Agricultural biotechnology has a key role to play in helping Europe reach
its ambitious carbon reduction targets and assisting farmers to better adapt
to a shifting climate, according to a briefing (1) released today by the
European Association for BioIndustries during a round table on climate
change at the European Parliament.

Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, Member of the European Parliament, and one of the
speakers at the roundtable, said, ?Agriculture biotech definitely has a role
to play in Europe?s fight against climate change. With over ten years
experience of commercial biotech planting, it is very important to have an
open and balanced debate in Europe on the contribution that modern
agriculture technologies could make to help European farmers face today?s
challenges.?

?Farmers must respond to increased demand for food. We need access to modern
technologies that help us to remain competitive. At the same time we have to
protect our fragile environment? said Pekka Pesonen, Secretary General of
COPA-COGECA and a speaker at the roundtable.

Europe wants and needs to meet the ever increasing demand for food while
mitigating the effects of agriculture on climate change. Ag biotech can
contribute to meeting these goals by reducing the production of greenhouse
gases, helping crops adapt to varied and often adverse environments and by
helping to increase yields while using fewer hectares of land and other
inputs.

?If we want to feed people and create a viable bio-based economy without
destroying our resources, we must use science and technology to support
agriculture? said Willy De Greef, Secretary General of EuropaBio. ?European
farmers must be given the right to choose to grow GM crops. The benefits
from ag biotech will only be seen in Europe as GM crops are more widely
adopted and farmers are given the right to choose to grow them? he
concluded.

(1) Green Biotechnology & Climate Change:
[www.europabio.org]%...
&
www.checkbiotech.org