DHAKA, Dec 13, 2017 (BSS) – Bangladesh will soon introduce ‘3R-gene potato’, a genetically modified organism (GMO) or biotech potato variety, which would save 25-28 percent production cost as the BT variety is late-blight disease resistant, a fungal disease.
The announcement came while the launching ceremony of a project “Feed the Future Biotechnology Potato Partnership” held at the conference room of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) here this morning.
To this end, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) and Michigan State University on November 3, this year to carry out research to produce and steward the three-gene potato for distribution to low-income farmers and commercialization.
“The launch of the 3R-gene potato variety would save almost 25-28 percent production cost which is being spent by the farmers for protecting the potato crop from the devastating late blight fungal disease,” said Dr Abul Kalam Azad, Director-General (DG), Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI), the implementing agency of the research partnership project.
Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury spoke at the function as the chief guest while BARC’s Executive Chairman Baghya Rani Banik and Project Director of Michigan State University, USA Professor Dr David Douches as the special guests.
Additional Secretary of the Agriculture Ministry Mohammad Nazmul Islam presided over the meeting.
In developing conventional GMO crops, one R-gene is inserted to the crop variety, but the new variety three-R gene isolated from the wild species of potatoes in combination develop very strong resistance, said Baghya Rani.
The Biotechnology Potato Partnership is a five-year, $5.8 million project funded by the USAID. The project consists of two institutional partnerships, one in Bangladesh and the other in Indonesia.
Considering the superiority of potato over rice and wheat, the agriculture minister said, “Bangladesh Potato farmers sprayed fungicides of Taka 100 crore in a season for saving the potato crop from the devastating ‘late blight’ disease, adding that the fungicides cause air and environment pollution and increase risk to farmers’ health. But the GM potato could be the ultimate solution of these health hazards.”
At present, Bangladesh ranks 7th in the world record of potato production, while it ranks 3rd in Asia. Potato is now the 2nd important food crop of Bangladesh, next to rice, in respect of production.