The ultimate aim of plant breeding has always been to make plants
resistant to drought and diseases. That could help eliminate hunger
around the world. This is no longer a distant thought, thanks to a
technology called CRISPR-Cas. Today Wageningen University & Research
(WUR) announces it will provide potential partners with free licenses to
work on its patented CRISPR technology. The license must be applied to
gene-editing of plants for non-profit applications. �??We hope this
contributes to healthier, more sustainable, equitable, affordable and
resilient food production for all�?�, says WUR President prof. dr. ir.
Louise O. Fresco.

CRISPR-Cas is a technology that enables genetic material to be changed
relatively simply, very accurately and efficiently. Worldwide there are
over 3.000 CRISPR-Cas related patents, of which WUR also holds several.
For five of them (which are jointly owned with Dutch Research Council
NWO), WUR decided to provide free licenses.An article in Nature
[doi.org] published right after
the announcement.

WUR gives away CRISPR intellectual property licenses for free in fight
against hunger - WUR
[www.wur.nl]