F&BKP Office

Senior Experts, employed by Dutch research organizations and involved in CGIAR research or management, are offered a chance to spend (more) time on their CGIAR activities. The call to cover some of their personnel costs has been reopened with an adjustment in requirements for the Senior Expert. The deadline for the next assessment round is June 4, 2019. »

This Oxfam research report finds that 60% of the 126 LMIC countries for which data was available allow for the patenting of plants or parts thereof, despite the flexibilities of the WTO TRIPS Agreement regarding the non-patentability of plants. Oxfam is concerned that the growing number and scope of patents on plants, plant parts and DNA sequences will threaten Food and Nutrition Security by blocking the free availability of these materials for further breeding and re-planting by all stakeholders. »

Global seed companies are adapting their products to combat the impact of climate change and address nutrition needs. But limited access to quality seed in many emerging economies persists, with the global seed industry reaching just 10% of the world’s smallholder farmers, according to a new study. »

Nine projects are funded by NWO-WOTRO to strengthen the Netherlands-CGIAR research partnership on generating insights that contribute to improving seed systems in focus regions within Asia and Sub-Sahara Africa. 
This article was first published on December 21, 2018: additional information on the project consortia has been added on February 20, 2019.  »