacity-development actions. This document is also provided in five languages. ABDC-10 is hosted by the Government of Mexico and co-sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and the World Bank are major partners in this initiative. See http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/backdocs/ or contact biotech-admin@fao.org for more information.

At the 12th Regular Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA), held at FAO Headquarters, Rome, on 1923 October 2009, item 8.2 on the agenda was dedicated to Application and integration of biotechnologies in the conservation and utilization of genetic resources for food and agriculture. For this item, working document CGRFA-12/09/17 was prepared on FAOs policy and technical assistance on biotechnology for food and agriculture, and matters relevant to codes of conduct, guidelines, or other approaches. The final report of the CGRFA session is now available, and paragraphs 70-74 deal with item 8.2. See the working document and the report at http://www.fao.org/nr/cgrfa/cgrfa-meetings/cgrfa-comm/twelfth-reg/en/ (available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) or contact cgrfa@fao.org for more information.

FAOs Food Quality and Standards Service has recently published GM food safety assessment: Tools for trainers. The training package is composed of three parts. The first, Principles of safety assessment of foods derived from recombinant-DNA plants, provides guidance for the implementation of an effective framework for safety assessment of foods derived from recombinant-DNA plants. The second, Tools and techniques for trainers, offers a practical guide for preparing and delivering a workshop on the topic of safety assessment of foods derived from recombinant-DNA plants. The third, Case studies, presents three safety assessment dossiers that have been summarized for training purposes. The target audience includes national food safety regulators, authorities, and/or scientists tasked with training others to undertake the safety assessment of foods derived from recombinant-DNA plants. See http://www.fao.org/docrep/012/i0110e/i0110e00.htm (in English, French and Spanish) or contact Masami.Takeuchi@fao.org for more information.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission has recently published Foods derived from modern biotechnology, containing texts that represent the outcome of the Commissions work on principles and guidelines for food safety assessment of foods derived from modern biotechnology. The four texts are the Principles for the risk analysis of foods derived from modern biotechnology; Guideline for the conduct of food safety assessment of foods derived from recombinant-DNA plants; Guideline for the conduct of food safety assessment of foods produced using recombinant-DNA micro-organisms; and guideline for the conduct of food safety assessment of foods derived from recombinant-DNA animals. See http://www.fao.org/docrep/011/a1554e/a1554e00.htm (in English, French and Spanish) or contact codex@fao.org for more information.

The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity has published the 6th issue of Biosafety Protocol News. The 23-page issue focuses on Public awareness and participation: Experiences and lessons learned from recent initiatives and contains eight contributions. One of them is on Involving rural communities in regulatory and decision-making processes regarding GMOs: Overview of the outcomes of an FAO e-mail conference on public participation by J. Ruane from the FAO Working Group on Biotechnology. See http://www.cbd.int/doc/newsletters/bpn/bpn-06.pdf or contact bch@cbd.int for more information.

In 2005, the International Futures Programme of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) embarked on a project on `The bioeconomy to 2030: Designing a policy agenda`. The final report has now been published, which examines the range of products and services being impacted by the biological sciences and their potential to further socio-economic goals in OECD and non-OECD countries over the next 20 years. To access background documents, plus the final project report, including its main findings and policy conclusions, see the website. Contact david.sawaya@oecd.org for more information.

The background document to the FAO e-mail conference entitled Learning from the past: Successes and failures with agricultural biotechnologies in developing countries over the last 20 years is now available. The biggest part of the 16-page document provides an overview of the main kinds of agricultural biotechnologies that have been used in the crop, forestry, livestock, fishery and agro-industry sectors in developing countries in the past and that should be covered in the e-mail conference. See http://www.fao.org/biotech/C16doc.htm or contact biotech-admin@fao.org to request a copy. The moderated e-mail conference is open to everyone and runs from 8 June to 5 July 2009. It is hosted by the FAO Biotechnology Forum and is being held as part of the build up to the FAO international technical conference on Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10). To join the Forum (and also register for the conference), send an e-mail to mailserv@mailserv.fao.org and enter the following text on two separate lines:subscribe BIOTECH-Lsubscribe biotech-room4Forum members wishing to register for the conference should leave out the first line of the above message. For more information, contact biotech-mod4@fao.org.