Indonesia Oks GMO drought-tolerant wheat from Argentina's Bioceres

Bioceres Crop Solutions

16/03/2023 22:25

By Maximilian Heath
       BUENOS AIRES, March 16 (Reuters) - The Indonesian
government has approved a variety of GMO wheat for human
consumption designed to better resist drought, leading Argentine
biotech firm Bioceres Crop Solutions Corp  BIOX.O  and developer
of the HB4 wheat told Reuters on Thursday.
    The latest HB4 wheat authorization moves beyond the
genetically modified grain's approved use in animal feed, and
comes at a time when a large swath of Argentina's
most-productive farmland has been hard hit by historic drought
conditions.
    The authorization by the Asian country marks a milestone for
GMO wheat, which was considered taboo among many consumers until
just a few years ago, but has gained more acceptance due in part
to concerns about food security and climate change.
    Indonesia is the largest global wheat importer along with
Egypt, while Argentina is one of the world's top grains
suppliers.
     According to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
forecast, Indonesian buyers are expected to purchase 11 million
tonnes of wheat in the current 2022/2023 harvesting season. 
    Indonesia has become Argentina's second largest wheat
importer, behind Brazil, with Argentine wheat exports to the
Asian country reaching 1.34 million tonnes last year, according
to official data.
    The GMO authorization follows a market approval by Brazil
earlier this month.
    Bioceres Chief Executive Federico Trucco told Reuters last
week that the company plans to increase production of its
proprietary HB4 variety in Argentina, adding the company plans
to mainly focus on working with "seed multipliers" to increase
seed reserves.

    <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
ACTUALIZA 1-Brasil aprueba el cultivo de trigo transgénico   
 ID:nL1N35B114 
Bioceres comercializará trigo GMO en Argentina este año tras
aprobación en Brasil: presidente ejecutivo     ID:nL1N35F2PG 
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
 (Reporting by Maximilian Heath; Editing by David Alire Garcia
and Sandra Maler)
 ((mailto:carolina.pulice@thomsonreuters.com;))