February 18, 2016 Summaries of presentations: Opening plenary session and parallel sessions FAO International Symposium on “The Role of Agricultural Biotechnologies in Sustainable Food Systems and Nutrition” 15- 17 February, 2016 The international symposium will explore how the application of science and technology, particularly agricultural biotechnologies, can benefit smallholders in developing sustainable food systems and improving nutrition in the context of climate change. The symposium takes a multisectoral approach, covering the crop, livestock, forestry and fishery sectors. It also aims to cover the wide spectrum of available biotechnologies, including microbial food fermentation, tissue culture in plants, reproductive technologies in livestock, use of molecular markers, genetic modification and other technologies. The symposium takes place over two and a half days, with keynote speakers addressing the opening plenary session on 15 February. A high-level ministerial segment will take place on 16 February. Three parallel sessions will also be held each day and the symposium will close on 17 February 2016 with a final plenary session where outcomes from the parallel sessions will be reported. All parallel session speakers and opening plenary speakers have been asked to provide a 2 page summary (1000 words) of their presentation. This document provides these summaries. The agenda for the keynote speeches and parallel sessions is provided below with hyperlinks to each speaker’s summary. If a summary is available, the name of the speaker will be in blue text. CTRL+ Click on the author’s name to go directly to their summary. At the end of each summary there is another hyperlink to return to the top of the document. This document will be updated to include new speaker summaries. Please see the symposium website (http://www.fao.org/about/meetings/agribiotechs-symposium/en/) for the latest version. 49 out of a total 51 summaries are now provided 1 February 18, 2016 Monday 15th February 2016 09.30-12.30: Plenary Session, Green Room Welcome address by José Graziano da Silva, Director-General, FAO, Rome, Italy Keynote addresses: 1. The state of knowledge in biotechnology, by Louise Fresco, President, Executive Board of Wageningen UR, Wageningen, the Netherlands 2. Towards ending the misplaced global debate on biotechnology, by Gebisa Ejeta, Distinguished Professor, Purdue University, West Lafayette, United States of America 3. Biotechnologies in action in Brazil, by Mauricio Lopes, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Brasília, Brazil 4. Breakthroughs in resource productivity, by Gunter Pauli, Founder, Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives Network, Japan 14.00-17.00: Parallel Sessions Sheikh Zayed Centre Red Room Green Room 1.1 Facing the challenges of climate 2.1 Improving productivity through 3.1 Social and economic impacts of agricultural change: Adaptation in the crop and enhanced resource use efficiency biotechnologies for smallholders: Taking stock forestry sectors Chair: Sergio Feingold of the evidence and prioritizing future Chair: Chittaranjan Kole Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia assessments Jacob School of Biotechnology & Agropecuaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina Chair: Sachin Chaturvedi Bioengineering, Allahabad, India Co-chair: Thuy Nguyen Research and Information System for Developing Introductory Remarks (5’) BioSciences Research Division, Melbourne, Countries, New Delhi, India Chittaranjan Kole Australia Co-chair: Eduardo Trigo 1.1.1 Introductory Remarks (5’) Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Abdelbagi Ismail Thuy Nguyen Innovation, Buenos Aires, Argentina Developing rice varieties with 2.1.1 Introductory Remarks (5’) enhanced adaptation to lowland Sibin Yu Sachin Chaturvedi farming systems: Case studies from Resource use efficiency in crops: “Green Super Introductory Remarks (5’) South Asia (20’) Rice” to increase water and nitrogen use Eduardo Trigo 1.1.2 efficiency of rice (25’) 3.1.1 Yoseph Beyene 2.1.2 David Spielman Harnessing agricultural biotechnology Sean Mayes Evidence-based policy-making: The role of for resilience to climate change: A Resource use efficiency in vegetables: impact assessment studies and their implications lesson from water efficient maize for Application of molecular breeding to bambara for agricultural biotechnologies (25') Africa project (20’) groundnut, an underutilised crop for low-input 3.1.2 1.1.3 agriculture (25’) Andrea Sonnino Douglas Cook 2.1.3 Lessons learned from case studies of applying Molecular breeding in legumes for David Penman biotechnologies for smallholders (15’) resource-poor farmers: Chickpea for Resource use efficiency in fish: Application of 3.1.3 Ethiopia and India (20’) biotechnology in genetic