South Perth, Australia
November 24, 2003
|
Nine
Chinese scientists are visiting Western Australia this week
to further develop a major collaborative agreement on wheat
and barley breeding with the
Department of
Agriculture.
Department
crop breeding manager Keith Alcock said the focus was how
Departmental and Chinese scientists could work together in
cereal breeding research and training.
"China
produces five times as much wheat as Australia for its
predominantly domestic market and faces strikingly similar
challenges to Australia with regard to climatic stresses,
hostile soils and disease resistance," Mr Alcock.
"Because
of the importance of agriculture to its economy, China
continues to invest heavily in agricultural science.
|
 |
|
Keith Alcock, Dr Chengdao Li and Dr Tim Setter from the
Department of Agriculture with Dr. Tony Condon from CSIRO
and scientists and staff from Northwest Sci-Tech University
of Agriculture and Forestry (NWSUAF), Yangling, China in
October, 2003. NWSUAF has agreed to develop collaborative
projects on drought tolerance with DAWA. |
"This
commitment provides opportunities for West Australian
researchers to work with their Chinese counterparts in the areas
where there are complementary skills and resources"
The Department
is developing project agreements with seven provinces in China
for research projects including the wheat and barley varieties
that can combat waterlogging, salinity and drought.
The Chinese
delegation will be visiting Department research stations and
offices to gain first hand knowledge of the Department's
capacity to deliver leading edge science in the search for
improved varieties. |
