Agriculture is under pressure to increase production while also mitigating and responding to climate change. Innovative approaches such as precision breeding are therefore becoming increasingly important.
A Platform to Rate Organisms Bred for Improved Trait and Yield (PROBITY) will see precision-bred crop varieties being trialled and scrutinised by farmers, scientists and food manufacturers in an open and transparent forum.
A new initiative invites farmers and others from across the industry to engage in a nationwide discussion on precision bred crops and their potential impact on UK agriculture.
As the Government moves forward with legislation to support precision breeding, the #PROBITYPledge campaign will provide farmers with accurate information and a platform to voice their opinions.
Precision-bred crops can be created through gene editing, a widely used technology that enables scientists to make changes to plant DNA, like those that occur naturally, but introduced in a precise, targeted manner. Gene editing speeds up the process of breeding more productive, nutritional and sustainable crop varieties.
The #PROBITYPledge campaign asks farmers to pledge a minimum of one hour in the next six months, to learn about precision breeding and share views via The Sequence Circle online forum.
Tom Allen-Stevens says: “This is a topic which will have an enormous impact on sustainable food and farming, so it’s important to make time to discuss it.
“As farmers we are the gatekeepers of precision-breeding technology and must lead the discussion on how it is introduced to create a trusted pathway for food manufacturers to deliver its potential benefits to consumers.
“We want to hear diverse views – what do you think, what are your hopes and fears are for precision breeding, and what questions do you have about gene editing?
“Our Sequence Circle community hosted on The Farming Forum includes some incredible scientists who are well placed to help answer those questions.”
Anyone with an interest in the future or food and farming is welcome to make the #PROBITYPledge, sign up and get involved with learning and discussing this technology, he added.
Contributions to The Sequence Circle hosted on The Farming Forum will be used (anonymously) by researchers, so those signing up need to be over 18 years of age.
PROBITY is a three-year £2.2m farmer-led project with 12 research and industry partners. It is funded by Defra’s Farming Innovation Programme which is delivered by Innovate UK. Project number: 10097973.
Visit probityproject.co.uk to find out more.
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Will you take the #PROBITYPledge?
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