improvement in Jikun Huang 1.1.4 tropical aquaculture (25’) Evidence at work: Country experience in the use Ciro De Pace 2.1.4 of evidence in policy-making on agricultural Genomic approaches for dissecting Denis Mujibi biotechnologies (15’) fitness traits in forest tree landscapes Resource use efficiency in livestock: Bridging 3.1.4 (20’) the biotechnology-livestock productivity gap in Narayan Hegde East Africa Factors that determine whether biotechnologies 1.1.5 2.1.5 can have positive impacts on the livelihoods of Sally Aitken Judy Loo smallholders: Examples from India (15’) Use of genomics for understanding and Resource use efficiency in forestry: Utilisation improving adaptation to climate of tree genetic resources (25’) change in forest trees (20’) Discussion (45’) moderated by Dominic Glover Discussion (95‘) moderated by Eduardo Trigo Institute of Development Studies, Brighton, Closing Remarks (5’) Sachin Chaturvedi Discussion (70’) moderated by United Kingdom Chittaranjan Kole Closing Remarks (5’) Chittaranjan Kole Closing Remarks (5’) Sergio Feingold 2 February 18, 2016 Tuesday 16th February 2016 09.30-12.30: Parallel Sessions Sheikh Zayed Centre Red Room Green Room 1.2 Facing the challenges of climate 2.2 Post production value addition and food safety 3.2 Public policies, strategies and change: Adaptation in the livestock and (2 sub-sessions) regulations on agricultural fishery sectors Chair sub-session 1: Sergio Feingold biotechnologies Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria, Buenos Chair: Vimlendra Sharan Chair: Shadrack Moephuli Aires, Argentina Agricultural Research Council, Pretoria, Chair sub-session 2: Delia Grace Introductory Remarks (5’) South Africa International Livestock Research Institute, Nairobi, Vimlendra Sharan Co-chair: Thuy Nguyen Kenya BioSciences Research Division, Sub-session 1: Enhancing value in the post-production 3.2.1 Melbourne, Australia phase Rodrigo Sara Introductory Remarks (5’) Introductory Remarks (5’) Sergio Feingold The role of intellectual property rights in Thuy Nguyen 2.2a.1 enabling or impeding the application of 1.2.1 Cavaba Srinivas Prasad agricultural biotechnologies, with special Panya Sae-Lim Use of feed additives generated through fermentation reference to developing country Fish breeding for future environments technologies for livestock feed (20’) agriculture (15’) under climate change (20’) 2.2a.2 Eric van de Weg 3.2.2 1.2.2 Use of biotechnologies to increase the storability and Adrianne Massey Sandra Adams shelf life of fruit (20’) Regulation and intellectual property of Development of diagnostic tools and 2.2a.3 agricultural biotechnologies: vaccines for aquatic animals (20’) Howard-Yana Shapiro Perspectives from the private sector 1.2.3 Applying agricultural biotechnology tools and (15’) Paul Boettcher capabilities to enhance food security and nutrition from local food crops to stimulate sustainable income Biotechnologies for animal breeding and 3.2.3 coping with climate change (20’) opportunities for small holder farmers to reduce poverty. (20’) Guy Kastler Discussion (20’) and sub-session closing remarks (5’) Regulation and intellectual property of agricultural biotechnologies: 1.2.4 moderated by Sergio Feingold Perspectives from the civil society (15’) Ulrich Meyer Sub-session 2: Using biotechnologies to ensure the Use of biotechnologies to improve feed safety of food quantity and quality: Adaptation to the Introductory Remarks (5’) Delia Grace changing climate from the animal 2.2b.1 3.2.4 nutrition perspective (20’) Kohei Makita Eduardo Trigo Traditional milk fermentation as a potential tool for The challenges of developing national 1.2.5 sustainable improvement of food safety’ (20’) policies and regulations for agricultural Jean de Foucauld 2.2b.2 biotechnologies: Reflections from Livestock vaccines: development and Ranajit Bandyopadhyay cumulative experience (15’) market access Aflasafe: a case study for aflatoxin reduction in crops 3.2.5 (20’) 1.2.6 Dominic Glover Farai Muchadeyi How to ensure that policies, strategies A landscape genomics approach in 2.2b.3 and regulations on agricultural unravelling adaptive genetic diversity in Flábio Ribeiro de Araújo biotechnologies act to benefit goats: A case study of South Africa (20’) Diagnostic tools to detect pathogens causing smallholders (15’) Discussion (50’) moderated by Shadrack tuberculosis in cattle and prevent their transmission Moephuli through dairy products to humans (20’) Discussion (80’) moderated by Discussion (20’) and sub-session closing remarks (5’) Vimlendra Sharan Closing remarks (5’) Shadrack Moephuli moderated by Delia Grace Closing remarks (5’) Vimlendra Sharan 3 February 18, 2016 Wednesday 17th February 2016 09.00-12.00: Parallel Sessions Sheikh Zayed Centre Red Room Green Room 1.3 How can biotechnologies