A few weeks ago, very good news for Argentine agriculture was announced: drought-resistant soybeans reached the market. Now the same technology must be approved for wheat cultivation. In the meantime, on Thursday, November 15, a conference on the HB4 event will be held in the town of Pergamino. The slogan will be: "The event that changes the history of wheat is coming, and you can be in the front row".
With HB4 technology, discovered by Conicet researcher Raquel Chan, plants have a higher tolerance in periods of drought and a much higher yield. As a differential, this gene improves the ability of plants to adapt to stressful situations, without affecting their productivity.
In the case of HB4 wheat, although favorable opinions have already been obtained from both the National Advisory Commission on Agricultural Biotechnology (CONABIA) and the National Agrifood Health and Quality Service (SENASA), its release depends on the National Directorate of Agricultural Markets, which is analyzing the commercial impact of being the first country in the world to release a wheat with these characteristics.
The conference in Pergamino is organized by Trigall Genetics, a joint venture formed by Bioceres and the French firm Florimond Desprez to develop and commercialize wheat varieties with second generation biotechnologies in South America, and will focus on the agronomic prospects opened up by this new generation of wheat. In addition, some results of field trials on drought tolerance and weed control with Prominens® will be shown.
The complete program is detailed below:
10.30 am. Reception and accreditation.
11.00 hs. Presentation of HB4® technology.
11.45 am. Weed experts: New problems.
12.10 hs. Tour of HB4® Wheat demonstration plots.
13.00 hs. Panel discussion: "Genetically modified wheat in Argentina".
