Australia and New Zealand
May 25, 2007
CSIRO Plant Industry has signed a collaborative agreement
with AgResearch, New
Zealand’s largest Crown Research Institute.
Both organisations have significant expertise and experience in
farming and crop research, and plant biotechnology and will seek
to jointly identify and undertake plant research projects of
common interest to benefit the agricultural sector.
CSIRO Plant Industry Chief, Dr Jeremy Burdon, says a number of
areas of common interest have already been identified.
“With AgResearch we will look to embark on areas of plant-based
research where we can bring our respective strengths and
expertise together to become a leading force that delivers
mutual benefits to our countries’ agricultural sectors,” says Dr
Burdon.
“Research under way at AgResearch and CSIRO Plant Industry is
complementary – there’s no duplication of research, only scope
for expansion.”
The Heads of Agreement document signed in Canberra earlier this
week states the organisations’ intention to collaborate on
research and development workshops, technician exchange
programmes, seminar programmes, conferences and research and
development projects.
“That relationship has already generated some impressive results
including the highly successful sequencing of the bovine genome
that was completed last year in collaboration with several
prestigious research organisations in North America and Europe,”
Dr Goldson says.Eventually it may also involve the
commercialisation of the outcomes of collaborative research and
development projects.
AgResearch Chief Science Strategist Dr Stephen Goldson says he
hopes the agreement will bring benefits similar to those gained
from AgResearch’s growing relationship with CSIRO Livestock
Industries.
“It is logical that organisations such as ours should try to
collaborate wherever possible. Combined R&D power gives us a
critical mass and global reach, making us an international force
in agricultural research and plant biotechnology,” he says.
“It makes sense to foster this relationship. Australia is our
closest neighbour and, with comparable pressures on primary
producers, Australian farmers share many of the same issues as
New Zealand ones. It makes sense to share information and avoid
duplication of research activities.”
Other news
from
AgResearch |
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“That
relationship has already
generated some impressive
results including the highly
successful sequencing of the
bovine genome that was completed
last year in collaboration with
several prestigious research
organisations in North America
and Europe,”
Dr Goldson says. |
|
