Source: Christian Breuer, PtJ
On June 27-28 2019, a Joint Exploratory Workshop on Application of Novel Breeding Techniques in Crops was held at the National Institute for Agricultural and Food Research and Technology (INIA) in Madrid, Spain.
The aim of this workshop was to assess the current state of the art of novel crop breeding techniques in Europe, to identify major challenges and opportunities on this topic in the light of food security and climate change and to get specific recommendations for FACCE-JPI/ERA-Net SusCrop future contributions and actions.
The workshop successfully brought together 47 participants representing different European actors in the field of novel crop breeding techniques including representatives from academia, the breeding industry and funding organisations as well as policy makers. Several keynote lectures and presentations by the different actors provided a comprehensive overview of the current research undertaken in this field and successfully set the scene for the accompanying breakout sessions. During the breakout sessions all participants were strongly involved in lively discussions to identify specific challenges, needs, research gaps and future opportunities for crop breeding in the EU.