Ræða á ráðstefnunni Public Private Partnership Seminar and Partner meeting on Visions for Nordic Pre-breeding Collaboration, 27. febrúar 2014

ATH: Talað orð gildir

Ladies and gentlemen

I welcome you to this Public Private Partnership Seminar and Partner meeting on Visions for Nordic Pre-breeding Collaboration, which is being organised with support from the Icelandic Chairmanship of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Nordic cooperation in the field of agricultural research is more than a century old and has its basis in NJF – “the Nordic Association of Agricultural Scientists”. It has played an important role in the development and strength of Nordic agriculture and for a small country like Iceland it has been particularly valuable for the advancement of modern agriculture. One of the crucial things has been the selection of suitable plant material for the harsh Icelandic environment where Iceland has indeed benefitted from the long standing breeding efforts of our Nordic neighbours.

Plant breeding is a key element in developing a sustainable bio-economy. Obtaining food security for a growing global population depends on an increasingly efficient plant production, either directly for food and feed, or indirectly for the provision of materials and energy. In the age of global food trade,  it is easy to forget that food security cannot be bought. Every region must be ready to meet the risk of future food crisis, by maintaining and developing effective agriculture.

 It is therefore important to stimulate continuous plant breeding efforts and a well-functioning seed sector if we want to succeed in our future ambitions.

New knowledge of the function of genes and the organization of the plant genome is vital for developing sustainable, genetic solutions through breeding of our crop plants. It allows us to address the challenge of climate change, and here the Nordic collaboration has a special task to secure the development of adapted varieties to the Nordic climates, and to make sure that Nordic crops maintain their competitiveness in future agriculture.

In spite of large differences from the arctic north to the warmer south, from the rainy west to the dryer, more continental east of the Nordic countries, our special part of the world, with 20-24 hours of light in midsummer, cannot rely on imported seeds from other parts of the world. We cannot expect other countries to do our job. We must secure that Nordic plant breeding has access to the necessary genetic variation and to the state of the art technology.

The Nordic Council of Ministers initiated the Nordic Public Private Partnership for Pre-breeding in 2011. The purpose of the partnership is to support the development of Nordic plant breeding and thus satisfy the long-term needs of the agricultural and horticultural industries.

The PPP collaboration is built on a dialogue that originally took place between the agricultural ministries, plant breeding industries and academia back in 2008 to 2009. This basis has served well, but now it is time to prepare an overall Nordic strategy for pre-breeding work both at Nordic and national level. The Icelandic chairmanship in 2014 has prioritised Nordic Bioeconomy, and the seminar today will provide valuable input for discussions on this future strategy for the Public Private Partnership breeding collaboration and network, which is an important basis for the future bio-based economy in a broader sense.

Agricultural sciences, plant genetics and the complex background for our food production have become increasingly distant from the common Nordic citizen. As a former veterinerian, educated in Danmark, practicing in Southern Iceland, I know from my own experience, the challenges faced by farmers in the Nordic region. Effective breeding material is one of the vital elements of successful farming – not only in this region but everywhere in the world.

I therefore, wish you a fruitful and productive seminar and workshop for the next two days. I look forward to receiving the conclusions from the seminar and I am certain that they will serve us well when we come to discuss the future of the Nordic PPP collaboration at the summer meeting of the Nordic agricultural ministers here in Iceland in June.