-- Technology Donation to Foster Environmentally Sustainable Increase
in Food Security and Productivity of African Farmers --
Arcadia Biosciences, Inc., an agricultural technology company focused on
products that benefit the environment and human health, and the African
Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF), a not-for-profit organization
focused on the access and delivery of new agricultural technologies for
African smallholder farmers, have entered into a licensing agreement for
the use of Arcadia´s technologies to develop
rice varieties that will be available royalty-free to smallholder
farmers in Africa. Under the agreement, AATF receives a license to
Arcadia´s Nitrogen Use Efficiency (NUE) and
Salt Tolerance technologies for use in African rice. As part of Arcadia´s
stated commitment to agricultural and environmental improvement in the
developing world, the company will not receive monetary compensation for
the research and commercial rights granted in the agreement. In
addition, Arcadia will complete the early-stage research and development
work for the project and will provide improved rice lines to African
research collaborators for field-testing.
Rice is one of the largest and most important food sources in Africa.
Rice consumption in West Africa is growing by almost 10 percent
annually, while production is only growing by about 4 percent. Rice
consumption on the entire African continent is growing by 6 percent
annually and has created an annual shortage of 6.5 million metric tons
which is imported at a cost of about USD 1.7 billion. According to the
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), farmers in
Sub-Saharan Africa produce between 12 and 17 million metric tons of rice
annually. Most of this rice is produced and consumed by small-scale
farmers.
The problem for Africa goes beyond high demand and low yields for rice.
Many African soils have inherently poor fertility because they have been
farmed for very long periods of time without adequate nutrient
replenishment. A report presented at the 2006 African Fertilizer Summit
states that land use and management practices, and a lack of nutrient
inputs, have led to a decline in productivity, increased soil erosion
and salinization in many parts of Africa.
The goal of the agreement between Arcadia and AATF is to increase rice
productivity, improve profitability for African farmers, and benefit the
environment. Having demonstrated that NUE Rice can achieve high yields
with 50 percent less nitrogen fertilizer than conventional rice, and
that Salt Tolerant rice may reduce the demand for scarce fresh water
supplies, NUE and Salt Tolerant African Rice can have a major positive
impact on African rice farming, food security, and human health.
"The availability of new agricultural
technologies to African farmers has historically been slow because of
issues around development costs and intellectual property ownership. The
partnership between Arcadia and AATF is designed to solve both of these
issues," said Eric Rey, president and CEO of
Arcadia. "Plant yields respond to nitrogen
fertilization, but plants are generally inefficient absorbers of
nitrogen. Because of this, farmers in highly developed countries often
apply more fertilizer than plants are able to absorb. In Africa, the
on-farm price of nitrogen fertilizer is very high due to importation and
supply chain costs. Because of this, the amount of nitrogen fertilizer
required to significantly improve yields is cost-prohibitive for many
African farmers. Similarly, fresh water is a precious and scarce
commodity in Africa, and the ability to irrigate crops with salty water
can improve productivity, reduce irrigation costs, and make more fresh
water available for human consumption. We believe that NUE and Salt
Tolerant African Rice will provide substantial economic benefits to
smallholder African farmers by reducing total input costs and increasing
yields. This can all happen without increasing the environmental
footprint of rice production."
"Ëœ´Strategic
partnerships between public and private sector organizations are key to
setting in motion the process of access, adaptation and delivery of
technologies that will raise the productivity of smallholder farming
systems,´´ said
Mpoko Bokanga, executive director AATF. "Ëœ´The
license granted by Arcadia presents an opportunity for smallholder
farmers to access technologies that will address low rice productivity
characterized by low soil nitrogen and high soil salinity and AATF will
share these technologies with research institutions and seed multipliers
in Africa to ensure that farmers benefit from these technologies,´´ he added.
After Arcadia completes the transformation of NUE and Salt Tolerant
African Rice, AATF will work with its regional development partners to
breed rice varieties that are most effective for local environmental
conditions and then distribute to local growers.
Arcadia and AATF expect NUE and Salt Tolerant African Rice to be first
available by 2016.
About Arcadia Biosciences, Inc.
Based in Davis, Calif., with additional facilities in Seattle, Wash. and
Phoenix, Ariz., Arcadia Biosciences is an agricultural biotechnology
company focused on the development of agricultural products that improve
the environment and enhance human health. For more information visit www.arcadiabio.com.
The African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) is an
African-led charity designed to facilitate and promote public/private
partnerships for the access and delivery of appropriate proprietary
technologies with potential to increase the productivity of
resource-poor smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa. (www.aatf-africa.org).
